I was born on October 17,1864, in a small town by the name of Watertown, New York. My mothers name is Maria Lay Dodge and my father's is John Lansing. My father is a profound lawyer in New York, and my father-in-law who interested me in global and international affairs. Not to mention that he was at one time Secretary of State. His name is John Watson Foster. My family and I are very religious. We attend mass at a Presbyterian church regularly. My family is also Democratic, and we will only vote democratic. I graduated from Amherst College in 1886, and like my father and grandfather did, I have entered the legal profession. I joined my fathers practice in 1889, and continued with that until 1892. Up until 1892, I was better known then any American lawyer of the time. In 1892, I was appointed associate counsel of the United States arbitration. Because of this job, I got to go to Paris, France. In 1894, I served as counsel for the Mexican and Chinese in Washington. In 1906, I founded the American Society of International Law, and in 1907 I began the American Journal of International Law and became its associate editor. Woodrow Wilson grew very found of my work, and therefore appointed me US Secretary of State in 1915. While Woodrow Wilson began to grow very sick, I held several meetings with members of the cabinet. This angered him, and I was forced to resign from my position in February of 1920. I later died on October 30, 1928, in New York City, at the age of 64.
