The Warner sun. (Warner, Brown Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1885-1???, 1886-09-03
HOwCongressmen Enjoyed them
selves in the Old Times.

selves III Uh6 Olu lm0S
In Fillmore's time there came to
Washington, writes Ben: Perley Poore,
a certain Col. Rogers of Tennessee,
who was or had been an Indian agent,
and who had a claim upon the gov
eminent. OF course he had a claim.
Nobody came to Washington in those
days from the rans-Allegheny regions
without q claim. Why should they
not have a claim? They were all citi.
zens of the United States, and
had O. right to have claims. They
had fought, bled and died at
New Orleans and the Horseshoe,
and had scalped ever SO many Creeks
and Chickasaws, and been with Sam.
Houston at the Alamo-yes, sir
at the Alamo-and con the
Rio Grande with their rifles in hand"
and had stood on Buena Vista's
bloody heights and scaled the ram
parts of the world famed Chapultepec.
Some of these claimants were half
horse and half alligator, an "amphibi-
Gus" sort of~character, others were gen.
tlemanly men much given to hospital
ity of the rough-and-ready kind. Of
the latter description was Col. Rogers,
who occupied an apartment at Mrs.
Shackelford's, on Pennsylvania ave
nue., opposite Wizards hotel. The
colonel employed as his solicitor
with congress another military
gentleman, Col. Stambaugh of
Lancaster, Penn, q bright-eyed old
fellow, O. keen cock-fghter and an
adept at poker or any other game Of
cards, stil remembered at Washing
ton as O. trusty henchman of James
Buchanan. One day Rogers was the
recipient OF the gratifying news that
his claim was going through, had pass
ed one house and been f%avorably re-
ported to the other. AS a testimo-
NAL of his Joy he determined to give q
grand 'possum dinner, to which he in
vited all his friends, young and old, in
congress and out. The apartment of
Rogers, which was also his bedroom,
had an open fireplace, in which on the
evening of the supper a large
fire was blazing, a peck of po-
ICJGOCS AOt1SJlllS III III CLSllCO DC-
beneath, and four fat 'possums
from the Fairfax hills suspended on
wires from the mantel, and slowly
turning as they dripped and sizzled be-
fore the heat. They who entered the
room at an early hour were aware of
the presence OF a motley crowd, sena-
tors and ex senators, members and
ex-members, correspondents and lob
byists. The air was redolent with
whisky, roasted potatoes and pos
sum fat. On the bed, in an inebriate
condition, lay the lank form of Gen.
Eaton, the b~iographer of Jackson and
his secretary of war. The red face of
Felix Grundy Mcconnell shone like a
meteor on one side of the fire; on the
other side the pale visage of Beau
peered greedily over the an
ticipated least. Macrae, Hartman,
Hart and other jovial representa-
tives of the press were to the fore, and
in high glee, drinking whisky and
roast potatoes, and waitingim-
patiently the dishing up of the pos
SONS. Suddenly Col. Stambauch en-
tered, and observing with contempt
friend Rogers's primitive style
OF hospitality, sent down to
Rptler's restaurant on the corner
and ordered an elegant supper of
turkey, oysters and champagne. This
agreeable addition to the menu af-
such universal satisfaction
that most of the company determin-
ed to make a night of it, and poor
Mrs. Shackelford's slumbers were, in
consequence, often disturbed by the
sounds ofrevelry in the colonel's apart
ment. There were no policemen in
these days in Washington, and when
the tired travellers emerged from the
Shackelfordian portals in the gray Of
the morning they made the streets
resound with snatches of African min
in praise of 'possum fat and
hominy, 'coons and cowheel, and 9TH
er epicurean dishes.