The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1872-03-21
A Pen Picture of Carl schurz.

correspondent of the; Chicago tribune, contrl
butes the following graphic picture of the Ger
man orator and soldier: -. -
Carl Schurz is the wonder Of our time. Borr
to speak another language, to roam over anoth
er continent, and to lead the dull life of po
litical European-serving some petty monarchy
as a faithful ally, or laboring in efectual revolt
he has appeared like. an .apparition in dem
ocratic country, and become spirit of the
hour. Our rancorous partisans like Morton
our sprigs of conceit like Conkling, our rollick'
ing Bohemians like Carpenter-all of these
come down, boil er,shriHk and splutter, when
the fine young "Dutchmanp asks for the floor
Look at him before lie begins his speech
You see thin, tall almost nervous man, tear
ing bits of paper apart, seemingly troubled with
the necessity about to approach, restless of eye
and pulse, but very wei! dressed; gentleman
student, and apparently approaching this
chapter of his life very much as a college grad
uate comes to the time of his finishing speech.
You look. at this young man, and feel for him ;
you wish that some stronger, broader and less
sensitive spirit had this task to undergo; you
roam over the fine points of his face, the gnarled
look of his nose and chin, the red tint of his
bownish hair, and you search the galleries
around to see if his wife and daughter are pre-
tion. Nothing of the sort do you see, only a
youpg foreigner, almost newly naturalized
among us, laying back upon the appreciation of
three or four friends, and the belief in fair play
which should belong to States like ours. "
Then you see the galleries fill up, blacks and
whites dropping in until all the huge space is
filled, and the door-keepers begin to struggle
with the excess of people who want seats
Then the large Reporters Gallery becomes
crowded, and the door-keeper shows some con-
Germ as to those who really belong to the press,
and who slip in as imposters Then the Vice
President leaves his chair and puts some dunn
nv in it, while he takes that dummy's seat
near the Young "Dutchman." Next, the oppo-
nents of Schurzs policy walk around nervous
". and look up at the audience in the gallery,
and feel that, with all their selfappreciation,
the people are drifting off from Mr.. Grant
Then Senator Nye is seen to have something
unusual to say, and, with his large ox-eyes, he
slips around in the rear. of ,Schurz and says
something grave to the man sitting next be.
hind him. Then Mr.. Morton squats behind
his stand, and has lead pencil sharpened to
take notes upon the formidable young champ
ion. Then Roscoe Conkhng studies fine points
midway between the cornice and the door, and
seems to show that he has contempt for all
this business, and would like a buggy ride
down the avenue, in order that he might not
be party to it; but he knows very well that
he must remain in this audience and listen to
the harangue, for it is going to be good thing
Then perhaps you will see mr.. Horace Porter,
House: drop in as if it. were accidentally, but
really to carry the first news back of what the
'sDutchman"' had to say. Then, members of
the House appear at the door and force their
way on the foor-Dawes, who leads the princi-
pal committee, and Garfield, who. leads the
next, and all the others-and they slip around
the space back of the Senator's chairs, or take
the seats of certain Senators who are smoking
or lounging. Finally, the Senate looks like
great amphitheatre, black with heads, the doors
besieged, everybody expectant; and, In that
moment, little folks, unknown to the country,
start up with little bills, to put aside or defer
the real matter of the time.
At length the man in the chair calls up the
resolution, and says that Mr.. Schurz has the
floor. =,
Then Mr.. Schurz stands up in his blue cloth
coat. plain collar, clean shirt, and black tie,
gray breeches, and long Henry Clay boots
His voice is mot full or: resonant, but keen,
well-intoned and plain, and everybody benes
forward to hear it. He says that when mean
insinuations, begging of the question, and side
thr,sts are requisite to defeat an in vestigation,
the public may we'll open their ears and know
the matter in, hand. At this everybody's ears
are well alert and the speech goes on. Every
sentence in it is curt, sharp, and manly. Every
point in it is gentfeman's point never inten-
ded for ."mouths of lowest censure." Without
much temperament in the speech, it climbs its
way up toward classical climaxes. Very soon
YOU can see Morton's hands working and his
mouth puckerng you can see ConkliDg stick
ing his head down into some imaginary docu-
ment, and pretending to be deeply meditatlng
it. You can see Harlan reading the Cherokee
bill, and counting the moments of his seat in
this body. You can see Nye slipping around
to the rear and suggesting some grave plausl-
bility to somebody who is listening too intent
But, looking away from those place-getters
on the floor of the Senate into the galleries,
you will note that every eye is bright with ap-
probation, and every ear alertly intent to catch
every syllable which the "Dutchman" utters.
! He stands before his desk with his hand upon
the back. of his chair, and upon the desk Is
book upon book ready to be consulted, and
nobody knows better than he that the least slip
in the line of his argument will be made mat
ter of triumph to the chaps who fear him. 10
make speech like one of Schurz's is in great
part a consecutive, documentary matter, de-
manding the fullest clearest sagacity-. capacity
to bring up in order, without hesitation, every
piece Of paper, every calculation, every book
before him, and these books, in the case of the
present speech, were in many languages, and
the man, as linguist, had to translate them
off hand as we'll as to be an orator. No speech
es esa made in Washington City have trOdden clos,
er and more severely upon the direct path of
argument than those of Schurz. His power
lies, for the trunk part of it, entirely in the
force of consecutive statement OF fact. With
this argument he proceeds keenly, undevia-
\ Nov S1 and then, when point logically in its
place is to be made against a political oppo-
heht, he steps aside from the contemplation Of
his manuscript, and utters it with additional
force and splendor, SO that it pierces and makes
blood for the instant futter at the heart OF eve
ry listener AS the thing goes on, you see the
additional interest of the galleries and the