The Delta independent., 1888-01-03
A Rising Western Orator.
Crfray- TPthHre

Chieag- TribHne
The celebration of Forefathers' Day by
the New England Society of New York
seems to be particularly happy IN bringing
forward new and eloquent orators for the
first time. Last year Mr.. Grady shot up on
the oratcrical horizon in very brilliant style
but, alas. proved shooting star soon shot
out. The brilliancy was born of champagne
apparently. The body of his speech was
well in promise and Ill in fnlfllment, but
in its way it was eloquent This year an
other orator has come to the front In whom
Chicago will take special pride, for he is
Chicago boy though now one of the rising
citizens of Colorado, with brilliant future
before him. We refer to Mr.. Z. o. Wolcott
whose address, proved a feature of the
occasion where such speakers as Mayor
ran, Gen. Horace Porter and other eNper-
fenced after-dinner orators were in atten-
dance. Mr.. Wolcott's address abounded with
neat epigrams, witty comparisons, Sarcas-
tic but goOd-humored hits, and passages OF
stirring eloquence and patirotic.sentiment
1t would be hard to find anything neater
than the following hit at New England ser
timent on the Indian question:
Your interest in us is. unfortunately,
largely the interest in our mortgages.
Your attitude toward US is somewhat criti-
cal, and the New England heart is rarely
aroused respecting the west, except when
some noble Indian after painting himself
and everything else within reach red. is
sent to his happy hunting grounds. Yet
toward the savage as in all things, do not
blame us il we follow the Christian exam
pie set before US by our forefathers. We
read that the court at Plymouth, more than
ordered that whoSoever shall shoot of
any gun on any unnecessary occasion, or al
any game whatsoever. except an Indian or
a wolf, shall forfeit five shillings for every
shot, and our pious ancestors popped
over many an Indian or their way to Di-
vine worship. But when in Colorado, set
tied less than a generation ago. an old
New England heredity works itself out and
raises its hands in horror. and our offend
ing COWBOYS could not find admittance to
even an Andover Probation Society
Asa piece of quiet humor, also, the fol-
lowing is noticeable:
Where we have chance to work without
precedent We can point with pride of q GER
tain sort to methods at least peaceful. When
Mexico was conquered we found ourselves
with many thousand MeSicans on hand. l
don't know how they managed it elsewhere,
but in Colorado We not only took them bv
the hand and taught them our ways but
both political parties inaugurated a beauti-
ful and generous custom since more hon
ored in the breach than in the observance,
which gave these vanQuished people an in
sight into and an interest in the workings
OF ofrepublican institutions which was marvel
ous-a custom of presenting to each head of
n household being a voter election-day from
81 to s. in our native silver"
Likewise the prelude to his speech:
at was with great dif'idence that | ac-
cepted the invitation of your President to
respond 10 toast tonight. l realized my
incapacity to do Justice to the occasion,
while at the same time recognized the high
compliment conveyed. l felt somewhat
as the man did respecting the Shakespeare
Bacon controversy: he said he didn't know
whether Lord Bacon wrote Shakespeare's
works or not, but if he didn't he missed the
greatest opportunity of his life. The west
is only a larger, and in some respects a bet
ter New England. l speak not of those
rose-gardens of culture, Missouri and Ar
kansas, but otherwise generally of the
states and territories west of the MissiSsip-
pi, and more particularly, because more ad.
visedly, of Colorado, the youngest and most
rugged of the thirty-etght; almost as large
in area as all New England and New York
combined; with room about hearth for all
mankind, with fertile valleys, and with
mines so plentiful that We occasionally,
though reluctantly, dispose of one to our
New York friends