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Chapter Seventy-Eight- A Women’s Touch

Chapter Seventy-Eight- A Women’s Touch​

Ada Lovelace was a smart woman. her mathematical talents led her to a long working relationship and friendship with fellow mathematician Charles Babbage. She had reformed the treasury to be more efficient but had never expected to be president. But when the president, the vice president and most the cabinet died she ascended to the office. A sixty-five-year-old women she was not considered suitable for the office but she pressed on. With only one year to the election of 1880 many did not expect her to assemble a cabinet or run for a full term but once she had the office Lovelace was not ready to give it up without a fight. She assembled a cabinet, fought the election of 1880 which she won then served eight years winning the election of 1884. Throughout her term, Lovelace used a cabinet of people she considered smart who could help her with her agenda, she was the first to appoint an education Secretary. These people included:

Secretary of Defence: Edward Baker Lincoln- The second son of Lincoln and the brother of president Robert Lincoln, Edward would begin training the military to handle tougher situations, establishing the Lincoln doctrine. He believed that any fighting would no longer be fought out in the open but in the forests, jungles and mountains. Lincoln established the United States Army Ranger corps focused mainly on infiltration tactics and sabotage.

Secretary of State: James G. Blaine: The former president would step down from his role, shaken by the events he missed during the Mississippi Disaster of 1879. The new head of the state department was James G. Blaine though unexperienced he did bring something new Lovelace wanted. Lovelace had come to see what she considered as an unnecessary action of the yesteryears and if America was to move forward it had to let go. With the death of King Charles II, the third in 1878 led to the rise of King Henry the 9th (the son of Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany and grandson of king George the third). Blaine would slowly work to normalise relations with the British and Spanish while also increasing influence in Korea.

Secretary of the Treasury: Robert Ray Hamilton - Now president Lovelace could not run the treasury instead she placed her friend Robert Hamilton in charge of the treasury. The 1880s would see a decrease in military spending as love lace attempted to shun the America n people’s warlike past. Robert Hamilton would instead funnel more money into education, the colonies and the improvement of the growing slums inside cities. Robert Hamilton kept the treasury afloat and was praised for his actions in establishing new paper notes in 1885.

Secretary of home development: N/A- The home development department was eating up funds by the 1880s. it was considered outdated and unnecessary as most infrastructure problems could be dealt with a smaller team. To that end, Lovelace rolled the home department into the state department ending its role in America .

Secretary of Health: Florence Nightingale - Florence Nightingale was back. She was much older now but continued to work on bringing healthcare to Mexico and the colonies. Nightingale began campaigns for healthier eating and exercise. She would be most well-known for establishing free health clinics for the poor. She also pushed for better treatment for immigrants on ships, considering the practices unhealthy.

Secretary of Education: Charles Dickens/ Oscar Wilde - A sixty-eight-year-old man from England, dickens had written many novels during his time living in America . He was also a good friend of Lovelace. Lovelace did not want a established person in the role for she did not believe they would grasp the idea of education. Despite being old, For Dickens, a good education could be the bulwark against ignorance, cyclical poverty and crime. He would serve four years in the role establishing schools for the poor which attendance was mandatory twice a week, the strain of work would kill him in 1884. Oscar Wilde was an aspiring writer at the age of thirty, he had left Ireland after his messages of education for the masses was ignored. He became dickens protégé and took over after his death. Wilde was younger and pushed harder, he manged to secure the place of science and history in schools and also established schools for girls.​

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