Jacob Tome in his Residence circa 1896

The Life of Jacob Tome by Charlotte Newell
Charlotte Newell was a teacher at the Tome Institute. This paper below on Jacob Tome was compiled during her tenure at the school.

"The life of Jacob Tome. by Charlotte Newell.
Foreword
 

For those of us who had the opportunity of attending the Jacob Tome Institute, the writing of a lengthy explanation of the great privilege of having received our education at such a fine institution is unnecessary. The privileges of a wide selection of courses of study, a varied number of social functions .. and a broad athletic program were just a few of the many things which we took for granted. In our efforts to make the most of the exceptional opportunity that was given us, we side-stepped what should have been the most important subject in our school lives, the life of our founder, Jacob Tome. To, too many of us Jacob Tome was a figure of the past, about which we knew little and in many instances cared less.
Who this man Jacob Tome was, why he should have taken such an interest in our community and why he should have given the earnings of a lifetime for our education are the points which, the Alumni Association is attempting to make in the publication f this book. With these points in view, we feel that any person who ever attended the Jacob Tome Institute can justly be proud of having been associated with the influences of such a great man as Jacob Tome.
This history should become as much apart of our lives as has the fine education which we received at J.T.I. E. Ralph Hostetter, '40, 'President
Jacob Tome 'Institute' Association. ­

CHAPTER ONE

ANCESTRY AND EARLY LIFE
, Jacob Tome was descended on his mother's side from a long line of godly Lutheran ancestors. From the days of Martin Luther to the time of .the marriage of Christian Thom and Christina Bauher (Mr. Tome's parents) in 1807 If any of the sons of the Bauher family in the long line of family succession had been Lutheran ministers, and the daughters, the wives of Lutheran ministers. This succession was perpetuated by no family or traditional decree but by a self-impelling law, unquestioned, apparently immutable":

But Love is a defiant power and acknowledges no ancestral customs or family rulings. So when Christina Bauher made known to her mother her determination to marry Christian Thom, she spoke in no uncertain language, though perhaps regretful that the fates had so perversely decreed, she was undaunted by the certainty of opposition, and she felt it in herself a boldness incapable of change or intimidation. The mother presented in strong earnest language the heinousness of such marriage -- turning away, from the precepts and examples and unwritten laws of many generations; the mortification and condemnation of the family, and the inevitable ostracism pf the daughter, herself. The lovers remained firm, however, and soon after 'the marriage they bade adieu to friends and loved ones and to their native Switzerland, and, all in all to each other, they embarked for America. 'They decided to settle near Gettysburg, Pa., because the Lutherans were well established in that locality and had already laid there the foundations of a college.

Like most of their country folk; these young people were honest, industrious and frugal and they worked with a will at whatever their hands found to do. They were strong in physique and possessed of spirits well fitted to endure pioneer work. The father earned a comfortable living for his family as a contractor for bridge-building. The children attended school regularly whenever the school was in session, and their home instruction as careful and intelligent. They were encouraged to study and to observe. The religious atmosphere of the home was pronounced and fervid. The Bible was read daily in family worship and the family united in prayer to the great Maker and Guide. The element of reliance upon God and devotion to His work, thus early implanted in Jacob Tome, was never uprooted. Through shadow and sunshine, in youth and in age, in poverty and in wealth, it continued a controlling influence and a blessed memory. The original spelling of the family name was Thorn. In the baptismal certificate of Mr. Tome, now in possession (both in the German and English scrjpt) of the Jacob Tome Institute of Port Deposit, the name appears ,in orthography. Branches of the Thom family undoubtedly came to the United States- at a considerably earlier date, than did the parents of Jacob Tome, and settled in Ohio, Kansas" Georgia and Pennsylvania.

To Mr. Jacob Tome, his family is indebted for the change from Thom-to Tome, reason for the preference being the simpler pronunciation and the more convenient chirography.

Jacob, the second. son of the Tome family of twelve children, was born at Hanover, York County, Pennsylvania, on the 13th day of August,1810.

Jacob's boyhood was spent- in the way common to the children of industrious, aspiring parents who desire the best things for their children. Next to the love of God and the duty of keeping His commandments, the boy was trained to obey his parents and, so far as he had opportunity, to do good to those around him. He was taught to regard education as a pearl of great price, to be eagerly sought and tenaciously treasured. 'The principle of right living was :firmly instilled and the cardinal virtues of economy, industry, honesty and perseverance became component parts in this character and remained guiding influences throughout his life's long and arduous journey.

Educational facilities in his vicinity were meagre and intermittent, limited to the winter sessions of a country school, but Jacob soon learned from other sources-from Nature's life around him; he read "the manu­scripts of God"; he learned from any books he could get and from any persons with whom he came in contact. His mind was remarkably astute and his judgment remarkably discriminating-qualities which strengthen­ed with his strength.

Like many men who have, attained eminence in career or in character, Mr. Tome attributed much of his success to his Mother, a woman, of forceful personality and splendid principles. From her he inherited the thoroughness, the tenacity of purpose, the persevering ambition, which so notably distinguished him. In appearance, too, he was like her-slender, with blue eyes, clear and at once gentle and penetrating. She was unflinching in her devotion to the right, no matter what the sacrifice and, strong in her convictions, she maintained them without any weak repining. To her trustful eyes, the future was always gilded with the promise of greater things and, throughout the days when disappointments and privations were inevitable she "wavered not one jot or one tittle" in her steadfast gaze through "Life's unbounded telescope--the broad tenacity of hope."

Jacob, in the long intervals between the schools, was employed by, Colonel Graham, the proprietor of the leading country store in that vicinity. So great was the eagerness for learning among the little band of employees in that country store, that they would assemble at night, to learn from those of who possessed more knowledge, and were willing to impart it to their fellows. In this commendable work, the Manager of the store was the leading spirit, and much good was accomplished by his earnest encourage­ment. Text-books were few; methods of teaching were primitive and irregular; of school, there was nothing; but the spirit which alone giveth life, was abundantly present and atoned for all deficiencies. One can readily picture this fragile boy with the passionate longing of his heart looking through his clear, blue eyes, as he listened ardently to this desultory instruction and treasured it as pearls of great price, the basis of the rich stores, he later accumulated.

A country store was a most interesting place in the boyhood days of Jacob Tome. Merchandise of all kinds was purchasable under one roof. Money was but little handled as a medium of exchange, the denizens of the surrounding .country bringing their home produce butter, eggs, bacon, etc.-which they "took out in trade" for groceries and dry goods. On certain days-notably Saturdays-the country folk congregated at the store, and along with the exchange of wares, exchanged, with no less avidity, items of news.

From early life, Jacob Tome delighted to study people and in this study, he became an adept in later life. The experiences at the store furnished him with abundant material for practice and made him acquainted with all sorts and conditions of his fellow men. Their phraseology, he always remembered, and often used to "point a moral or adorn a tale." He was a capital raconteur, and along with many other early experiences, told with amazing zest and coloring, of his first visit to Baltimore.

Periodically, a large covered wagon, laden with the products of the country, was sent to one of the cities, where it remained for a day or two while its cargo was being unloaded and replaced by another, made up of city commodities, calculated to delight the taste and gratify the palates of the rural population. As a reward for good conduct, Jacob was permitted to go on one of these trips. The sights and the sounds of that boyhood journey, were never forgotten.

While engaged at his work of bridge-building, the' father met with an accident which caused his death when Jacob was sixteen years old. Now the battle of life began in earnest for the boy. He and his older brother had to become the bread-winners of the family in the outside world, while the mother managed their, combined resources, did the necessary work of the home, and watched zealously over her fatherless children. Fortunately, there was no grim spectre of debt or mortgage.

William and Jacob returned at the end of their first day's labor with 25 cents each, which they had earned by .,chopping wood for a neighbor. The mother took from a shelf a quaint old sugar bowl, which she had brought from the Fatherland, and said: "This will be our bank, and we'll put in it every day one-half of your earnings. We can spend twelve and a half cents of what each of you has earned today." The old sugar-bowl the first family treasury-remained long a treasured heirloom in the family. The next. day the sugar-bowl showed a deposit of 50 cents, each of the boys having earned 50 cents.

In those early days Jacob was not possessed by what. Elders called "the bugbear' of consistency." He ,had no preconceived Idea of his talent for any special vocation. Of one thing only he was assured and that ,was that he must find- as speedily as possible some occupation that would lead to money and independence. He had neither position nor friends. He had no wise, experienced counselor. The questions that confronted him must be answered for himself by himself. He felt that the architect of his own destiny, he must be, save for his mother's counsel and the directing ­ power of his God. He recognized no such word as "fail" in a world bristling with opportunities when brawn and brain and youth were at the helm.- The pathway might be rough and steep, but the struggle would be achieved and the goal would be reached. Happy the boy that sets out to conquer fortune with the light of success illumining his way. Jacob knew that there is "always work and tools to work withal for those who and he felt that work is the alchemy that can transmute poverty Into opulence.

