The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-12-27

track, and plainly proclaimed them Democrats.
After speaking briefly, less than FIVE minutes
the General mounted the platform, and the train
moved down the track about a hundred yards,
when it again stopped he was standing on the
platform, his piercing black eyes upon the crowd
left behind. Il think" he said, those fellows
upon the platform are Democrats They look
ugly and mean fight" While he spoke,
one man, wiry fellow about fifty years DID,
began jumping up and down. moving his elbows
as if about to fly, and cracking his heels togcth-
er. He seemed to be working himself into a
furious passion, and his energy was something
comical The General looked at him with the
greatest interest, and said it had been many
years since he had seen anything like it, though
recognizing tho agitated individual as the type
of old-fashioned fighter that was numerous In
Illinois in his early manhood The old-fashioned
fighter jumped from the platform. and, allghtng
in the middle of the track engaged with a man
embellished with a wide blue SASH and as the
train moved off it left very lively fight in prog
ress in the middle Of the track. The platform
was empty, and the thirty men who had occupied
1t had evidently found foemen worth OF their
muscle This incident seemed to put the Gen
era in better spirits though he disliked to leave
while the result of the battle was in uncertainty.
though ne said he had little doubt the Repub
licans would win the fight
AT another place, where the old soldiers,
many OF whom had served under him, and
were calling to his mind the regiments they had
been in and the battles they had fought to-
gether, were wrngng his hand with vigor
that threatened dislocation at the least Mrs.
Logan came to the rescue. There were forty or
nifty pretty school girls all in row looking
on. ''See here, JOHN" said she. 'these young
ladies would like to shake hands with you !"
And as she marshaled the girls to the front she
shook the veterans by the hand and marched
them TO the rear.
HOW HE DISPOSED OF A CHALLENGE.
An instance of Logan's adherence to the
rules OF common sense, and his disincination to
follow either prejudice or precedent when prin-
cipies of common sense were available, was
furnished by his celebrated treatment of the
Low challenge to fight duel w. W. Low, a
member of the House from Alabama, referred in
speech to the old SANDER that Logan, at the be-
ginning of the war; was in doubt as to whether
to offer mis- sword to Mr. Lincoln or to Mr.. Davis.
Logan, who was then in the Senate, holly re-
scented the imputation. which, being repeated by
Mr. Low outside the House. led to passionate
controversy in which Logan called Low liar.
OF course, this meant fight from Ala
bama standpoint. and next day Low
sent q friend with challenge. Logan
received the friend, read his paper
and then. fguratively speaking, kicked him out
of the room. According to the code, the friend
should, on that treatment, have challenged Lo-
gan himself, but look at the deep. dark eye,
swarthy visage and huge, black mustache de-
tered him. He did not challenge Logan, nor
did Mr.. Low make any further demonstration.
Suppose" said friend, that. according &c the
code. he proclaims you coward" "Then," replied
Logan, with blood in his eye. II will tweak his
nose" That was the first and only time any
body attempted to fool around General Logan
with a challenge to fight on the field of "honor."
HIS PERSONAL APPEARANCE.
General Logan's personal appearance is too
we'll known to need more than reference. His
long, straight, black hair, his monstrous mus
tache, his dard skin, his vigorous stride and his
stalwart frame, are all familiar to the country.
Artists and caricaturists have familiarized his
features until he was more readily recognized
by strangers, perhaps, than any other man in
public life. Time dealt lightly with his sable
locks, and though the big mustache showed
streaks of white, and the eye glass showed that
the sight was dimming, he showed, up to his last
illness, few signs of age.
A CLEAN, BRAVE MAN.
Though over twenty years in Congress, unlike
many Of his contemporaries, General Logan died
comparatively poor. His hands were clean of
iobbery-even his enemies never charged a
thing upon him. For some years he owned
residence in Chicago, and within the past year
purchased a house in the suburbs of Washing
ton, for which he expected to pay with the pro-
ceeds of his recently published book, 'The
Great Conspiracy" Previous to this time he
lived in Washington in the plainest manner at
private boarding house and within his salary as
a Senator.
General Logan married, at the beginning of
his career, Miss Mary Cunningham. daughter of
Major Cunningham. Of jackson county Illinois.
She is a brilliant woman, an active Christian
worker, and has been a sagacious, loving coun-
selor The General owed much of his success
of his cherished wife. Two children were born
of this marriage one. daughter, married to
Maj. w. F. Tucker, a paymaster in the army;
the other, a son, Manning Logan.
HIS SERVICES IN CONGRESS.
More than any in Congress, certainly, and prob
ably in the broad land, Logan resembled
North American Indian. His form was erect.
his complexion swarthy and his hair long and jet
black. His eyes were dark and piercing. not
furtive, but searching. He stood fully six feet in
height. OF late years he grew somewhat stout,
and weighed, until quite recently, over two hun
dred pounds In conversation he was affable,
earnest and frank. In the Forty-frst Congress
Logan began to make his mark. He was then
chairman of the military committee. and was
charged with the duty of investigating the sale
of cadetshps to the naval and military acade-
miles, Anumber of Southern carpet bag Repub-
cans, it was thought had swelled their excheq-
uer in this wise. Pursuing the investigation
with assduity, Logan caught South Carolina
carpet Dagger, named Whlttemore, and exposed
him in speech in the House. To save expul-
sipn. Whittemore resigned, and went back to his
profession of lay preacher
He at once took front rank a debater and was
at the very lead in the discussion of all the great
measures for the reconstruction of the Union
OF course Logan could not be- Republican and
not have been strong as any could be. His
memory of the insults he had received for stand
ing by the Union keen, and his soul was
more or less embittered. The ugly wounds
too, he had received were not calculated to soft
en- the touch of the hand he laid upon the South,
and in all of what now regarded the
we're and ultra measures of his party he stood
with Morton, and STEPHENS and Wade, and all
the other radicals in their advocacy.
He one of the managers OF the impeach-
maut trial of ANDY Johnson. being Alacted nv