Hill

Leaders of the Civil War (vols. II, III, 1887),
for which he prepared four papers. As a soldier,
Hill was a man of clear judgment, as shown in
his resolute but unavailing opposition to the plan
of direct attack upon McClellan at Malvern Hill.
As an educator he emphasized in his administra-
tions the soldierly qualities of thoroughness and
discipline. As man he was characterized by
moral integrity and by religious devotion.

[The best sketch is by A. C. Avery, Hill's brother-
in-law, in W. J. Peele, Lives of Distinguished North
Carolinians (1898); briefer notices are in Cyc.t of
Eminent and Representative Men of the Carolines
(1892), vol. II, and John H. Wheeler, Reminiscences
and Memories of N. C. (1884). C. R. Shaw, Davidson
College (1923), covers the years of his life at that in-
stitution ; and J. H. Reynolds and D. Y. Thomas, Hist,
of the Univ. of Ark. (1910) contains a biography and
an account of his administration there. Fullest infor-
mation about his military record may be found in
Walter Clark, Histories of the Several Regiments and
Battalions from N. C. (5 vols., 1901); in C. A. Evans,
Confed. Mil History (1899), vols. I, IV; and in
D. H. Hill, Jr., Bethel to Sharpsburg (2 vols., 1926).
His own articles in Battles and Leaders of the Civil
War, vols. II, III (1887) are important for a study of
his military activity. A warm tribute is Henry E.
Shepherd's pamphlet, "Gen, Hill as a Teacher and
Writer," N. C. Booklet, April 1917, For obituaries,
see News and Observer (Raleigh, N. C.), Sept. 26,
1889; Twenty-first Am. Reunion Asso. Grads. U. S.
Mil. Acad. (1890).] p p Q

HILL, DAVID BENNETT (Aug. 29, 1843-
Oct 20, 1910), lawyer and politician, was born
at Havana (now Montour Falls), N. Y. His
parents, Caleb and Eunice (Durfey) Hill, were
natives of Windham County, Conn. His father,
a carpenter of very limited means, was unable to
give him more than ordinary school advantages.
Beginning the study of law in Havana, he con-
tinued it in the office of Erastus P. Hart in El-
mira, N. Y., where he was admitted to the bar in
1864 and soon thereafter was named city at-
torney. His conduct of that office enhanced his
reputation and henceforth he became more deep-
ly immersed in political activities. From 1868
to 1881 he was a delegate to the Democratic state
conventions, and over two of these, 1877 and
1881, he presided. In 1871-72 he was a member
of the New York Assembly, attracting great at-
tention by his keenness of mind and capacity for
details. Samuel J. Tilden [5.^.], with whom
Hill served as a minority member of the judici-
ary committee, was especially impressed with his
ability, and between them a bond of political and
personal friendship developed. Hill at first was
Inclined to cooperate with Boss Tweed, who had
helped him to obtain control of the Elmira Ga-
sette^ but soon joined with Tilden in exposing
the Tammany leaden In 1872 Hill was re-
elected to the Assembly and chosen speaker. Al-
ways glad to help along a man higher up so as
to clear the road for himself (New York Times,

Hill
Oct 21, 1910), he assisted Tilden to attain the
governorship, and did his utmost to bring aboul
his election to the presidency in 1876.
After serving Elmira as alderman in 1880-8ij
Hill was elected mayor of the city in March 1882
on a reform ticket, but resigned in December,
following his election to the lieutenant-governor-
ship of New York on the ticket with Grover
Cleveland. Succeeding to the governorship on
the inauguration of Cleveland as president in
1885, he was elected in his own right that year,
reflected in 1888, and served until the legal end
of his term, on Dec. 31,1891. Early in that year
he had been elected to the United States Senate
for the term beginning in March, but, despite
considerable criticism, did not take his seat until
January 1892. Two years later, again a candi-
date for governor, he was defeated by Levi P.
Morton.
Though scruples concerning methods never
daunted Hill so long as partisan advantage was
the object in view, his governorship was marked
by superior administrative efficiency (Brooklyn
Daily Eagle, Oct 20, 1910). He guarded the
credit of the state, advocated home rule for cities
and other subordinate municipalities, opposed
the multiplication of special laws for particular
purposes, championed reform of the codes of
civil and criminal procedure, and strongly fa-
vored the substitution of electrocution for hang-
ing in cases of capital punishment, the abolition
of contract labor in relation to state prisons, the
institution of Labor Day and Saturday half-holi-
days, legislation against child labor, and the es-
tablishment of a state forestry preserve. His
veto of the state census bill of 1885 <>n the ground
that it should have provided merely for an
enumeration of the inhabitants of the state caused
considerable furor in both Democratic and Re-
publican circles. During his entire career he
was a party man and a machine politician; and
long before he left the executive chair at Albany
he had come to be the recognized leader of the
Democratic party in the state. With a genius
for organization and detail, he knew everybody
and what everybody stood for. His greatest skill
as a politician was shown in playing off up-state
New York against New York City and Tam-
many.
He was elected to the United States Senate
despite the covert opposition of Cleveland, who
increasingly disliked his policies and methods.
The principal feature of his senatorship (1892-
97) was his battle with Cleveland over the New
York patronage, a struggle which Hill won. He
afterward defended the policies of Cleveland dur-
ing the latter's friendless second term. That