Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1881-10-10
Made ON u Midnight Train In
Texas.
Cor. GnIyestOn News.l

Cor. Galveston News.l
PALESTINE, Texas, August I'll
see in one Of the late issues Of the
News description of an adventure
that occurred to Congressman Joe
Blackburn, of Kentucky, on his late
visit to the far West on the line of the
Trans. Continental division of the
Texas and Pacific railway. Your cor
respondent met the genial Congress-
man while on that trip. One night at
nearly midnight the wild cat train,
with its nondescript crowd Of COW
boys, drummers, revolyers, gamblers,
"soiledd doves and rifles, with a chance
traveller sprinkled among them here
and there, started from Big Springs
for its all-night journey to Abilene,
from which point the regular trains
run through to a connection with the
main line, and thence to civilization,
The one car attached to the train was
crammed full; there was scarcely
standing ROOM. Up to the roof Of a
car a hammock had been swung, and
therein lay your correspondent, utterly
careless of the discomfort below him
and pretty well out of the range of
any stray shot that might whistle past
in the darkness. There was no light
in the car, but there wal plenty of
loud talk and boisterous laughter.
Above all there suddenly rose a voice
calling out: Say, Blackburn, give
us a speech" and then fos an Instant
there was a calm, broken only by the
creakings anil joltings Of the car, and
the cracks of some bullet shots from
the cowboys crowding the platform.
Then the gang roared for a speech,
and even the doves cooed out in Ian
guage as iorcible as it was p%rofane
that if a speech was not forthcoming
there would be trouble mighty soon.
No one seemed to know who Black
burn was; no one seemed to care; but
a speech was wanted, and the Con-
gresham was equal to the occasion.
1t was a weird, strange scene. A
brakeman had swung his lantern from
the roof OF the car, and in the unsteady
Pickering of its light the brawny Con-
gresham stood up and began his
speech. Eyes cleaned out on him
through the darkness, the hands and
voices Of the frail sisterhood in the
corner applauded his telling points,
and the genuine COW boys yell round
ed off his most brilliant periods.
Never before in his political career,
whether speaking to his brawny con-
stituency in the Blue Grass region Of
Kentucky, or to more critical listen
ers in the galleries and on the floor Of
the House of Representatives-neve
before, l am convinced, had JOE
Blackburn been more eloquent. Fol
more than an hour, high above thu
racket Of train aud rail, the massive
Voice rose and fell as he told Of the
hundred and one incidents hat haC
happened in his Congressional expert
ence. 1t would be hardly just 70 re
port his speech-it was certainl!
never meant to 20 into typo-for
it did il would be the sensation Of tn
day. The Texas Senators were takel
up, analysed, dissected and LAID aside
and every Congressman from the Stat
was held up to the view Of that mid
night audience until one could almos
imagine Reagan s massive proportions
or the dainty form. of Roger Q Mill
floating in the dusky dimness aroun
the swinging lantern in the r%oof-toI
and see Jones at the mouth of th
Brazos manfully seooping out tina
sandbar, which, once removed, is t
make Galveston the tire woman Of tn
twin sisters, Quintana and VelascC
Stories-yes, he told dozens Of then
all Of them interesting-some of thel
uproariously laughable, and not a fe'
Of them that would be rather queC
reading for some Texas constituer
cies.