To this end, he tried a variety of occupations, doing his very best at each and abandoning each unhesitatingly when a more propitious opening occurred. The records state that for some months he was employed on the farm of Colonel Graham in York County and subsequent to that period he superintended the fisheries of Jacob Musser on Stony Island in the Susquehanna River. Thence he made his way to Marietta, Pa., where he engaged in the business of merchandise for a time. In these several positions, he quitted himself creditably, but he had ever the feeling of being a "round peg in a square hole." . . In this period of casting about for suitable employment Mr. Tome chanced to see an advertisement for a teacher for a country school in Lancaster County, Pa., during the autumn and winter months. Here was a golden opportunity-the coveted chance of study and self-improvement. Instead of being intimidated by the paucity of his' scholastic attainments, he was rather stimulated thereby. He was prompted by no egotistic or pedantic spirit, but, nerved by self-reliance and strengthened by persever­ance, he resolved to make the attempt. He applied in person for the position. The trustees, on seeing a young man of such frail physique, felt confident that he could not contend against the burly youths, older than himself, unaccustomed to any discipline save the most strenuous, Who constituted to a large extent the personnel of the school during the idle time on the farms. Young Tome insisted on being given a trial, volunteering . the promise that he would promptly resign should his power of discipline prove insufficient.

 The sequel afforded the key to his character. The test was not slow in coming. Rejoicing in the prospect of a foeman, not worthy of their steel, the boys, looked forward hilariously to the speedy and ignominious surrender of the teacher. To this end, they selected as their champion a huge fellow who promptly violated all the proprieties of the school. Jacob Tome was never a laggard Or a coward. He realized that the stakes were heavy and the odds physically w re tremendously against him. The question of mastery had to. be settled at once. Arm and fist failing, he seized a stick of stove wood and, by a few well-directed blows, the issue was decided. The Rubicon was cross p so far as that school was concerned.

The young teacher soon found (as he had expected) that in order to teach his classes thoroughly he must himself be taught. Consequently, with tireless energy he would walk for miles at the close of day to obtain the instruction that he needed to -impart to his scholars.

From incidents such as the foregoing, no prophetic vision is needed to forecast the ultimate success of Jacob Tome. Undaunted by obstacles using them on the contrary as stepping-stones in his upward pathway; determined always to put into his work the best of himself; courageous; ambitious; from such omens, his future could not have been difficult to read.

As a resume of this portion Mr. Tome's life, I quote from a personal sketch of him, published in The Cecil Whig, under date of April 1876. "Few of the men whom the World calls fortunate began life under less encouraging circumstances, than id Mr. Tome. Without mean's, influence or connection, he commenced the struggle upward, undaunted by the poverty of his resources or the scantiness of his. worldly store. He was nothing more or less than brave and courageous boy, who took the world  "in hand at an age when the average youth confidently relies upon the certainty of parental aid and support, which conditions of birth had denied him. As a young man, uneducated in the popular meaning of the word, Jacob Tome acquired at an early age, in the real and severe school of the world, such lessons of practical wisdom and experience, as, later in life, more than atoned for earlier deficiencies. It was no fortuitous circumstance that made him a penniless boy at sixteen; it was no business accident or piece of extraordinary luck that found him a millionaire at sixty; it was no decree of blind chance that made him one of a group of helpless dependents around a poor man's fireside, with neither the prestige of
wealth nor birth. The Providence that placed him there, endowed him with  just the degree of ability and the exact measure of power to overcome these adverse conditions. He was born to success. The elements of character, upon which it depended, were his inheritance. His sole inheritance. Industry, integrity, determination, self-reliance, perseverance, were . qualjties worth far more to the boy than material inheritances. These qualities elevated him to a high plane of influence and usefulness, and have constituted him a power in business and society."

CHAPTER TWO

JACOB TOME IN PORT DEPOSIT

Probably Jacob Tome's first visit to the little town on the Susquehanna, which he was destined to know so long and so intimately was made in 1833 aboard one of the lumber rafts, numerous in those days, which invested the river with picturesque charm and the trip with romantic excitement. The town could then boast of no railroad nearer ,than the Philadelphia Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad at Perryville. Consequently, dealers from Ohio and Pennsylvania floated their lumber down the Susquehanna on huge rafts, which were broken up and distributed, inventories being taken and trades made, at Port Deposit. Here the rafts were rearranged and, five and six in a convoy, were towed to the Chesapeake Bay, those, destined for the northern markets going via the, Chesapeake & Delaware Canal and those, destined for Baltimore and the South, continuing down the Bay.

The Susquehanna in those days presented a spectacle of fascinating and colorful animation. Its broad surface was covered with rafts, each raft equipped with its cabin or shack and manned by its crew of workers. The viands were the choicest that sea and land could produce and the cooks were adepts in the gastronomic art. The shores at Port Deposit, where the rafts were halted and reassignments were made, were points of rendezvous for the people of the town and the surrounding country, and Port Deposit then attained its palmiest days of commercial activity.

Doubtless young Tome had heard during his stay in Marietta of the quaint little town, consisting of a single street which stretched for two miles between the softly gliding river and the stately cliffs that rise majestically two hundred feet above on the Cecil side of the stream. On the opposite shore, the Harford hills, clothed in Heaven's richest blue, cast, magical shadows upon the translucent water, the whole forming a picture

"Where the tints of the earth and the hues of the sky In color though varied, in beauty may vie-"

No doubt the love of beauty in the heart of the young man was stimulated and a desire was then born to make a home amid such scenes desire destined to realization in a manner undreamed of in his eager, ambitious heart. After his first visit he soon returned to Port Deposit, where he secured temporary employment acting as clerk for Downey & Montgomery, lumber dealers on the river.

At this time, the beginning of his fortune was made, its foundation being laid in his honest, industrious devotion to duty, in the extraordinary capacity for business which he displayed and in his almost phenomenal grasp of financial affairs. These qualities arrested the attention of David Rinehart, a wealthy Pennsylvania banker and lumber dealer, whose business interests called him to Port Deposit during the busy season. He proposed a partnership to Mr. Tome, in which he, Rinehart-would furnish the cash capital of $5,000 and Tome, the far richer capital of brains and time. Edwin Rinehart, a son of the senior member of the firm, was employed as clerk, and, on the death of his father, sixteen years later 1851, became a partner in the firm and the original name of the firm, 'Rinehart & Tome, was continued.

To the early period of the firm's existence belongs a characteristic illustration of Jacob Tome's determination to give his best efforts to his work regardless of the cost to his personal convenience or comfort; Feeling that a more comprehensive knowledge of bookkeeping than he possessed would be materially advantageous to his business, he attended the night sessions of a commercial school in. Philadelphia, riding on. horseback, after a days work, to Perryville, four miles distant, where he boarded the train and returning in the ,same way after the classes were over to reach home in the early morning. During this period he had no rest at night except the broken slumber which he was able to snatch at intervals in the train or on horseback. But during these months, which were such a test of his physical endurance and his fortitude, he laid the foundation of a sound education in business and finance. The firm Rinehart & Tome had a career of uninterrupted, success, continuing throughout a period of eighteen years, converting every investment or transaction, with almost Midas-like power and promptness, into gold. On the dissolution of the firm in 1851, the assets showed a capital of $100,000, after all expenses had been paid.

 Mr. Tome soon entered into a partnership in the lumber business with. Messrs. John R. and Thomas C. Bond, which continued and increased with remarkable success of its predecessor. In addition to the carrying on of an immense lumber trade at Port Deposit, this firm extended its operations by the acquisition of vast tracks of timberland in Pennsylvania and in states further West. In. the course of his business, Mr. Tome acquired numerous farms, not primarily as business investments, though' doubtless his early associations tended to preserve his appreciation of agricultural things, and his utilitarian pleasure in enhancing such values. Besides, there was the aesthetic side-the imaginative side of his nature, which visualized two blades of grass growing where one had grown. Eventually, the acquired large farm holdings in Maryland and Pennsylvania as well as extensive properties in various cities.

As a corollary along the agricultural line, Mr. Tome built up and operated large grain and agricultural products, industries which proved not only sources of revenue to their projector, but benefactions to the country at large. The coal lands of Pennsylvania, too, offered a broad perspective to his far-seeing vision and a fertile opportunity to his untiring propensity to develop and enhance values" in a day when the casual matter-or-fact ,speculator was little tempted to bury his dollars beneath the earth's surface.

One of the most remarkable of Mr. Tome's many remarkable traits was the rare sagacity, the keenness of intuition which enabled him to, discern, quickly and clearly, opportunities unrevealed to the ordinary mind, not only in lands and houses, in lots and forests, but in human agencies and mechanisms. In 1849, he became deeply interested in the matter of transportation and, in conjunction with John S. Gittings and other Baltimoreans he established several steamboat lines, one of them plying between Baltimore and Port Deposit for the carrying of both freight and passengers thus antedating the Tolchester Line by a period of fifty or more years. Mr. Tome was also one of the organizers of the Baltimore & Fredericksburg Steamboat Company, known as the Weems Line, which continued in successful, independent operation until the death of Captain Weems.

The value of Mr. Tome's policy in improving the canal service in the vicinity of the Susquehanna, cannot be adequately appreciated by anyone conversant only with the present day transportation facilities of that region. In the capacity of director of the Susquehanna & Tidewater Canal Co., he inaugurated valuable measures that, but for him, would have remained in embryo. His interest in railroads was synchronous and coequal with his interest in water transportation, his astute mind realizing that upon these public carriers, the country's prosperity must inevitably depend. To their establishment and development, he gave largely of his judicial wisdom and financial means. For many years, he was stockholder and director in the Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore and the Delaware and Columbia Railroads.

A veritable wizard of finance was Jacob Tome. Perhaps in no branch of his extraordinary achievement was his success so conspicuously brilliant as in the realm of banking and finance. For a number of years, he was banker for the business men of his community, and in May, 1850, he with other citizens of the country, procured a charter for the Cecil Bank at Port Deposit, with a capital of only $25,000 and Jacob Tome, the President, its chief stockholder. Owing to the failure of several banking ventures in that vicinity, banks were not held in high esteem at that time and a less confident, far-seeing man than Mr. Tome, would have hesitated to enter the business of banking.

