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Stoddard (WILLIAM OSBORN an American)

WILLIAM OSBORN, an American author; born in Homer, N. Y., Sept. 24, 1835; was graduated at the University of Rochester in 1857, and after serving for a short time in the Civil War was made secretary to President Lincoln, which office he held till 1864 when he became United States marshal of Arkansas. Subsequently he engaged in business and journalism in New York City, where he also held several public offices under the municipal government.

He was the author of numerous stories, sketches and poems, including "Life of Abraham Lincoln"; "Chuck Purdy"; "The Sword-Makers' Son"; "Ulric the Jarl"; "The Boy Lincoln" (1905); "Two Cadets With Washington" (1906); "In the Open" (1908); "Dab Kinzer" (1909); "The Captain of the Cat's Paw" (1914), etc. dry for some years, meanwhile reading widely, especially in poetry. In 1849 he produced a small volume of poems only to suppress it afterward; but 1852 saw the birth of a sturdier collection. From 1853 to 1870 he served in the New York custom house, in 1870-1873 was clerk to