LEGISLATIVE SERVICE.

While Harry Bingham was preeminently a lawyer-so regarded by men of his own time and, undoubtedly, so to be regarded by the historical student in the years to come - he was nevertheless conspicuous as a legislator. A careful and extended examination of the record reveals the name of no man in the state whose service in the Legislature covered so long a period of time as that of Mr. Bingham, and if there has been any such, he must have served in the early days. Certainly, no man serving cotemparaneously with him at any time had so long an experience in legislative work, or gained so wide distinction for efficient service. Between the years 1861 and 1893, Mr. Bingham was twenty times elected to the New Hampshire Legislature, either as a representative or senator, all but two of these elections being for service in the former capacity, which record, it may safely be asserted, can be matched by that of no other man of his time. The nearest approach to it is to be found in the cases of the late Hon. George W. M. Pitman* of Bartlett, who was twelve times elected to the House and twice to the Senate, his first election being as a representative in the Legislature of 1853, and his last, also to the House, for the Legislature of 1893-'94, and of Gen. Gilman Marston of Exeter who was fourteen times elected to the House. Daniel M. Christie of Dover was elected to the House twelve times, but never served in the Senate.

The late Hon. John G. Sinclairt of Bethlehem probably

*George W. M. Pitman, born in Bartlett May 8, 1819, died in that town December 3, 1898. He was a surveyor, lawyer and merchant, and long prominent in town, county and state affairs, being a leader of the Democratic party, in his section of the state. He served in the House of Representatives in 1853-4-5-6-7-9 and in 1863-4-5-8-9; in the Senate in 1870 and 1871, being president the latter year, and in the House again in 1893-'94. He was judge of probate for Carroll County from 1874 to 1876, and served in the Constitutional Conventions of 1850, 1876 and 1889, a distinction which, it is said, no other citizen of the state enjoyed.

†John G. Sinclair was born in Barnstead March 25, 1826, and died in Bethlehem June 27, 1899. He was educated in the common schools and at Newbury (Vt.) Seminary. He located in Bethlehem in early manhood, where he engaged in trade, and in hotel keeping, establishing the

ranked next, having served as a representative in the Legislature nine times from that town and once from Littleton, and twice in the state Senate from the old Twelfth District. Hon James W. Emery was ten times elected to the House from Portsmouth, and Samuel B. Page* of Haverhill, recently deceased, was also ten times elected to that body-six times successively from the town of Warren, once from Ward Six, Concord, and three times from Haverhill. The late William M. Weed of Sandwich and Joseph Q. Rolles of Ossipee, each served in the House in nine different Legislatures; while of present day legislators, James E. French of Moultonborough takes the lead in length of service, having been a member of the House during the last seven consecutive biennial sessions, also in 1878, and a member of the Senate in 1887. William J. Ahern of Concord, Ward Nine, is a close second to Mr. French, however, having been chosen a representative in 1895, and at every successive biennial election since, with the exception of 1899, when he was his party's candidate for sheriff of Merrimack County.

well known "Sinclair House." He also subsequently engaged extensively in lumbering and starch manufacture. He took a lively interest in politics from youth, as a Democrat, and was first elected to the Legislature from Bethlehem in 1853, being reëlected the three following years in succession and again in 1863 and 1864 from Bethlehem; from Littleton, where he resided for a short time, in 1874, and from Bethlehem again in 1876-7-8. He was also a member of the State Senate from the old twelfth district in 1859 and 1860. He was one of the ablest political debaters that the state ever produced, and his joint debate with Walter Harriman, when the latter was the Republican candidate for governor and he the Democratic, in 1867, was the most exciting ever known in New Hampshire. He was also the Democratic candidate in 1868 and 1869.

*Samuel B. Page was a native of Littleton, where he was born June 23, 1838. He was educated in the common school and in the academies at Kingston, N. H., and Lyndon, Vt. He studied law with Harry Bingham and at the Albany (N. Y.) Law School, graduating from the latter, and finally locating in practice in the town of Warren, where he remained until 1870, representing the town in the Legislature for six successive terms, from 1864 to 1869 inclusive. In 1870 he removed to Concord, where he represented Ward Six in the Legislature of 1871. Subsequently he removed to Woodsville in the town of Haverhill, from which town he was sent to the Legislatures of 1881, 1889 and 1893. Mr. Page was noted both for his readiness as a speaker and his skill as a parliamentarian, in both of which respects he was without a peer in the state. As a political speaker he did more service for his party - the Democratic-than any other man of his time. He was chairman of the Democratic state committee in 1869 and 1870, and a delegate in the National Convention in 1900. He was also a delegate in the Constitutional Convention of 1876. He died at Woodsville, April 6, 1910.