For some time, the paper of the new bank was at a discount of from 2 to 6 per cent in the cities, and its President, determined that it should stand on its own merits, made no provision for its redemption at par value. Inconvenience resulted to the depositors and, as a result, dissatisfaction ensued, but, by his genius, Mr. Tome brought credit out of interest, and the Cecil Bank entered upon its legitimate work, unhampered. The capital increased uninterruptedly until it had reached $100,000, and in 1863, having a surplus of $100,000 it became a national bank. The establishment and direction of other banks quickly followed-The Elkton National Bank, the Fredericksburg Va. Bank, the National Bank at Hagerstown, the Citizens National Bank of Washington City, which speedily became prominent in the financial life of the national capital, partly because of its proximity on Fifteenth street to the Treasury and largely because of its safe, sane, an successful management. Hon John J. Cresswell, Postmaster General in the Cabinet of President Grant, was placed by Mr. Tome (his uncle by marriage) at the head of this bank and the wisdom of the choice was abundantly justified.

To the imagination that is quick to discern possibilities and to translate them into actualities; to the spirit that is courageous to "attempt the end and never stand to doubt"; to the hands prompt to execute, well nigh all things are possible. The same qualities that rendered Jacob Tome eminent as an organizer, a developer, a financier, would have gained for him a commanding height-civil or political-in any profession that he might have elected to enter. Truly, he touched nothing that did not profit by his touch.

CHAPTER THREE

PERSONAL INTERESTS

Jacob Tome, though denied the opportunity of university education in the academic sense, could rightly lay claim to it in a full and comprehensive significance. Without the routine mastery of text books, he had assimilated much of their vital worth; and, endowed by nature with extraordinary intellectual acumen and a faculty for intelligent investiga­tion, he found the whole world his university. He was a careful and omnivorous reader, able to go through books realizing that "some are to be tasted, some swallowed, and a few to be chewed a d digested." The same fairness of judgment characterized his estimate of the printed page as of the individual and he felt that there is no use "in being ungenerous even to a book.

Human nature was to him an open volume, wherein he read men's merits and men's foibles, commending the one; sometimes condoning, sometimes condemning, the other. He was rigidly exacting as to his personal conduct and correspondingly exacting in his requirements of others in business obligations, yet his heart was tender and filled with human kindness, and often he exercised a rare leniency in his dealing with others and in his judgment of others, believing, with Robert Burns "that to step aside is human." His benefactions were numerous but performed without ostentation; literally he did good by stealth and blushed to find it known. For his own part he believed unswervingly in "rendering to Caesar the things that are Caesar's"-a rule of action that signalized his conduct even to the last. On his death bed he remembered that he owed 25 cents to a boy for having delivered a telegram; he was disturbed by the thought and mentioned it several times to his wife until she, anxious to alleviate his unrest, assured him that the boy had been paid.

Modest and frugal by disposition and by habit, he retained these qualities to his life's end, though money in abundance was at his command. Parsimonious he never was, and in matters of personal dress and expendi­ture, he was satisfied with only the best. His house in Port Deposit was an unchallengeable proof of his: desire for the elegant and the durable and his liberality in procuring them. This residence was completed in 1872. Built of granite from the native quarry, it stands in rugged but graceful form upon the cliff side, palatial, enduring, a fitting residence for the town's noblest citizen. The velvet lawns and magnificent terraced gardens were in keeping with the fine architectural effects and proclaimed at once the taste and munificence of their owner.

Mr. Tome was throughout life a deeply religious man, never Pharisaical, but always wishing to to right and to walk humbly before his Maker. A Lutheran by descent and by choice, he was always mindful of his obligations to the church, he delighted to honor. On establishing his residence in Port Deposit, he attended the Methodist Church regularly, there being no branch of his own denomination in that vicinity. His interest in the local Methodist Church was deep and sincere, as indicated by his habitual presence at its services and by his generous contribution to its support, culminating in the erection of a stately granite edifice at a cost of $65,000. This building was dedicated in 1871. It was erected under the supervision of the donor and was conveyed by him to the trustees of' the M. E. Church. At the session of the Wilmington conference in March, 1871, the following resolutions were unanimously passed by the conference and ordered to be engrossed and presented. to Mr. Tome:

 "Whereas, This Conference has learned that the beautiful and substantial edifice in this town now approaching completion is designed by Hon. Jacob Tome to be used as a Methodist Episcopal Church; and Whereas, It is proper that the Conference should give expression to its high appreciation of so noble and appropriate an offering and such" commendable liberality: Therefore,
    "Resolved, 'That the thanks of this conference be unanimously presented to Hon. Jacob Tome, of whom it may be said "He loved our people and hath built us a synagogue."
     "Resolved, That the best reciprocation of this kindness that we can promise is a special remembrance of himself and his family in pour prayers to Almighty God. "
.    "Resolved , That a copy of the foregoing Resolutions, signed by the President and the Secretary of the Conference, be suitably engrossed and furnished Mr. Tome.

Edmund S. Janes, President
Samuel L. Gracey, Secretary'
Port Deposit, Md.
March, 18, 1870.

The church was known as the Tome' Memorial M. E. Church. In" accordance with the provisions of his will, the amount of $1500 annually is given for its repair and. preservation.

Mr. Tome's benefactions tq the churches, in Port Deposit were not confined to the Methodists. Every one of them - both for the white "and colored people - shared in his bounty, not once but repeatedly. Whenever the need arose, the response! from him was prompt and generous; in such causes none asked in vain. One of his "cherished possessions was an . engrossed set of resolutions from the St. James Protestant Episcopal Church thanking him for a handsome contribution.

The cause of education was ever very near to Mr. Tome's heart, and one which he was most anxious to promote. He was utterly without  the complacent self-satisfaction that often mars the achievements of the self made man; he knew that, great as had been his success; it would have been materially greater could. he have had the proper educational training at the proper time. Therefore his ears were ever often to the needs of the young. Some years before his magnificent educational gift to Maryland he presented Dickinson College, at Carlisle, Pa., with a spacious building (to be devoted to scientific purposes), including large halls, lecture rooms, laboratories and a museum - a building described by an authority as "a splendid structure, unsurpassed in its adaptation "'for collegiate purposes". The following lines are quoted from an address delivered at the dedicatory exercises of the Jacob Tome Scientific Building by Professor Charles F. Hines:

"A word in regard to the origin of this building. A building for scientific purposes had long been talked of, hoped for and worked 'for. A few years ago, by some happy accident, the oft-repeated recommendation fell into the hands of an able committee of the Board of Trustees, businessmen, of large experience. They seemed to see something in it for the college and for education. They were not only men of broad views and of big hearts, but, of liberal purses and, when they came with their recommendation to the Board of Trustees it was. backed with such substantial arguments in the way of liberal contributions, that it was, irresistible, and, in a short time, the financial question was solved. With the valid subscriptions previously obtained, the $20,000 asked for was secured at' the same session of the Board. But, after the plans for the building were 'matured, it seemed unwise to cut them down to $20,000. Aid was solicited elsewhere. The case was presented to Mr. Jacob Tome. He, like the others, was a business' man, and, fortunately for the college, one that did not, seem to know how to do things by halves, He took the whole burden upon his shoulders, released the sum already  subscribed to meet other equally pressing needs of the college, .and this building is here today as it is, an evidence of his deep interest in higher education, and we are .proud of it."

' In conclusion the speaker said: "In the years to come the name of Jacob Tome will have a local habitation in Carlisle, graven in stone on this beautiful building that he has erected and will enjoy: the perennial vitality of ever-young science in the contributions from The Jacob Tome Scientific Building of Dickinson College."

In 1841 Mr. Tome was married to Miss Caroline Webb; who bore him 'three children, none of whom survived early childhood. The oldest, a boy, ,lived less than one year; his death was a sad bereavement to the parents; but consolation came with the advent of a winsome, fairy-like baby girl, whom the mother insisted should bear the father's name as well as her own, so she was called ' Carmie-Jacob". She seemed to radiate vitality, and yet was imbued with a strangely spirituelle beauty, suggestive of a creature "too bright and good for human nature's daily food". The heart and hopes of the parents twined tenaciously and tenderly around this cherished child, and for twenty months, she was spared to gladden their  lives. A sad accident caused the little one's death;' and added to the poignancy of the parents' grief - a grief so deep, so -intense that there seemed no Lethe for it. Her childish. possessions, including a cup sud chair, still remain cherished treasures in her father's home.

Mrs. Tome died in 1874, and Mr. Tome was again married, in 1884, to Miss Evalyn, S. Nesbitt, a woman admirably fitted to aid, advise, cheer,  and comfort him during the remainder of his life. In her soundness of . judgment and integrity of action, he reposed unwavering ..confidence, and was largely influenced by her opinions in business and philanthropic under takings.

Love for his own family was strongly rooted in Mr. Tome's being, from his childhood days when he had learned the lesson of honor and truth and industry from his mother's teachings, he had cherished ,her memory and moulded his life according to her precepts. She had been the inspirer of his early efforts, and the wish to make her comfortable had been his first incentive to gain wealth. To this end, he toiled prodigiously and put aside his earnings with a self-denial that had no part in miserliness but was the pure fruit of filial devotion. His consuming desire for years was, to provide a home for his mother in keeping with his appreciation of her worth-a home wherein he might procure for her the. comforts, she so richly deserved.

