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Edwin Posey West.

DWIN POSEY WEST, physician, merchant and banker,

of Clarkesville, Habersham county, was born in Nacoochee Valley, on October 29, 1837. He attended the common and high schools of Habersham county until he was nineteen years of age, always spending his vacations at home on his father's farm, where he engaged in all sorts of farm work. At the outbreak of the War Between the States he joined the Confederate army and rendered active service till the close of the war. He was made one of the assistants under Surgeon Howard of Colonel Chastain's regiment of Georgia State troops, and before the close of the struggle had won the rank of Major.

Returning from the war, Dr. West was, on October 19, 1865, married to Miss Mary Eleanor Edwards, daughter of Enoch Edwards. Eight daughters have been born to them, all of whom are living. Their names are, Alice, Mrs. Judge J. B. Jones; Ida, Mrs. W. R. Asbury; Clifford; Nora Bell, Mrs. Dr. Webb, of South Carolina; May Asden, Mrs. H. L. Davidson; Ethel Pauline, Mrs. J. O. Bailey; Maude L. Eldecia; Frankie Kathleen.

In 1870 he became a student at the Medical College of Atlanta, and was graduated in 1873. He then returned to Habersham county, which, according to official records, has about the lowest death rate of any county in the United States, and took up the practice of his profession, which he followed for twenty-five years. In the meantime Mrs. West superintended his growing mercantile business which was profitable. Hav

ing made a fortune among as sturdy and healthy a body of citizens as can be found in the whole country, he retired from the practice of medicine and invested his money in the enlargement of his mercantile business and in the Habersham Bank, of which, at its organization, he was made president. This position he still holds.

In 1811 Benja

The name West is distinguished in the annals of both America and England. About the year 1750, when John West was Speaker of the House of Commons in England, three of his brothers emigrated from that country to America. One of these, James West, was the great-grandfather of the subject of this sketch. He settled in the Colony of Virginia, where in 1878 his son, James, was born. The latter became a prominent Baptist preacher, and in company with Rev. Humphrey Posey, for whom Dr. West is named, used to travel on horseback in the States of Virginia, the Carolinas and Georgia. min West, the father of Dr. West, was born. Rev. James West permanently located in the and lived to the ripe old age of ninety years. His son, Benjamin, died at the age of sixty-five. The subject of this sketch has already passed three score and ten, but is active and energetic for a man of his years. On his mother's side, Dr. West is of Scotch-Irish ancestry. His mother was Miss Thursey Trotter, daughter of Robert Trotter. Dr. West's father was a farmer, whose marked characteristics were kindness and affection toward his family.

One year later State of Georgia,

Dr. West is a leader of the Baptist denomination in his community, a Master Mason and an active member of the Democratic party. He has delivered a number of addresses be fore the county and State medical societies, and has been as occasional contributor to the newspapers. At a banquet given to the Mississippi Valley Association on October 9, 1900, at Ashe

ville, N. C., he was called on, as one of the delegates from Georgia, to make a "Cracker" speech, which was reported as follows:

"I am proud to say that I am a Georgian and a thoroughbred Cracker. However, I feel somewhat embarrassed to find myself speaking to gentlemen, as I do not associate with them at my home. I am the father of eight girls, and am the only young man at the house. Possibly some of you gentlemen may be able to imagine what it is to be tied by the apron strings of eight girls, and live under a petticoat government and have to go to mill and make fires all your life.

"Gentlemen, I live in Habersham county, which is the healthiest county in these United States. Its low death rate is attested by the fact that the United States health reports put it as one of the very few white counties on the map. In Habersham we never get sick or die—had to kill a man to start a graveyard. In that county, gentlemen, I practiced medicine twenty years, made a fortune and retired. I'll tell you how I did it. Doctored them before they got sick, and kept them well."

Dr. West is a diligent student of the Bible, and says that in his life-work it has been of far more assistance to him than any other book. He recommends as essential requisites to the atr tainment of success, trust, honesty and perseverance.

D. A. TEDDER.

William barren lanbrum.

WILLIAM WARREN LANDRUM, D.D., LL.D., pas

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tor of the First Baptist Church of Atlanta, Ga., stands in the very forefront of the Southern Baptist Ministry. He was born in Macon, Bibb county, Ga., January 18, 1853, On both sides he comes of distinguished parentage. His father, Dr. Sylvanus Landrum, occupied pastorates in Macon, Savannah, New Orleans and Memphis. His mother was a daughter of General Eli Warren, of Perry, and no less fearlessly than her husband, shared in the danger and suffering which devastated the city of Memphis during a terrible epidemic of yellow fever. She ministered day and night to the plague-stricken inhabitants, and lost two sons in that time of sorrow and disaster.

On both sides of the family, the ancestors of Dr. Landrum came from Virginia, and in the Old Dominion State they were distinguished for piety and wisdom in the moral and religious life of the communities they served as well as for patriotism and bravery on the field of battle.

It is often recorded that the leading men in our country's history passed their early years on the farm, but the subject of our sketch forms a notable exception to this rule. The whole of his boyhood was spent in city life. The curious fact that the words of our language, which pertain to politeness and culture are derived from urban life has often been noted by etymologists, and these qualities have always marked the young Georgian, who was reared in Savannah, Macon and other cities of the South. In his home and surroundings there were culture and refinement, and the youth early developed a fondness for books and intellectual pursuits. There was a healthy desire for fishing and a love of out-of-door sports, however, which has