Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1886-08-14
HOMES OF STATESMEN.
HOW OUR PUBLIC MEN LIVE OUT
SIDE OF WASHINGTON.

Descriptions of the Country Seats of sena-
tors Sherman, E~dmunds. ingalls,. Vance
and others-The Elms, Hominy Hill,
Gonbroon and PaImer's Log, Calm.
Especial Correspondence
WASHINGTON, Aug. a.-Most Of the lead
ing statesmen of the country have fine resi-
dences away from Washington and there are
not a few like Senator Stanford and Con-
gressnan Scott who keep up three or four
different establishments. Senator Sherman
lives at Mansfield, o., and he has u little farm
surrounding his residence in the best part Of
the city. His house is on a hill and its WIN
dows overlook miles of the rolling country of
central Ohio. 1t has acres OF beautiful lawn
and trees and there is an orchard at its back.
The house itself is a large rambling brick
structure with u Mansard roof, and with
steps and finishings of a wonderfully striped
red sandstone, which comes from Mrs. Sher-
mans farm near Mansfield. The rooms in
Senator Sherman's house are very large and
their ceilings are high. A wide hall runs
through the center and there are many veran-
das, the ceilings of which are finished In
Georgia pine.
The senator has a large library on the
ground floor, and the walls of this, like those
in his house at Washington, are lined with
books. In Mansfield Senator Sherman is
known as plain John Sherman. 1t is not an
uncommon thing to see him out on his place
experimenting the work Upon it himself, and
he thinks nothing of driving down town
wearing n SLOUGH hat n a suit of clothes not
remarkable for their newness. He has many
friends visiting him, and his house is gener-
ally full of company during the summer sea-
son. Both himself and his wife are fond OF
having young people about them, and though
Mrs. Sherman is an accomplished society
woman she is very domestic in her tastes.
She prides herself upon her Jersey cows, and
it was not long ago that she sent some of her
butter to a county fair. In order that the
award might be made without regard to the
sender she put no name on the exhibit, and
the judges found the butter SO yellow and SO
sweet that they thought it must be colored
artificially. They gave the premium on this
ground to a roll which was the color of
SKINNED milk cheese, and were greatly sur.
prised when Mrs. Sherman afterward sent
them a piece of her yellow butter with her
compliments.
Senator Edmunds lives at Burlington, Yer.
mont, and his house there is Il plain old-fash.
| toned brick of medium size, situated en- the
| slope of the hill on which Burlington is built.
| 1t has three or four acres of ground about it,
which are laid out in lawn and park, and his
| windows command a beautiful view of Lake
| ChanIplain and the Adirondack mountains
There is nothing snowy about the place, and
the house is as plain and reserved as Senator
Edmunds himself. Edmunds lives here in q
democratic manner. He does not drive about
in livery, nor does he give extravagant recep
| lions. You may often see him, with his wife
by his side, going over the country, driving
his horses himself, and his habits are severely
plain.
Senator Wilson lives III the little town Of
Fairfield, Iowa. His home is on the edge o
the town, and it consists of a two-story frame
house, with t~ifty-five acres of lawn anc
meadow. The house is a very comfortable
one. 1t has u wide hill running through it
center, and at the right is the library and par
lor. Near the house stands n waterpipe raisee
fifty feet into the air, which supplies thu
house with water and which is filed by thu
windmill. Senator Wilson has all the mod
erIr conveniences, though he is practically il
the country, for the town of Fairfield is les
than 1900 in size. For n time he made hi
own gas, but he now gets this from TIN
city. There is a beautiful fountain in hi
yard, and he raises everything upon his plac,
that the advanced farmer pretends to raise
He has his own fish pond, and he raises hi
own pork and chickens. He keeps JERSEY
cows, and he takes as much interest in tn
town Of Fairfield as though he owned it.
Judge w. D. Kelley has arnold homestead il
Philadelphia which he calls "The Elms.' Il,
built it for himself ~thirty-three years ago, ant
it has been but little changed since then. l
Il Z 1~-,.~- ,.,,t1, ,,-l. %,,~ "a II
! Is uDoun forty ferU VINE by Iorty-three fee
deep, and it has a large hall running through
the center. There is a bay window at tn
side, and the interior has one of the bes
politico-economical libraries in the country
The library is o II the ground floor, and ther,
is a large desk in its center which is Uttered
with the letters, pamphlets and books of 1
hard working literary man aud statesman
Though Kelley is well up in the seventies HI
still works as hard as when he began congress
sional life during Lincoln's presidency. HI
keeps uD magazine and book writing at tn,
same time, and he turns out about as nue.
copy for The Congressional Record and tn
editors as any man in congress. Judg
Kelley's father was a jeweler, and the judg
himself began life at 1S in a watch shop. Her
in his library between two of the window
stands one Of those old-fashioned clocks, witt
n high colored, chubby face looking down, Oh
the dial. This clock was made by Judg
Kelley's father, and the judge bought it il
after time from the widow of the man T.
whom his father sold it. A large lawn sur
rounds this house, and this is full of fine oil
forest trees, the most of which the judge ha
seen grow up himself, and some of which h
has planted in connection with his friends.
Sam Randall lives at Berwyn, in an oil
stone farmhouse, which he has rented TO
years. the house is surrounded by trees
and it is perhaps 100 years old. Randall
farm comprises eighty acres of land, and it /
not an uncomm sight to see him with hi
coat off, working about it during the sum
mer. The country in which it is located /
rolling, and Ra,idailss neighbors are thrift,
farmers who have small and well cultivate,
farms. Nh. Randall's chief associates dur
ing the summer are with his neighbors
though many a delegation of Office seeker
comes out to see him. They are driven from
the station to the Randall house, and tn,
hack drivers charge Si.50 for the round trip
Sam Randall is not wealthy, but his taste
are of the simplest, and he is satisfied witt
about $4,000, the amount of his accumulate,
savings, and g reputation for integrity which
has never been questioned.
Senator Vanceis country home is known a
aGombroonr !" after one of the opium dreams
of De Quincy. 1t consists of a splendid
estate of forest Of 1000 acres, on the edge o
the Blue Ridge mountains. 1t is on one O
the highest points east of the Mississippi, ant
it is near the head of the S~wanranoah river
Here Senator Vance now lives during tn,
hot summers, in a log cabin of three or foul
rooms, thought he is building {, fine country
home near by. He is O lover of nature, and
though he has a very pleasant home at Wash
ingtoJi, he gets tired of the fiat streets and