During this period of concentrated accumulation, he spent little of .his earnings for himself; only the severest needs were considered, and any pleasure, that involved the spending of money, was unhesitatingly rejected. Fortune smiled upon his labors and the money multiplied. With the increase of his means, however, the goal of his ambition for the offering to his mother increased correspondingly. His heart beat high with gratification as he neared the goal. How happy she would be. .How proud he was. The necessary arrangements were made and he set out for the.. Pennsylvania home, prepared to lay a rich offering - the work of his hands and his brain and the homage of his heart - upon the altar of his love. Railroads were not known in that part of the country at that time, and travel was s1ow. When nearing his mother's home, he was met with the dreadful tidings that she - his mother, for whom he had worked and planned and achieved - was desperately ill with pneumonia. With horror gripping his heart, and fear dimming his eyes, he pressed on, his horse straining every nerve and quivering with every stride. She knew him, she greeted him with a smile that had always been his; she blessed him with an exceedingly love; but the offering came too late. His mother' died when only forty-six years of age.

CHAPTER FOUR

JACOB TOME IN POLITICS

Jacob Tome was a patriot in the broad sense of the word. He loved is country in its physical features; ,its majesty of mountain height and Its serenity of verdant valley; Its rivers and its forests. He loved his immediate environment and the joys of his home. He loved his Maryland, and was never deaf to any right us call from her. To her advancement and honor, he gave unstintedly of his time and his strength, his money and his brains. He loved his country in its entirety. He gloried in its expansion and achievements. Sectional narrowness had no place in his great, patriotic nature. 

Politics offered little personal temptation to Mr. Tome. Except for prompt and conscientious discharge of his duties as a public-spirited citizen, he preferred the active energetic life of a man of affairs, supplemented by the performance of domestic and altruistic obligations. But', when War's dark clouds were gathering, and North and South, ignoring the ties of a common country, were arming against each other, he maintained his
allegiance to the Union, and with unswerving zeal, struggled to :preserve it. In his State, he wielded immense influence. His was no uncertain attitude, and to words, he "added' deeds) answerable". In private assemblies; in political councils; in legislative halls; he knew no shirking, no backward turning. The fearless sincerity of his speech and action, gained for him not only the confidence of his party, but the admiration of his adversaries; he was in truth, "a foeman, worthy of any steel".

In 1860 Mr. Tome was elected to the State Senate. Through two arduous legislative terms, he worked with might and main. He was assigned a place on the Finance Committee. of the Senate where his wisdom and experience became powerful assets in the policies of the Government. He perceived the fact that the Sinking Fund, which had been instituted early in the history of the State's financial embarrassment, had outlived its usefulness, and that the policy of re-issuing to the credit of this fund every redeemable bond of the State, was cumbersome and unwise, and would, in time, create a fund useless for all practical purposes, and calculated to excite the cupidity of those who might have designs on the Treasury. Through his influence, an Act was passed, relieving the State of the necessity of providing interest on about $4,500,000, thereby, materially reducing the State tax.

Early in the War, the Legislature passed a Defense Loan of $4,000,999, to furnish Maryland's quota of troops. At the session of 1866, only one half of this amount had been expended, and the State remained unrepealed. The Democrats and Conservatives were manifesting signs of somewhat reckless expenditures, and the Republicans developed a reasonable fear that this money might be used for the purchase of  additional bonds. Legislation, which originated with Mr. Tome, was passed, and the Statute was repealed.

In 1853, the Legislature had granted a charter to the Philadelphia Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad to build a bridge across the Susquehanna River at Perryville; for five years Mr. Tome had resisted the passage of this bill, and the Bridge Fights had become notorious. The Railroad Company finally succeeded by proposing to build a branch road from Perryville to Port Deposit, putting two draws and a side track for general travel over the bridge. In 1864, while Mr. Tome was in the Senate, a bill was passed to dispense with the eastern draw of the bridge and the general travel way. By Mr. Tome's influence, the bill was amended so as to compel the Company to raise the height of the bridge sufficiently to allow tugs and small boats to pass under it, and also to compel the Company to keep a steam tug at the bridge for the purpose of towing vessels through. This concession, on the part of the Railroad, while seemingly insignificant - at the present time, was regarded as momentously important at that time.

In the Autumn of 1864, Mr. Tome was re-elected to the Senate and appointed Chairman of the Committee on Finance and of the Committee on the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries. On both these Committees, he rendered distinguished and valuable service. Along various other lines, his power, guided by sound and far-reaching judgment, was of inestimable benefit to the State. On his retirement from the Senate, he had gained the enviable distinction of being a leader, sane and fearless, and a states­man wise and incorruptible. The weight of his influence was invariably cast against corrupt practices and in the political arena, he was recognized as the champion of the Right.

After retiring from the Senate in 1867, Mr. Tome took no active part in politics until 1871, when he was unanimously chosen by the Republican party of .the State as its candidate for the Governorship. His campaign was notable, but the Democratic odds were heavy against him, and he was defeated by William Pinkney White, although he carried his own county (Cecil) by a handsome majority, notwithstanding a very considerable standing Democratic majority.

Mr. Tome's able and conspicuous financial ability, as "displayed in the General Assembly of Maryland, arrested the attention of the National authorities; he was repeatedly called to Washington, for conference, and was offered the Secretaryship of the Treasury in President Grant's' Cabinet. After mature consideration, he declined this honor and. recommended that his kinsman John Andrew J. Creswell, be chosen. Mr. Creswell was subsequently appointed Postmaster General by President Grant.

Mr. Tome was ever ready to spend his time and his money in Defense of the Union; the characteristic story is told of his entering Mr. Lincoln's presence on one of the darkest days of the War, and opening a carpet-bag which contained $100,000, which amount he placed at the disposal of the President.
On one occasion, he was dispatched from Washington to Philadelphia to carry a large sum of money from the National Treasury to the General in command of that section of Pennsylvania. The risk was tremendous; the obstacles were many and formidable. Only the purpose of his mission was communicated to him; the details were left to his loyal sagacity; "Carry this money to General ". These were his laconic instructions,
and though foes beset his pathway, he performed the dangerous mission.
Intense excitement prevailed in Maryland, prior to the breaking out of the Civil War and throughout its continuance. Maryland being a border state, sentiment was bitterly divided between the North and the South; party feeling ran furiously high, and even a semblance of order was difficult to enforce. Mr. Tome's absolute fearlessness in action, united with his unflinching convictions of duty 'and right, constituted him the custodian of order and the ,arbiter of dispute in his part of the State.

Few of his fellow countrymen could refuse to listen to the expostulations to a man, well known to most of them, whose judgment they had been accustomed to respect, and whose honesty they had never questioned. The resourcefulness of Mr. Tome and his promptness in taking advantage of the imperative moment, were finely exemplified on many critical occasions. The following affords an instance of his unique and important service in time of need: the Susquehanna River, which constitutes the dividing line between Harford and Cecil counties, seems, also, to have divided the sympathies of the dwellers of the two counties, bordering its banks. In Harford, the Confederate sympathizers were largely in the supremacy, and the reverse was the case in Cecil. By some of the subtle and intangible methods, known as "ways that are dark", word was conveyed to Washington that a detachment of Confederate soldiers was making its way down the Susquehanna to some objective point near Baltimore, and that, in anticipation of the arrival and in order to afford succor and assistance, citizens on the Harford side, had anchored boats, supplied with food, close to the shore, to be released and appropriated by the hurrying band. An urgent telegram conveyed the information to Jacob Tome with orders to take necessary action. His resourceful brain devised the method. Quickly invoking the aid of a comrade, no less daring than himself, guns and knives were provided. Without waiting for the "shades of night" to fall, the two men rowed rapidly and boldly across the river, cut the moorings and soon the boats were adrift on their course to the Chesapeake, and the plans of the Confederates, bent on a mission of dangerous diplomacy, were frustrated.

The following characteristic opinion is quoted from a letter, written by Mr. Tome in March, 1868: "I hope, our Republican Senators will have the nerve to discharge Andrew Johnson and send him to Tennessee, and give the reins of Government to old BEN Wade of Ohio, and before General Grant's time to take his seat, all the states, now in rebellion, will be restored to satisfactory basis to Congress."

An occasion, social and historical, to which Mr. Tome always referred with intense pride, was a banquet, held at the Hotel Bellevue, Philadelphia, on the 25th of April, 1893, in the nature of a Re-union of the "Old Guard", otherwise known as the illustrious "306" - those men who in 1880, stood firmly as a unit for what "they believed to be the best interests of the country, in such a way, as to have rendered their devotion to principle, historic, and altogether unique in the politics of the land."

