McCook weekly tribune. (McCook, Neb.) 188?-1886, 1884-09-18
A TYPICAL sTUMPER.
"reminiscences of S. S. Prentiss, the Flo
Iuent Mississippian.


Chicago Saturday Herald.
Sargent S. Prentiss, of Mississippi,
was undoubtedly the most eloqent man
who ever addressed the house of rep
sentatives. A carpet-bagger from
Maine, he went to Mississippi poor and
friendless, and not only became fore
most among her sons, but acquired a
national reputation. Edward Everett,
after having listened to one of his i'm
passioned bursts of eloquence in Fan
nell hall, turned to Daniel Webster,
who sat near him, and said: ''Did you
ever hear anything like it?'' ''Never,"
said Webster, Except from Mr., Prem
tiss himself He was indeed a re-
markable orator, his intellectual en-
dowments presenting a remarkable
example in which great logical power
and the most vivid Imagination were
most happily blended. AS Dryden
said of Halifax, he was man
Of piercing wit and frequent thought,
Endowed by nature and by learning taught
To move assemblies.
The great secret of his oratorical
success was his readiness-he seemed
never at a loss for an epigram or re-
tort, and his impromptu speec es were
the best.
Prentiss used to tell good story
about his second canvass of the state of
Mississippi He had arranged a route,
and one of his friends had gone ahead
to make arrangements for hall in
each successive town and to advertise
the meetings there. The proprietor of
a travelling menagerie took advantage
of these congregations, and followed,
exhibiting at each place on the day
Prentiss spoke The first intimation
the orator had of this rivalry was at
small town in the northern part of the
state near the Alabama line. After
Prentiss had been speaking for about
an hour, holding the attention of the
audience, he observed some of the out
siders looking over their shoulders,
and this movement was gradually fol-
lowed by more of his audience. He
began to think he was growing dull
and tried to rouse himself up to more
animation; but it was all in vain. He
at length looked in the popular direc-
ton, and there, to his horror, just COM
ing over the hill was the elephant
dressed in his scarlet wrappings and
oriental splendor A foolish feeling of
vanity, not to be outdone by the ele-
phant, came over him, and he contin-
ued to talk. He found it was no use,
SO he said: s'Well, ladies and gentle
men. l am beaten. But / have the
consolation of knowing it was not by
my competitor. 1 will not knock UNI
der to any two-legged beast, but 1
yield to the elephant.
Prentiss afterward made an ar
rangement with the proprietor to di-
vide time with the monkey and the
clown, the first hour being given to
politics. One of the cages was used as
a rostrum: Soon he heard low sound |
which resembled growl, and he
learned that the hyena was his nearest
listener. There were large auger
holes in the top of the box for the adj
mission of air. Prentiss commenced
speaking, and when he reached the
blood and thunder portion of his
speech, he ran his cane into the cage,
and called forth most horrible veil |
from the enraged animals, at the same
time gestulating wildly with the other
hand. ''Why, fellow citizens" he
would eXclaim, ''the very wild beasts
are shocked at the political baseness
and corruption of the times. Hear
his yell of political shame and indigna-
ton The effect was electric; he
called down the house in perfect tenn
pest of enthusiasm. He hurled his
anathemas at his foes, and enforced
them by the wells of his neighbors. The
people of Mississippi worshipped Mr..
Prentiss, his habits, which would have
him in any other section of
the country, only endearing him the
more to them. Generous to his foes,
faithful to his friends, he won the conf
dence and affection of all who knew
him. Bailey Peyton used to illustrate
his readiness at an impromptu speech
by narrating an incident which oc-
Cured in 1874, when Prentiss joined a
hunting party, with which he spent a
week or two under tent in the forests