THE NEW PRESIDENT.

West Coast Times, Issue 3890, 26 September 1881, Page 2

THE NEW PRESIDENT.

General Chester A. Arthur, who succeeds to the chief magistracy of the United States, owing to the death of General Garfield, waa born in Albany in 1831, and is consequently in his fiftieth year, precisely the age of the late President. He was educated in Union College, Schenectardy, where he excelled in all branches of study. After his graduation at the University he entered the Albany Law School, which is a branch of the College, and was admitted to the bar at aa early age. Mr Arthur always toek an active part in politics, his political life beginning when, as a boy of fourteen he proclaimed himself a member of the Whig party. During the Polk-Clay canvass, party feeling in favor of Henry Clay and against him rose so high that fewwere exempt from its influences. Mr Arthur commenced his buineas life by becoming a partner with Mj? E. D, Culver, as a lawyer in New York, and afterwards obtained considerable legal celebrity by his connection with the Lemmon Stons case. He was a Republican from the time of the organisation of the party. He was Quartermaster-General of the State of New York during the war, and afterwards retiring into private life he formed a law partnership with Mr Ransom. Mr Phillips the District Attorney of New York, was added to the firm, and General Arthur now stands at the head of the firm of Arthur, Phillips, Enevals, and Ransom. He always took a leading part in State and City politics. He was appointed Collector of the Port of New York by President Grant, November 21, 1872, to succeed Thomas Murphy, holding the office until July 20, 1878, when he was removed by President Hayes because he was accused of being in the way of the success of the reform of the Civil Service. Being a warm personal friend of Senator Conkling's, he has managed much of Senators political business in New York State and City. He is a member of tho Union League Club.

There are in New South Wales 40,800 members of friendly societies, who holdaccu^ mulated funds to the amount of £140,000;