The extraordinary occasion, upon which the "306 stood immovably together, was the Republican National Convention of 1880, held in Chicago". This country has never known a more notable political assembly than the Republican National Convention of 1880. It was conspicuous alike for the prominence of those who participated and for the character and results of its deliberations. Its membership embraced the distinguished and powerful party leaders from every State in the Union men who had won fame in the Councils of the Nation, or who were scarcely less notable for achievements in professional life, or who were recognized as potent factors in the party organization of their several states. No National Convention since has brought so much pronounced and recognized greatness of leadership; so much of' the ability and eloquence of which the Republican Party had just reason to boast. The political condition of the country did not open to the Convention of 1880 any such great work as the abolition of slavery and the indissoluble binding, together of the states in one national organization; but it was possible to destroy sectionalism, to obliterate the last trace of war prejudice, and to complete 'that human freedom which was contemplated in the results of the War, which has ever since been willfully obstructed. These were the broad grounds upon which the friends of General Ulysses S. Grant - the unyielding Three Hundred and Six - sought his nomination. And when the small and too often blinding prejudices of the moment are swept by the lapse of time, the highest tributes for patriotic motives and purposes will be generously accorded the Old Guard which stood by its banner until the battle was done. Its members have found' abundant justification in subsequent events for all they did, and faithful political history makes their name and fame secure." Though Grant did not receive the nomination, his supporters stood faithful to their candidate, and went down with colors flying - Loyal Old Guard. Jacob Tome was one of the most distinguished members of .this faithful band of illustrious patriots.

CHAPTER FIVE

SIDELIGHTS ON JACOB TOME

Jacob Tome has often been cited as a splendid example of the" characteristic human product of our, American soil .,. a strong, self-made man. To him, no one will deny this distinction. Unaided, he made his way over a pathway, beset by difficulties, surmounting everyone, never for a moment, losing heart or hope or courage.

Like many other men who have achieved greatness along various lines, we have already noted that he owed his inspiration chiefly to his mother, an earnest, tender, godly woman who watched zealously over his
, boyhood. Years afterwards, he said that the desire to make his mother comfortable was his first incentive to earn money. A desire to help others; to make comfortable those dear to him; to improve the condition of those around him, was the impelling force of his whole career no man was ever more free from selfishness. His wants were simple and his habits, unostentatiously. He was careful in his expenditures, not that he might accumulate money to squander on himself or hoard for mere gratification, but that he might enjoy the luxury of doing good.

Unlike many men who have climbed from poverty to wealth, he did not scorn the ladder by which he had climbed. On the contrary, he would recount the privations, he had endured and the obstacles he had surmounted. Throughout life, he had the highest respect for honest "effort, no matter how humble its sphere, and the profoundest contempt for pretense, no matter how exalted its scope.

Few men have been characterized by such modest estimates of  themselves as was Mr. Tome, and any attempt to place him on a pedestal, would provoke a smile. He was absolutely free from insincerity in any form; and yet no man was more truly cordial and sympathetic. There was a vitality in the grasp of his hand, and a warmth in the expression of "M his face which indexed his feelings. His vast and varied experience " afforded a rich store of reminiscence, upon which he drew freely, always to the pleasure and profit of the listener. His voice was resonant; his phraseology, strong and always adapted to his theme; his information, extensive and accurate. His appreciation of the humorous was keen, and elicited from him many trenchant comments upon situations and individuals. He was thoroughly modest and reticent as to his good deeds, scattering them wherever he knew there was need; therefore, few knew the extent of his kindnesses or the number of his charities which were, by no means, restricted to his relatives and immediate dependents. He was a religious man, never failing to take time to commune with God in prayer, and to read His word regularly as the basis of his life.

For many years, Home Mission Work, independent to a large extent of organized church effort, was carried on in Baltimore and in most parts of the State by a Godly, self-sacrificing Englishman, whose name was Freeman. After a life filled with good works and crowned with the blessings of many whom he had benefited, Mr. Freeman entered upon the reward, prepared for those who in humility and devotion serve their God. The mantle of his labors was at once assumed by his son, who, to the heritage 'of his father's teachings and example, added an inherent zeal born of intense love for his fellow creatures. These devout men labored in the Master's vineyard in a variety of ways; they ministered to the sick and needy; they visited the erring and prisoners; they distributed Bibles and tracts; they preached the gospel with a11 earnestness and simplicity that made it truly the word of salvation to many who had not previously known its precious truths.

The Freemans - father and son - always found welcome and assistance in the home of Jacob Tome, where they were encouraged to remain as long as they felt disposed, always leaving with generous donations. On one occasion James Freeman presented Mr. Tome with a copy of the New Testament and Psalms printed in large type and bound in flexible covers. The volume was autographed, and within its leaves was a photograph of the giver. Mr. Tome used this volume for his daily reading and the photograph for a bookmark. Two weeks before his death he remarked to his wife, "I have finished reading this Testament 17 times and each time, new truths have been revealed to me." The habit of reading the "'Scripture every day, established in childhood, continued until his life's end.

Jacob Tome possessed to an extraordinary degree, the faculty of dissecting character; of analyzing motive, of separating the true from the false. Men of every rank and profession called upon him with all sorts of business propositions; he always listened closely, and after a few moments of concentrated thought, he was ready to give a decisive answer. His eyes, though never hard or stony, had a remarkable power of penetration, and could apparently fathom the inmost depths of a person's being.

He was a good fighter and though he greatly preferred to be on the winning side, victory was not the only stimulus; he exulted in the combat -the measuring of brain against brain; of endurance against endurance, and especially in the triumph of justice. When adverse decisions had been rendered by the lower courts, he delighted to appeal to higher tribunals, and in such cases, usually secured reversal of judgment.

He was a careful and persistent reader, never without a book at hand, and often setting himself a task such as the reading of a standard history in a number of volumes.

He was an exceedingly graphic talker, well informed on matters of interest both in the Present and in the Past and drawing illustrations from divers sources. He appreciated humor and abounded in it, quick to perceive the ludicrous in any situation, and always ready to enjoy a good story, whether told by himself or another. '" He had the faculty of infusing interest into supposedly; dry subjects, and as he discoursed upon them with his trenchant speech, from unusual points of view, they became singularly illuminating. His extraordinary power of observation, united with a marvelously retentive and reproductive memory, made him the controlling master of a vast reservoir of knowledge. His habitual methods were methodical, pointed, accurate, enabling him to transact an enormous amount of business in a short time. His whole mental machinery, as it were, would be turned upon the consideration of any subject that engaged him.

Mr. Tome's career was especially noticeable on account of its unique form and uninterrupted achievement. From the day when adversecircumstances compelled the boy to assume the labors and responsibilities of the man and become a family bread-winner, through the varying and multitudinous activities of a business life, singularly complex and arduous, almost hydra-headed in its phases, until he had attained four-score years and more and had crowned life of splendid effort with an age of unusual opulence - in all this long period, there was no backward step. Upward and onward was the slogan, embodied in his career, and thought discouragements and perplexities did not permit him to pass unchallenged, he halted not at their bidding. It would seem that to him was vouchsafed a rare vision of the Future's possibilities - that from some lofty mountain peak, he was permitted to gaze down the vista of his coming years, and note what might be, if his strength and courage failed not. With extraordinary perspicacity, he seems to have adopted a line of conduct, which comprised industry and perseverance, honesty and economy, justice and judgment. These qualities, united with his native, far-reaching sagacity, led him, courageous and unfaltering, up the rugged heights of success. The heights which he reached and kept, "were not attained by sudden flight", but by earnest, persistent toil. What the boy desired, the man attempted and acquired.

The following article, taken from the Cecil County Whig of the first of October, 1859, is interesting on account of the picture it portrays of Mr. Tome, about entering the meridian of life.

.JACOB TOME

"Whilst we are swept along upon the stream of time and are busied . in the contemplation of the various phases of human life that are thrown up by the current, our attention is unavoidably turned to the different forms of eminence with which the world abounds, and the different ways by which that eminence has been attained.

Greatness, or notoriety in some of its forms, is a point to which the eyes of all men seem to be turned with a longing and feverish gaze - it is a height which all, even the humblest, seem striving to reach, yet how few are they whose struggles are successful, and whose desire is fulfilled.

The unthinking portion of mankind, that forms the majority, are practically ignorant that greatness is manifold, and that some of its brightest exhibitions are to be seen in those very paths in which they are treading or around which they are eagerly pressing.

How many suppose that true greatness can be found only in the regions of brilliant literary success; in the stirring appeals and rounded periods, uttered from the sacred desk; in the fiery harangue and keen debate upon the legislature floor; or still more in the cunning and bloody ingenuity, exhibited on those fields of carnage, which have shaken the atmosphere of half the world with groans or with songs and shouts of rejoicing.

But in its onward march of thought and in its growing meditative capacity, the world, in regard to these things, will, alter its verdict; and reasonably look for such an era in the public mind, Its signs and. even .Its beginnings are already before us. The time is already at hand in which the man, who by the observance of the strictest requirements of intelligence, masters his fate, forces the very obstacles of nature to Yield to his unconquerable purpose, and rises from obscurity and poverty, to influence and the largest competence, will not easily be excluded from the ranks of human greatness.

These remarks are applicable to such a man as Jacob Tome of Port Deposit, Cecil County, Md. Mr. Tome was born in the town of Hanover, York Co., Pa., in August 13, 1810, located in Port Deposit in the spring of 1833, mid engaged in the lumber business with J. E. Rinehart, Esq. The stranger who passes northwardly through the Main Street of this ancient town, will be struck by the appearance of an edifice upon his right, distinguished from the other buildings of the place by its size, its neatness, the fitness of its external appearance and its palatial air, and rising out of the everlasting granite that flanks the Susquehanna on the east. 

The stranger will at once conclude that the occupant of this building, if identical with the one who contrived and adorned it, is no common man. His taste, his energy and his mental constitution are displayed. The spirit of the man is seen, and, to a great extent is embodied in these material , forms upon which its. autograph has been so vividly impressed.

The building itself is outwardly striking, but the attention is soon turned to the display of taste and the indications of comforts that, are visible around it.'

