Page:Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography (1900, volume 7).djvu/296

250 1895, and 1897, and at the special session of 1898, he was chosen president of the senate ; the state having no lieutenant-governor, he presided over the senate and over joint conventions of both houses.

SKERBETT, Joseph Salathiel, naval officer, b. in Cliilicothe, Ohio, 18 Jan., 1833 ; d. in Wash- ington, D. C, 1 Jan., 1897. lie was appointed to the navy from Oliio on 13 Oct., 1848, seeing his first service on the razee Independence in Medi- terranean waters, and became lieutenant in 1855. At the breaking out of the civil war he was on the sloop •' Saratoga" off the coast of Africa, and, re- turning to this country in the summer of 1862, he was made lieutenant-commander on 16 July. For a year he served on ordnance duty at the Wash- ington navy-yard, and then became executive of the " Shenandoah," but later in 1863 he took com- mand of the gunboat " Aroostook," attached to the Western Gulf squadron, taking part in the en- gagement off Brazos river, Texas. In 1867 he was promoted commander, in 1889 commodore, and in 1893 rear-admiral. Admiral Skerrett retired vol- untarily, 8 July, 1894, while in command of the Asiatic station. For a number of years he was in charge of the naval home in Philadelphia.

SLATER, James Harvey, senator, b. in San- gamon county. 111., 28 Dec, 1826. He received a common-school education, and, having emigrated to California in 1849, he settled in Oregon in 1850, where he studied law, and was admitted to the bar four years afterward. He served as clerk of the district court for Benton county, 1853-'6 ; was a member of the territorial assembly, 1857-'8, and of the state assembly immediately after the ad- mission of Oregon into the Union. Mr. Slater was a presidential elector in 1868, a member of the42d congress, and represented the state of Oregon in the U. S. senate from 1879 until 1885.

SLICER, Thomas Roberts, clergyman, b. in Washington, D. C, 16 April, 1847. 'lie was edu- cated in Baltimore, studied theology, and was for ten years in the Methodist ministry in Maryland, Colorado, and New York state. He entered the Unitarian church in 1881, and became pastor of churches in Providence, R. I., and Buffalo, N. Y. In the autumn of 1897 he accepted a call to the Church of All Saints in New York city, for- merly known as Dr. Osgood's church. He is an able and forcible speaker, appearing on the political platform in 1899, and the author of "The Great Affirmatives of Religion" (Boston, 1898).

SMILEY, Albert Keith, educator, b. in Vas- selborough, Me., 17 March, 1827. He was gradu- ated from Haverford college in 1849, receiving later the degree of A. M., and also from Brown university. For twenty years Mr. Smiley was the principal of a successful boarding-school in Provi- dence, II. I. He then purchased, with his brother, a large property in Ulster county, N. Y., and es- tablished a unique hotel at Lake Mohonk in which there is no wine, no cards, and no dancing permitted, his twin-brother, Alfred, having a simi- lar hotel, known as the Minnewaska. the two es- tates comprising seven thousand acres. In 1879 Mr. Smiley was appointed by President Hayes to the board of U. S. Indian commissioners, of which he is still (1900) a member. For seventeen years the Lake Mohonk annual Indian conference has been hospitably entertained there, and the many mem- bers of the arbitration conference at their five an- nual meetings have also been his guests. Jlr. Smi- ley 's winter residence is near Red Imnds, southern California, where he has a large estate, and he re- cently presented a handsome park and substantial library building to Red Lands at a cost of $60,000.

SMITH, Edmund Mniiroe, educator, b. in Brooklyn, N. Y., 8 Dec, 1854. He is a nephew of Dr. Henry B.Smith, the theologian: was gradu- ated from Amherst, and also from the law-school of Columbia as LL. B. in 1877. He continued his studies in Gottingen university, where he received the degree of J. U. D. in 1890. Prof. Smith was instructor in history at Columbia from 1880-'3; adjunct professor of history, 1833-'90; and since the latter year has been professor of Roman law and comparative jurisprudence. He has also been one of the editors of the " Political Science Quar- terly" since 1886, and has contributed articles to Lalor's "Cyclopicdia of Political Science," John- son's " Universal Cyclopaedia," and IIar|ier's " Classical Dictionary." He is the author of "Bismarck and German Unity " (New York, 1898). SMITH, Georgre Washington, soldier, b. in Brooklyn, N. Y., 8 Jan., 1837 ; d. in Chicago, 16 Sept., 1898. He was educated at the Albany acad- emy and was graduated at the law-school of that city. He entered the Union army as captain of Illinois infantry in 1862. being promoted succes- sively as major, lieutenant-colonel, colonel, and brigadier-general, before being honorably mus- tered out in May, 1865. During the year 1866-'7 Gen. Smith was State treasurer of Illinois, was president of the Union league club of Chicago, and for fourteen years vice-president of the Chicago historical society. He was also president of the Chicago industrial school for girls and a member of the Loyal legion. Gen. Smith married a grand- daughter of Klias Kent Kane (5. c), who was twice elected to the U. S. senate from Illinois.

SMITH, Holie, cabinet officer, b. in Newton, N. C, 2 Sept., 1855, is a son of Dr. Ilildreth H. Smith, a well-known educator, and Mary Brent Hoke, from who.se family he takes his name. He was educated by his father, and at the age of sev- enteen moved to Georgia and taught school for a vear, at the same time studying law. Removing later to Atlanta, he entered upon the practice of his profession, and became one of the leading anti- railroad and anti-corporation lawyers of the State. In 1887 he purchased the " Atlanta Journal," and when, soon after, Cleveland's tariff message ap- peared, Mr, Smith ably defended the president's position. He employed men of talent to conduct his paper, but controlled its policy and utterances, and continued to practise law. Much of the credit for Cleveland's victory in Georgia in November, , was attributed to the " Atlanta Journal " and the personal efforts of its proprietor, and in March, , Mr. Smith was appointed secretary of the interior in President Cleveland's cabinet.

SMITH, James, Jr., senator, b, in Newark, N. J., 12 June. 1851. He was educated in the com- mon schools, and early entered on a business career. He is at present conducting thelargestmanufaetory of enamelled and patent leather in the country. His first office was that of member of the common council of Newark, to which he was elected in a Republican district by a larger majority than his opponent received votes. He wsis nominated for mayor, but declined, as he did also many other offices tendered by his party in the state. He was elected to the U. S. senate as a Democrat to succeed Rufiis Blodgett. and took his seat 4 March. 1893. Mr.Smith wasehairman of the committee on organ- ization, conduct, and expenditure of the executive ilepartiiu'ut, and a member of other committees.

SMITH, John Augustine. physician, b. in Westmoreland county, Va.. 29 Aug., 1782; d. in New York city, 9 Feb.. 1865. He was graduated at William and Mary in 1800, studied medicine.