The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1881-12-31
e. w. OYSTER, i4sq.

". olSLEfks tASa. 49, 800 X
OF all the senators, Conkling writes
and legible. His signature, however,
would be o study 10 any one not ac-
quainted with it,
JAMES G. BLAINE
when a member of the senate, used TO
. look carefully after his speeches, which,
for the most part, were made from
.'headings.'i Probably there never
was in the United States senate man
who needed less preparation than
James 6. Blaine. He is infallible in
history and impregnable in debate. His
memory of facts and fancies is abso-
lutely wonderful He can begin with
william the Conqueror and give you
the name of every sovereign OF Eng
land down 10 Victoria, with the dates
of their reigns. Now and then the sem
ator would give his personal attention
to the printing Of aspeech. One morn
ing Oyster found him busly at work
s.cutting up copvn for the printers,
"Hel1o, Oyster, I'm ahead of you. See.
Pm dividing copy" Yes, senator. /
see you're ahead of me; but / went
home only six hours ago, and shall be
here for sixteen consecutive hours. !"
"Well, / know it's hard work. Oyster,
I've been at it and know what night
work means.
VOORHEES, PREPARES HIS SPEECHES.
carefully and revises moderately. He
is one of the few-yery few-men who
use manuscript in such way that not
single oratorical grace is diminished
thereby. Whether this is because he
commits his speech well to the memory
or not / never could tell. / rather
think he does. But. with or without
manuscript, Voorhees, is an orator OF
the first school. As a rule. the very
| sight of manuscript in the hands of a
speaker is enough to nerve me for a
| bore Demosthenes was right when he
| said: ssOratory is delivery--delirery-
delivery and delivery is killed by
manuscript.
JONES, OF FLORIDA,
always hard student, labors diligently
at a s.set Speech He is passionately
fond of Edmund Burke. and knows his
works as / never knew any other to
| know them. He has q memory equal
TO Blaine's or Ben Hill S, and time and
again have heard him repeat page al
/ ter page of Burke's immortal speeches.
| 1t is the same with the speeches of Phil
lips, Grattan and O'Connell. Jones is
| a very able man. His democracy is
extreme. but out of politics he is one
of the cleverest fellows the world over,
DAVIS OF WEST VIRGINIA,
though an old member of the senate
has made but one speech-on agricut
ture It was printed exactly as it was
written. His remarks are left 10 the
tender mercies of the stenographer
| BECK, DAVIS COLLEGE
on the committee on appropriations, il
the most rapid talker in the house o
congress. Well for him thatthe senate
has such a stenographer rs Denis Muir
phy, whose hand travels over pape
like lightning. I doubt if his equa
could be found anywhere. Beck is al
untiring worker, has the constitution o
Kentucky race horse, ard no amour
of labor is too heavy for him. He
not much of reviser, going on thu
principle of Pontius Pilate-Quod scrap
81, sc31pS5. He is rs blunt as Joe,
Bagstock. and as good natured as Mari
| Tapiey. As there are no '1eaves Il
print in the senate, no senator cal
publish speech without having "a
least read it from manuscript. The
first page of the Daily Record is quit
desideratum as place to air the It'll
of a speech, and many grave senate
J who would willingly sit at the lowe
: end of McGrcgor's table is 10th to hav
his speech hidden in the middle of til
Record In vain to attack solomon
theory about variety.