The surroundings are evidently in an initiatory and in completed state, but there is still sufficient to admire. The edifice as has beel1 said, rises seemingly out of the very roots of the eternal rocks, but the skill and industry of man have reclaimed even this, and, caused its very barrenness to rise and undulate in a mantle of bloom. The eye rests on terrace, rising above terrace, not of the hard and naked granite, but of productive soil, from which spring the vine and the tree, that give to man the delicate and savory things of the earth. The dwarf pear and strawberry thrive abundantly. Nearly on a level with the top of the building, and in appearance partly excavated from solid rock, is a large reservoir from which a fountain sends up its perpetual streams of pearl.

Enter the edifice, and there you find everything in keeping with the external appearances. You are brought in contact with openness, freedom, intelligence  and hospitality. Within as without, there is the palatial air. You speak with the owner of the mansion, and you are ,more and more convinced that he has qualities which the multitude of. mankind do not possess. If you are at all skilled in physiognomy, you will see in his countenance the indication of fi ness and of that rare quality, common sense, in the highest degree.

The eye is expressive, and the perceptive and intellectual organs are largely developed. Upon the extension of your acquaintance with him, you will discover him to be one whom Fortune has not spoiled. Worldly possessions and success, in surrounding him with wealth, have not seduced him from that noble and manly height, upon which he was placed by nature, and which is indeed superior to all worldly possessions. Success has not caused him to forget all great vital relations that bind him to mankind. Fortune has not resulted in puffing him up and in blinding his eyes to the dignity of labor. He 'belongs somewhere among the high priests of manhood, and it is no small proof of this that he is not ashamed to work. And in him we have one to whom the eyes of the young who are looking forward to eminence and wealth, may well be turned for an ',' example.

Mr. Tome isn't yet an old man, and consequently, in a short term of life, he has risen from what may be called the common walks of life to wealth and eminence. He has done it by a strict adherence to the principles of integrity, without which, let no man think it will be well with him long; he has done it by wisdom, by industry, by careful perseverance in well-doing.

He is and ever has been, a most remarkable example of the practical working and business man. There are few in the State or even in the United States, that can equal him in this respect, as all who knew him will testify.

Wherever there is anything useful to be accomplished, .there you will find him engaged, not only with the head but with the 'hand. He has always been a worker and by necessity of his nature, ever must be. He is not only a hearer but a practice of the great law of reciprocity: by which human society remains and works a harmonious whole. In accordance with a divinely impressed law, that labor conquers all things, he has conquered. He was once poor, and is now rich. From a condition which may almost be denominated penury, he has risen, by the innate forces his own mental constitution, to that position which enables him to count his hundreds of thousands;-of strength and perpetuity, has perhaps superior in all our country.

It is on such ground that he is worthy to be held up as example to all aspirants after a fullness of the good things of this world. As men as he,-our world will learn more how to honor, it being, sensible at  they constitute its robust strength, and are its reliance and its Powerful benefactors.

'Industry
To meditate, to plan resolve, perform
Which in itself is good, as surely brings
Reward of good, no matter what be done.' "

Though not a resident of Baltimore City, Mr. Tome's predominating influence was strongly felt there, not only on account of his large property holdings and extensive financial connections in that city, because of his undisputed character as a man of sound wisdom and sterling integrity. His advice carried controlling weight all over the State  and was usually sought upon matters that involved important financial or political action. Methodical, just, sagacious, honest, it is not strange that his was a voice seldom unheeded.

Wednesday of each week for many years he spent in Baltimore, and frequently more than one day a week; - but Wednesday was known as his Baltimore day.

CHAPTER SIX

THE SCHOOL

Mr. Tome's continued and increasing appreciation of the benefits that education confers, and his earnest desire to employ his wealth for the benefit of others, led him to the determination to found a school in the town of Port Deposit, where the children of that community and of Cecil County primarily might obtain learning "without money and without price"; might gain the things that would promote their usefulness as citizens and their prosperity as individuals. Naturally, his life-long regret that he, in his early years, had been debarred such benefits, intensified and accentuated this desire and later, his determination to such action.

In announcing his preliminary plans in 1889, Mr. Tome said, "I have lived for fifty-six years in Port Deposit and have made my money there, and I think it is only right that I should spend some of it for the good of the the people there. . . . . My purpose is to erect and equip the necessary schools and laboratories for 500 children. I want to give them a practical education to fit them for the duties of life. The boys, I want to teach the use of tools and I want them to have the groundwork of any trade they may lE ct. The, girls will be prepared for their duties in life home or in the office,., They will be taught sewing, cooking and other d6'Inesti'c rts and also telegraphy, shorthand, typewriting, and the other occupations in which young women are daily coming to the .front in business life. I do not propose to establish trade schools, but schools where young people may obtain proper preparation for the varied. and important work Of life. I know what it is to fight one's' own way in life And I want to try to make the way a little smoother for 'others.' "

"I have no intention, however, of excluding the studies that prepare for college; on the contrary, I want such subjects liberally provided for and thoroughly taught, so that boys and girls", graduated from my school,  should they have the means and inclination, may be able ,to enter, creditably, higher and approved institutions of learning,  But no education can be well rounded which does not include vocal music and the foundation for technical and free-hand drawing. Literature and the ,higher branches of English as well as universal history, must have place in the curriculum. In short, we shall aim for what Whittier terms, "the cunning hand and cultured brain"."

"This will not be a boarding school., I desire, as far as possible, to keep my plan free from the idea of a charity house. I expect to set aside $2,000,000 for the operation of the school. My plans have been much changed and enlarged; originally, I planned to erect but one building and several years ago, 1 had the plan for that building prepared; these I shall abandon as I have decided to erect several buildings on, the two acres of ground which I have set aside. These buildings will probably cost $500,000 and I hope to start work on them next year- At the coming session of the Legislature I shall ask for special legislation to carry out my ideas, among which is to make the corporation perpetual. I want to arrange these plans and details as promptly as possible. I want to know that this work will be what I have planned and hoped for many years that it would be. My will is drawn and all my relatives are provided for. My purpose is to get everything ,in good working order, and to have matters so arranged that in the event of my death; they will be carried out according to my wishes."

,Mr. Tome maintained that all education should be established upon an equally broad scholastic foundation and that the superstructures should be reared according to individual needs and abilities. In his opinion, the same development. of mind and body was best of all in the preparatory years; the differentiation was, he thought, most wisely determined by subsequent aptitude , desires, and opportunities. The question, so far as preparation is concerned, whether a youth shall go to college, is best decided at the end and not at the beginning of his preparatory school course. The process and purpose of education, as Mr. Tome understood, it, is to fit young men and women to fill honestly, harmoniously and fully, the places in life, to 'which their own taste or controlling circumstances may assign them. To some, college and university beckon; to others, the world of commerce invites; to others, the realms of finance or diplomacy. But for all these different strata of duties, there should be the common ground of varied and comprehensive and responsible general training. Leaders in scholarship and commerce and finance and public life there will always be; these must be; and these leaders will be brought to the front as the demand arises. Perhaps they may come unheralded from the masses as did Abraham Lincoln. They may break--

. . . .their birth's invidious bar
And grasp the skirts of happy chance
 And breast the blows of circumstance --

Perhaps these may be the aristocracy of birth as was George Washington--­

"Soldier and statesman, rarest uniscm;
High-poised example of great duties done
Simply as breathing."

Such men will assert themselves, and so will, other's of similar calibre but in less degree. The majority will constitute the greatt army of substantial and essential workers -.:.. men and women of intelligence and energy but devoid of that indefinable gift that is termed "genius". This large aggregation should be properly prepared, Mr. Tome Believed, for whatever calling its members may enter; and, to such end; a largely uniform training should be prepared; As a result, them, will be able to enter the arena of active 'life with chances more nearly equal'. r
In an address, delivered by Mr. Charles J. Bonaparte before. the Jacob Tome Institute in 1900, some things, were said along this line:

"The more boys and girls who attend this school, the greater the probability that among them maybe, found some who will not waste their time at Johns Hopkins or Yale, Princeton or Harvard; the more nearly equal the chances of distinction here, the surer will be the test  thus aforded of their fitness for the training given there, and' the more readily and practically, parents and guardians, as well as children themselves, accept the truth that mediocrity and indolence, however harmless or however gilded, are  out of place in the higher education, the better it will be for our colleges and universities, our schools og law and medicine and ,professional labor and other fields, the better for those who annually leave these for their life work, and the better for the American people. ...

"It is, after all, a small thing that, in this foundation, Mr., Tome  has erected to his memory a monument more enduring far than the Latin  poet's bronze, that his name will be a household word to all the hundreds who shall look back ,hither for the happy years of their youth and early manhood. I say, this is a small thing, because it is shadowed by some­thing loftier and nobler; his enlightened liberality will furnish worthy citizens to his country, brighten countless homes in the land where he lived and died, make unnumbered lives happy through righteousness. With these fruits awaiting it, his gift needs no word of praise.

Like his friend and colleague, Enoch Pratt of Baltimore, Mr. Tome was anxious to see his work in actual operation, so that he might enjoy for a time at least the fruits of his own beneficence, and he might have the assurance that his ideas were being correctly embodied in the execution of the work. With gratitude, be it noted, that he was granted-the gratification of personally superintending the erection of the first large building of the group, and, for nearly four years, the exceeding pleasure and satisfaction of seeing the troops of young people that filled his halls and the busy, profitable lives provided for them. Every day, unless,. compelled by his extensive business demands to be absent from the town, he could be seen in the school building, conferring with director and teachers, noting the work being done in the classrooms, advising, assisting, , speaking words of encouragement to the ,girls and boys.

