Page:Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography (1900, volume 5).djvu/579

Rh Granville. Mass., as a physician, lie was a deist, lint. changing his views, he remove.! to Lebanon. ( '111111.. in 1*07. and united with the Baptist church. Be served in the war of 1812 as a surgeon, in 1si!i was licensed to preach, and in 1S22 was ordained pastor of the Baptist church in Ashford, Conn. On the death of his son. Rev. Benjamin Rush Skinner, a missionary in Liberia, the father in 18:34 went to replace him. and spent four years in that colony as its governor and as preacher. After his return he resumed his pastoral duties and medical practice. He published a series of essays on the prophecies, in the " Christian Secretary " (1842).

SKINNER, George Ure, botanist, b. in Scot- land in 1805; d. in Aspinwall, Panama, 9 Jan., 1867. He was a member of the mercantile firm of Klee, Skinner and Co., Guatemala. He pursued his researches into the botany of western Mexico and Guatemala more thoroughly than any preced- ing botanist, and gave attention to the Orchidaceae. The genus Uroskinneria was named for him. and also the Cattleaya Skinneri among the orchids.

SKINNER, James Atcheson, Canadian mem- ber of parliament, b. in Tain, Scotland, 26 Oct., 1826 ; d. in Woodstock, Canada, 24 Dec., 1894. He was educated in his native place, went to Canada in 1843, and engaged in business in Hamilton. He be- came a lieutenant-colonel of militia, was at Ridge- way during the Fenian invasion, and in 1871 or- ganized and commanded the first Canadian team to contest at Wimbledon in the rifle matches. He served in the Dominion parliament in 1874-'8. SKINNER, John, British soldier, b. in New Jersey about 1750; d. in England, 10 Oct., 1827. He entered the service of the crown as an ensign in the 16th regiment of foot, was in the actions of Beaufort and Stone Perry and at the sieges of Savannah and Charleston, and commanded a troop in Tarleton's legion in the battles of Blaek- -t neks, Cowpens, and Guilford. In 1795 he reduced the Maroons of Jamaica to submission, and in 1804 he commanded the 16th regiment in the expedition against Surinam. He became a major-general, was successively governor of several of the West India islands, and commanded a brigade at the capture of Guadeloupe in 1810.

SKINNER, John Stuart, editor, b. in Mary- land, 22 Feb., 1788; d. in Baltimore, 21 March, 1851. At the age of twenty-one he began practice as a counsellor and attorney. In 1812 he was a gov- ernment agent " to receive and forward the ocean mails, to furnish the vessels with necessary sup- plies, and to see that nothing transpired prejudicial to the interests of the republic or offensive to ene- mies thus admitted under the guardianship of a flag of truce."' For this responsible trust Presi- dent Madison framed a special commission and se- lected Mr. Skinner to execute it. To this duty was soon after added that of agent for prisoners of war. In 1813 he was ordered to remove his offices from Annapolis to Baltimore, and a little later he accepted a purser's commission in the navy. This post he filled during the war, and for several years afterward. When the British forces moved toward Wa-hington. Mr. Skinner rode ninety miles in the night, and first announced their approach. The Piritish retaliated by burning the buildings on his St. Leonard's creek estate, for which loss he never sought remuneration from the government. He was with Francis S. Key on the mission that suggested the latter's song. "The Star-Spangled Banner." From 1816 till 1849 he was postmaster of Baltimore. Having much practical knowledge of agriculture and rural sports, in April, 1819, he established " The American Farmer," the first agricultural journal in this country. This peri- odical was warmly supported by Thomas Jefferson, Andrew .lai-ksoii. Timothy Pickering, and others of recognized ability. When Gen. Lafayette re- visited the I'riiicd States in lsi4 he was the guest of Mr. Skinner during his sojourn in Baltimore, and selected the latter as agent to manage the 20,000-acre grant of land that had been voted him by congress. In August, 1821*. Mr. Skinner pub- lished the first number of the "American Tnrf Register and Sporting Magazine," a monthly peri- odical. His devotion to this work induced him to dispose of the " American Farmer " the same year. After conducting the " Turf Register " successfully for ten years, he sold the magazine, and in July, 1845. began a new publication, the " Farmer's Li- brary and Monthly Journal of Agriculture," pub- lished by Greeley and McElrath. This was suc- ceeded in 1848 by the " Plough, the Loom, and the Anvil." which he conducted until his death. These periodicals gave a new stimulus to agricultural pursuits, and added to the general popularity of out-door sports. At various times he edited for publication in this country several standard foreign works, including Alexander Petzhold's "Lecture- on Agricultural Chemistry." Henry Stephens's " Book of the Farm," and Albrecht Daniel Tliar's " Principles of Agriculture," in the ' Farmer's Li- brary and Monthly Journal of Agriculture" (New York. 1846-'8): "Youatt on the Horse" (1844): Every Man his cwn Cattle Doctor " (1844) ; and " Guenon on Milch Cows." with an introduction ; and he wrote " Christmas Gift to Young Agricultu- rists" (Washington, 1841): "Letter on Nautical Education " (1841) : and " The Dog and Sportsman " (1845). His son, Frederick Giistavns, b. in An- napolis, Md., 17 March, 1814 ; d. in Charlottesville, Va., 21 May. 1894. He went to France with Lafay- ette, and received his early education there. On re- turning to this country, he entered West Point. When Gen. Lafayette died, congress passed compli- mentary resolutions upon his life and services, and Mr. Skinner was selected by President Jackson to convey these resolutions to Lafayette's family. After remaining two years in France, as working attache of the American legation, he made a tour of the continent, and enjoyed the widest possible range of field sports. At the opening of the civil war he was given command of the 1st Virginia infantry, and he was colonel of that regiment until disabled by wounds. After the war he went to Egypt, and, refusing a commission in the Egyptian army, devoted his attention to the field sports of that country. Upon returning to his native land, he joined the staff of the " Turf, Field, and Farm." in New York, and, as field editor of that journal, was instrumental in bringing about the first fielil- trial, the first bench-show of dogs, and the first international gun-trial that was ever held in the United States. He was at one time chief of the agricultural bureau of the U. S. patent-office, and published " Elements of Agricultural Chemistry, from the French " (Philadelphia. 1854).

'''SKINNER. Otis Ainsworth,''' author, b. in Royalton. Vt., 3 July, 1807; d. in Napierville. 111., 18 Sept., 1861. He taught for some time, and in 1826 became a Universalist minister. He was sell led as pastor in Baltimore in 1831, in Haverhill in 1836, in Boston in 1837, and in New York city in 1846. He returned to his former charge in Boston in 1849, and remained till April, 1857, when he settled in Elgin, 111. In August of the same year he was chosen president of Lombard university, Galesburg, 111., and in October, 1858. he became pastor at Joliet, 111. He edited the " South-