National Perspective: My friend, James Edward Wright

He grew up in a town named for the Earth's primary mineral containing lead, which might explain his strength. Galena, Ill., also was the home of nine Civil War generals, including Ulysses S. Grant, which might explain why he became a Marine and later was among the country's most outspoken advocates for veterans of America's wars. As a young man, he set dynamite explosives in a zinc mine, which might explain his appreciation for life above ground. He financed his education as a bartender, janitor and night watchman, which might explain his reverence for learning. He was my friend and teacher, which explains everything.

James Edward Wright — historian and college president, professor and mentor, a man of dry wit and moist tears, as comfortable deep in the archives as he was examining baseball box scores — died Monday. He was 83. He was the guiding light to generations of Dartmouth College students who flocked to his courses (almost always oversubscribed), who flunked his courses (there were more than a few), and whose lives and interests (some of them landed on Capitol Hill) were fostered by his courses.