Good, gray head that all men knew.;
 O iron nerve, to true occasion true. 

Foremost captain of his time,
Rich in saving common sense,
And as the greatest only are,
In his simplicity sublime.

Whole in himself, a common good.

Like wise master-builders, Mr. Tome inspected work, accomplished or projected along somewhat similar lines by other American philanthropists. As a result, the school was modeled to some extent after the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, N. Y., founded by Charles Pratt, and the Williamson Institute near Philadelphia, founded by Isaiah Williamson, Mr. Tome's endowment fund, however, far exceeded that of either of these institutions or probably of any similar school in the world.

 In all the plans of Mr. Tome he was aided and encouraged by his wife, Evalyn, a woman possessed of the exceeding, good sense and discrimination which eminently fitted her to be the coadjutor, inspirer and helper of her husband, and whose rare "sweetness and light" rendered her the, eager, bountiful sympathizer with all that tends to charm, to strengthen , and to bless human nature. Many of her husband's most helpful provisions were due to her suggestions and her interest in all pertaining to his great creation was fully equal to his own.

In 1893, work was begun upon the first building, a massive, imposing structure of brick, free-stone and terra-cotta, rising from a granite foundation. This building, now known as Washington Hall, is <situated in the lower end of the town, contiguous to the stately residence of the Founder, who, from his library window, delighted to watch the children hurrying to and from the school, his bounty had provided for them.

The School was opened for the admission of students on the 14th. of September, 1894. For weeks prior to that date, the almost undivided time of the Founder and his wife had been given to conferences with the Director-elect, Professor James R. Campbell, as to preliminary arrangements, pertaining to equipment and the employment and assignment of teachers. Notices had been inserted in the leading papers, and the Press of the State and of Delaware and Pennsylvania had been profuse in complimentary mention.

About ten days before the time scheduled for the opening, Prof. Campbell was asked by Mrs. Tome, whether, in his opinion, sufficient provision had been made along all lines for the children who would probably enter. "Undoubtedly," he replied. "I think, and with good reason, that the enrollment will reach 100. We have provided for 200. Do you not consider that sufficient?"

Mrs. Tome thought, and then answered with her accustomed forcefulness, "I do not. I think we should increase the accommodations to the utmost." At this point in the conversation, Mr. Tome came up and inquired what was going on. "Your wife insists that more furniture, more textbooks, more teachers should be provided for the beginning of school. I think she is extravagant. What do you say?"  I say that whatever my wife says must be done. I have known '.her pretty well for a good many years, and I have never known her to be extravagant. She is wise and far-seeing. Do as she says."

Orders for more furniture, books and equipment were telegraphed at once. The first day's enrollment showed 451.

The opening of the School will ever remain memorable in the annals of Maryland. From very early morning throngs of people - men, women, children, were pouring into the little town on the Susquehanna from every direction, by trains, by vehicles of every conceivable kind, and on foot, the Mecca of their journeying being "Mr. Tome's new School." The street in front of the building was massed with an eager, hurrying, gladsome company. Inside the building, animation, congratulation, excitement prevailed. The corridors were alive with human happiness. When  the registration had been completed the children with as many of their parents as could find room, filled the Assembly Hall, tense with excitement anticipation. No formal program had been prepared, but that all expected something, was evident. With unfailing resourcefulness, the wife of the Founder met the emergency. She instructed the Director to read from the scripture and to offer a short prayer, to be followed by the singing of "Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow". The heart-felt chorus of praise and thanksgiving rose with mighty fervor to the inspirer of all human kindness, and there followed a moment of eloquent silence when feelings were too deep for words. The Founder .was present:-"their greatest yet with least pretense" -modest, unassuming as was his wont, his eyes beaming with a light that passed description; his voice tremendous with the joy that filled his heart at the consummation of his long:-desired awaited benefaction. "Sing that again," he called; and again, with increased fervor, a splendid paean of heart-felt gratitude ascended to the Giver of the great gift.

Mr. Tome was spared for nearly four years to enjoy his own munificent benefaction. At the first meeting of his appointed Board of Trustees, he stated that the approximate endowment of the School would be $2,500,000, and named his wife President of the Board - another proof of his confidence in her judgment and loyalty.

The Founder's interest in the School of his creation extended to the smallest detail of its management and equipment, and embraced the smallest child -in its personnel. Nothing was too good for his school, if he were approached in the right way to secure it. The tap of his cane as he passed along the corridors, day after day, was a familiar and welcome sound, and the sight of his face at the door of a class-room, was the signal for hearty applause. He was loved and honored by the tiny ones ,in the Kindergarten as well as by the boys and girls, verging upon manhood and womanhood. The teachers saw in him a tower of strength and wisdom, and felt strengthened and inspired by contact with him.

As the first Commencement drew near, his interest was intensified. Nothing must he left undone that could contribute to its success. Even the dresses, to be worn by the girls of the graduating class, were remembered by him; in speaking to the teacher in charge of that part of the work, he admonished her. that there must be nothing tawdry or showy; only "pure white, symbolic of their youth". No jewelry was to be worn by them on any occasion of the Commencement.

Before the time, set for the Commencement, the Angel of Death had crossed the threshold of the Founder's palatial home, and the wise, kind, proud benefactor, had passed to the Land beyond the Sunset.

CHAPTER SEVEN
THE DEATH AND FUNERAL OF THE FOUNDER.

On the twelfth of March, Mr. Tome contracted a violent cold while attending a property sale in the interests of a friend who had made a strong appeal to him to be present. This cold was followed almost immediately by a severe chill which resulted in pneumonia and caused his death on the sixteenth of the same month. Undaunted he passed from the Earth where he had labored so well and so faithfully, to the Land of Great Unknown where we doubt not the Master gladly pronounced upon him the verdict, "Well done". He died as he had lived - calm, resolute, conscious of duty, nobly done, he met the Great Taskmaster's eye.

The funeral services were held in the Tome Memorial Church in Port Deposit at 11 :30 o'clock, Saturday morning, 19th. March, 1898. The honorary pall bearers were Governor Lloyd Lowndes, ex-Mayor Ferdinand C. Latrobe, Mr. George B. Baker, Mr. J. B. Ramsay, Mr. David L. Bartlett, Mr. Jesse Hillis, of. Baltimore; Dr. R. E. Bromwell, Mr. Thomas C. Bond, Mr., Samuel C. Rowland, Mr. R. C. Hopkins, Mr. W. W. Hopkins, Mr. H. C. Nesbitt, of Port Deposit.

Prior to the regular obsequies at the church, commemorative services were held in the auditorium of the Institute which were attended chiefly by the students and officers of the School. The program consisted of a chorus by members of the school, "Hark, Hark, My Soul", reading of ,Scripture and prayer by Director William Perry Eveland; a eulogy by Mrs. .Charlotte Newell, Head of the department of English, and a solo "Crossing ,the Bar", by Mr. Joseph H. Wiley, instructor of Music.

The conclusion of this impressive service was the signal for the removal of the casket to the church, the entire student body, numbering about six hundred, acting as escort. The active pallbearers consisted of . eight students of the school, four of the number being members of the Class Of 1898, the first graduating class of the School; J. Melville Arthur, C. Reeve Vanneman, Hugh W. Caldwell, Roy P. McClenahan, J. Howard Johnson, Clay Whitaker, Edwin F. Charsha, and Fred Ruehr.

The solemn procession of students and officers filed to the church. Here a large congregation had assembled, including many recipients of his bounty, representatives of numerous corporations in which Mr. Tome had been interested, as well as many distinguished clergymen and laymen, all. present to pay the last tribute of honor and respect to a great man.  At the request of the family, Dr. William Perry Eveland, Director of the Institute, officiated. The ministers who assisted Dr. Eveland, included Bishop John E. Hurst of the Methodist Episcopal Church and Chancellor of the University at Washington; Dr. George Edward ,Reed, President of Dickinson College, an institution liberally befriended by Mr. Tome; Dr. Louis E. Barrett, Presiding Superintendent of the Wilmington ,District of the Wilmington Conference; President M Knight of Gettysburg College; Dr. T. E. Martindale, Presiding Superintendent of .the ,Salisbury District of the Wilmington Conference; Rev. Harvey W. Ewing, .a former pastor of the Tome Memorial Church; Rev.. C. W. Baldwin, Presiding Superintendent of the West Baltimore District, Baltimore Conference and Rev. W. P. Compton, Pastor of the Tome Memorial  Church. The program consisted entirely of addresses, Scripture reading and prayer and were eloquent with esteem and appreciation.

His body was laid reverentially to rest in the beautiful Cemetery at Hopewell - "God's Acre", where Nature perennially chants paeans of adoration to the Creator whose glory, the Heavens declare, and whose,handiwork, the firmament shows. In this immortal sanctuary, not built by human hands, his ashed repose; his spirit dwells in one of the "many mansions", prepared for those who serve their God and love their fellow-men.

Bishop Hurst Address.

"The greeting that the stranger brings you to-day, is not the ,same that it has been in years gone by. As we from a distance, have come and gone to this place, on arriving we have found, each of us, a friendly face, a cordial greeting, a firm grasp of the hand, and always a cheerful good-bye as we stepped upon the platform. To-day, all is entirely different. The friend of us all, is now only an inheritance to us  a  memory, strong, beautiful and enduring.

