CRAWFORD, WILLIAM HARRIS Ameri can statesman, was born in Amherst county, Va.,. Feb. 24, 1772. He studied at Carmel academy for two years, was principal of one of the largest schools in Augusta, and in 1798 was admitted to the bar. With Horatio Marbury, he prepared a digest of the laws of Georgia from 1755 to 180o. From 1803 to 1807 he was a member of the State House of Representatives. From 1807 to 1813 he was a member of the U.S. Senate, of which he was presi dent pro tempore from March 1812 to March 1813. In 1813 he declined the offer of the post of secretary of war, and until 1815 was minister to the court of France. He was secretary of war in 1815-1816, and secretary of the Treasury from 1816 to 1825. In 1816 in the congressional caucus which nominated James Mon roe for the Presidency. Crawford was a strong opposing candidate having, at first a majority, but when the vote was finally cast 65 were for Monroe and 54 for Crawford.
In 1824, when the congressional caucus was fast becoming ex tinct, Crawford, being prepared to control it, insisted that it be held, but of Republicans only 66 attended; of these, 64 voted for Crawford. Three other candidates, however, Andrew Jack son, John Quincy Adams and Henry Clay, were otherwise put in the field. During the campaign Crawford was stricken with paralysis, and when the electoral vote was cast Jackson received 99, Adams 84, Crawford 41 and Clay 37. Adams became presi dent through Clay's influence in the House of Representatives. Crawford was invited by Adams to continue as secretary of the treasury, but declined. He recovered his health sufficiently to become (in 1827) a circuit judge in his own State, but died while on circuit, in Elberton, Ga., on Sept. 15, In his day he was undoubtedly one of the foremost political leaders of the country, but his reputation has not stood the test of time. He was of imposing presence and had great conversa tional powers; but his inflexible integrity was not sufficiently tempered by tact and civility to make him generally popular. Although a skilful political organizer, he incurred the bitter en mity of other leaders of his time—Jackson, Adams and Calhoun. He won the admiration of Albert Gallatin and others by his powerful support of the movement in 1811 to recharter the Bank of the United States ; he earned the condemnation of posterity by his authorship in 1820 of the four-years-term law, which lim ited the term of service of thousands of public officials to four years, and did much to develop the "spoils system." He was a Liberal Democrat, and advised the calling of a Constitutional Convention as preferable to nullification or secession.