It is very fitting that such a life as this, lasting so long; going on steadily year after year, until the years had closed in decades; such a life with its continuity, its benedictions, its steady purpose coming down to the end, should receive more than ordinary attention. The State sent its Chief Executive here to-day from his own choice, to say, ','The State of Maryland is in this deep sorrow." And citizens of honor, of integrity and of history, have come into this town on this perfect day in Spring, to say "We know him, we honored him, we believed in him.

In the old countries where conditions are fixed, it is said that it takes three generations to make a successful man. Now and then there is an exception but there is so much in the matter of primogeniture and fixed laws' of society, laws, coming down and controlling property from the mediaeval time so the present time, whereby one must bequeath his property  to another and then the accumulation of two, are necessary to make a truly strong and public career. In this country, the conditions are different t, but ,are growing more like, the old country examples. We have in ,:the case of our departed friend a truly typical American career  Typical in another sense. When a mere child, he was, baptized and confirmed a regular member of the Lutheran Church. Early attention to its religious life gave him a juvenile experience that must have had its influence upon him from the beginning to the very end.

Early in life, as a business man he came to this place. Every child in Port Deposit ought to carry in his memory for the rest' of his days, how much a boy can do; how much a young man can do by getting himself into proper relations to attain a noble and pure business career. 

To that  noble woman who stands alone - and yet I will not say alone, - for God will be helping her in experience and wisdom already. She stands alone, but no one is alone who has God to guide. 

In all the days of this lengthy and successful career, not an hour has passed, not an oscillation of the pendulum that has marked a dark spot. After all, the highest words and the strongest eulogy that can be pronounced on this remarkable man, is that in every avenue of life in every environment of business, in every situation, no lip can say to-day of  him, that he'did the wrong thing. No one, can say that his heart was not in the right place. Truth, honor, integrity, perseverance, and high moral qualities, were elements of his character. So I say, there is not a child that should not take comfort from his experience. 

Here was a man who had his successes; who had the trials that are incident to human life; in them all, he stood firm, honorable, true to his country, as was notably the case, when in the time of our great Civil War, he was a power in the Senate; had chief control of the finances of his State, and, you may be assured, gave his hours and his days, the work of his brain and the very pulsations of his heart in that hour of need and of blood.

The institute which he founded by his own benefaction in this place, I think may be considered a fair estimate of what he thought of the community and the poor. He went out in sympathy with those who could not help themselves, remembering the early struggles that came to him as he looked out in his youth to life. So he founded this seat of learning, The Tome Institute, in this place, Some of us here to-day, will remember the beautiful time and the happiness of his face when the Institute was dedicated. He gave the dedication of it a religious turn and saw that God's blessing was invoked upon the work.

Mr. Tome was not given to any demonstration of religious sentiment, and it was thought by' some who knew him well, that he was too much inclined to hold back his views of God and Christ and the Bible for thee fear, perhaps, that others might think that he wished to make demonstration of that part of his experience. But I remember well the smile upon his face and, the gladness of his countenance at the prayers that were offered at the time of the solemn. dedication of the Institute to the purposes for which it was founded.

The Institute has gone along through these few years, and the happiness which it gave him, the joy with which he spoke of it, and the still larger plans, he had for its development, show that he, strong in his purpose and earnest in his sympathy, was looking to the poor and the helpless in the long-coming centuries.

I do not imagine that among the twenty-five great and noble benefactors of human life in the last thirty-five to forty years, I do not imagine, you could make a catalogue of them and leave out the name of Jacob Tome. , I say when you make up your list of such people, you dare not leave out' his name as one of the great benefactors of the country he loved:'

I greatly admired this man; I loved him. I admired him in a way different from many of you. You knew him as a business man. You knew him in the close relationship of a commercial life. I knew him in his home as a host; as a friend; as a man whose charity went out to his fellow-men - I commend his example to you - the example of one who said, "I will not leave it to my will to make known my purposes; I will do the best I can while I live." The founder of Vassar College, when in London, was passing along the street where Guy's Hospital stands. He 'read the inscription: "Founded by Guy in his life-time." Vassar exclaimed, "That's what I mean to do, and I had better not put it off."
He came home and while he lived, founded the college, which secures for young women the boon of an education. The same lesson may be learned from this man - this noble man whose heart was tender and sympathetic. He consummated his ,benefaction largely while he lived.

To the President of the Jacob Tome Institute and to" all the students, I would say that a great man has founded his school: a man of magnificent qualities, and the qualities of his career should reappear in the, life of every student who enters its halls and goes from them with any measure of education's The beautiful church in which we are now was founded by this man. How fitting that we should gather here to speak a few words in his memory and to all God's blessing on this stricken town, and that his precious blessings may rest upon his work forever."

President Reed's Address.

President Reed of Dickinson College, followed Bishop Hurst, and spoke as a personal friend of Mr. Tome and also as the official representative or the college which had shared so largely in his philanthropy.

Dr. Reed spoke of Mr. Tome chiefly as public-spirited citizen, who endeavored to build up a large fortune and whose, energy was devoted to the successful accomplishment of that object. In enlarging upon the ambition to acquire wealth, Dr. Reed asserted that such ambition is an honorable and commendable as the ambition to attain eminence along any line, and that Mr. Tome's memory is to be honored for that ambition. He had never been actuated by any desire for selfish ascendancy; on the contrary, that he was always glad to share any advantage of prominence with others. He had often spoken in the most gratulatory manner of the successes ,of other, men, and he constantly rejoiced at the prosperity of Cecil County, the Commonwealth of Maryland, and of his Nation. His;. rise meant the rise of the whole community, so closely is the social organism compacted  In times of crisis, Mr. Tome manifested a sincere devotion to political affairs, and for this devotion, he was to be heartily commended. No man-has the right to turn a deaf ear to the call of his country. To this call, Mr. Tome responded with trained intellect and wealth, and served  his State as a valiant and honored Senator. His" example  is a precious legacy. He feared God, and believed in personal responsibility to God. There is a testimony to such belief in the splendid church edifice which he has given to Port Deposit. Conditions early forced him into the active struggle of life, and the coveting of an education was at the basis of his noble provision for others. Deep down in his tender heart, was inherent the appreciation of culture which;"" with religion, is truly the basis for of our national life. He manifested his interest unmistakably in higher education, and gave generously to its support. Dickinson College is a grateful recipient of his bounty. In him, there was a genuine, concurrence of all the elements that make for human progress. He, was a keen, far-sighted, benevolent, public-spirited citizen, eminently worthy of  the name of philanthropist which will ever be associated. with him. 

President McKnight of Gettysburg College related some interesting incidents in the early life of Mr. Tome. Born of a pioneer Lutheran stock, he remembered the exceeding pleasure of the church of his parentage in the closing hours of his life. Though many ecclesiastical benefactions were executed through the agencies of another denomination, he always abounded in love and liberality for the Church "in which he had been confirmed at sixteen. He did not fall into the confusion of denomination with the broader Kingdom. With increasing wealth, he felt an increasing consciousness of his stewardship. Dr. McKnight congratulated the World that education is being remembered by the business men of the land. He said in conclusion, "Mr. Tome needs no shaft of granite to 'perpetuate his memory. Like the famous architect of St. Paul', it may ,properly be said of him, "If anyone wishes to see a monument of him, let him look around." There must be a constantly increasing appreciation of such service and of such men, by all who love their kind."

Mr. T. E. Martindale's Address ,
Dr. Martindale spoke of Mr. Tome's death as a personal bereavement, as there had been a close personal intimacy between them. He had ministered to Mr. Tome as pastor, and had officiated for him in some of the tenderest relationships of life. In seeking an explanation of his career,  and in looking for the primal influence in his life. Dr. Martindale found it at his mother's knee. After years of struggle, Mr. Tome uttered the lament, "I sought to make money that I might do for my Mother, and now when I have realized my ambition, to some extent, she has passed away." Though not a demonstrative man, Mr. Tome was deeply religious. He had said repeatedly, I want a preacher to preach the straight gospel to me. His creed partook of the splendid simplicity that characterized his life, and was the outgrowth of incessant study of the Bible. So certain was he that his was patterned after the Spiritual injunctions, that he said with habitual directness, "If I am not saved, there must, be something wrong with the plan." He spent long period in communion with God and no more reverent nature or tender, conscience were responded to such communion. This pondering over God's Word  lies the basis of his philanthropy and there could a no more fitting embodiment of it than the education of youth.

Dr. Louis E. Barrett's Address.
Dr. Barrett, in answering a self-imposed question's to the meaning of the great concourse of people, said that a life, strong, rugged, honest, Had passed, at whose passing, family, church, and community had sustained a great loss. . ., Dr. Barret affirmed. that Mr. Tome's Power of Concentration had been phenomenally strong. Perhaps, this country has never produced a man with greater power of focusing his energies; this faculty together with the desire to transmute the fruits of this energy Into that which II blessed and strengthened and bettered the world, constituted, his greatness. .Dickinson College, Tome Memorial Church and the Jacob Tome Institute '"'are perpetual monument's to his memory;, and unborn "generations will rise 'to call him blessed.

In concluding the services at the Church, .Dr. Eveland, Director of the Institute, said, "Did time permit, I, too, might have a right to be heard. For nearly two years, I have been in touch with some of Mr. Tome's noblest thoughts and best work, for, every day, I look into the faces of almost six hundred children, whose lives are not, and never can be the same as they would have been, had they never come under the ennobling influences, set in motion by Mr. Tome'