National Republican., 1888-04-08


Ni. led a., forces uf MI Chase IN Z, position
To- lie denomination OF Mr. Lincoln rrr the
Presidency. Hannibal llamlin, who pr-
sided over the deliberations of the Srnat, rs
ally" In Bangor. Mauc almost ns fresh aud
vigorous rs he was twcnty-scyen years lgn.
II T. sad TO recall the fact that Of the p,-
teutal Guctors Of the thirty-scyGnth Congress,
who had so much 10 do With the shaping or
Tie policy which Should he pursued IN We.
sp,ct to tie south aud slavery, and who
were % instrumental in carrying on the war
=" tow IRE left, and It speaks well for the
hold which Mr.. sherman has upon popular
confidence and esteem, that after a COntinu-
ous public service Of over thirty-three years
hc IL to-day very formidable candidate for
the Presidential nomination.
Win tho exception Of the four yc lrs that
he was Secretary Of the Treasury under Mr.
Hayes, Mr.. Sherman has been in the senate
ever since he first entered it-a period Uf
almost twentythrec years.
Personally Mr. Sherman would be
marked man in any assemblagc He Is
little over six feet IN height, slender, but not
gaurt. he probably weighs between 40 and
li5 pounds. for his bones are large, although
he has not an ounce Of superiluous litsi.
His hair and beard, originally brown, are
now plentiiully tinged with gray; the latter
closely clipped after manner peculiar TO
his brother, the general. His eyes arc q
bright blue, kindly in their expression, aud
hc looks you squarcly in the face when he
is talking. His mouth--what can be seen
Of II under his trimmed moustache--is by no
means small, and indicates persistence Of
purpose. His ears, feet, and hands are re-
nurkably large even for a man of his size.
IL large ears indicate obstinacy Us II is some
times claimed, Mr.. sherman certainly must
possess that attribute IN q remarkable degree.
In his dress Mr. Sherman has not varied
| Tor many years He wears the long skirted
! black broadcloth coat, vest and pantaloons
! to match that were so popular with ante
| hellum statesmen. The coat Is worn open,
and as the vest is cut low an ample vista Of
| immaculate shirt front is exhibited. Any
one looking at the portrait of Henry tinv
| will he struck with the prodigious height Of
| lis collars. The only other statesman who
| has ever approached Harry Of the West
/ in this particular being that rcdOubtahe
| ohicftain of TnmmaDy Hall, Gen. +. Il.
| SpinUla. the present member Of Congress
| fiom the tenth New York district. Mr..
| SheImanS collars are patterned after those
Of Mr.. Clay, although they are not quite SO
high, and they give his face rather antique
cXpIession which.iS heightened by the old
| fashioned black .ilk crGydt ard convinces
orc at once that Mr.. Sherman does not ape
! after the fashions of modern times. Not
the slightest lcwclry Is seen on him with the
exception Of very fine gold watch chain,
even his shit buttons are of ivory, and the
| guard which holds his eye glasses is Of silk.
| Although scrupuously neat, Mr. Shermans
| appearance is free from al display. His
idea of dress is plainly to wear good COM
Portable clothes even If their cut Is not eX-
actly what is In vogue. He even clings to
boots In preference to button shoes SO gen
orally worn. His silk hat while not as ven
crab.e in appearance as that Of hi, colleague,
| Mr., EvartS, is still far from being the latest
style of Dunlop or Knox, and has evidently
been brushed by n not very careful hand.
II is worn far back upon his head.
| In the Senate Mr.. sherman sits between
Senators Mandcrson, of Nebraska, and
HOar, of Massachusetts,. During the war,
when there was scarcely handful of Dem
ocrats in the Senate, he sat upon the Demo
cratic side of the chamber having as neigh
hors eN-Gov.. Sprague, Of Rhode Island, and
Mr.. Hendricks, Of Indiana, but Of late years
he has occupied Il scat on the Republican
side II is In the second row, and about The
middle of it. The desks are of mahogany,
| and many OF them have been in use for the
past fifty years. Only the venerable Assist
ant Sergeant-at-Arms Bassett keeps an acc,,-
rate record of the successive occupants of
these desks, and this information he treas
| urcS up and Is careful to impart to no one
else Mr.. sherman desk is almost always
covered with papers. documents, and letters.
. While IN the Senate and at his desk lie is
invariably occupied at something He is
either reading his letters, answering them,
or perusing newspapers, for which pastime
he appears to have an inordinate fondness,
judging from the number he gets through
with in day. Unlike his neighbor, Mr.
Hoar, Mr.. Sherman does not attempt to read
| books while the Senate is in session. The
deacon-likc Senator from the "Old Bay
State generally has book in his hand, and
he is so absorbed in its contents that he IS
oblivious to what is going on around him,
unless specially interested in the subject
under discussion. But, while Mr.. Sher-
man Is to the casual observer intent upon
matters outside of the Senate, such is
really not the case. lie. has his
ear ear, open to . what Is being
policy with which he is identified or pass n
criticism upon his political course, and in
an instant he Is ready to answer and give
battle in defense of what he considers right.
In speaking Mr. sherman does not attempt
any oratorical display. There is nothing
impassioned about him. His manner is de
void of all emotion, his voice is not very
strong, but he enunciates distinctly and he
adopts the conversational tone so prevalent
0mong the senators of the present day.
What he has to say is well said. His SEN
tences are short and perfectly Ineligible to
every one. lie goes right to the point in
yolved, and fortiiles his position with cogent
arguments and an abundant reference to
authorities. The subjects which Mr.. Sher
man most frequently discusses are rather
dry ones, like finance and the tariff, and
while he does not command crowded gal
leries he never fails to have the respectful
attention of his colleagues upon hoth sides
Of the chamber.
1t will probably be Of interest If allusion
be now made to the home life of Mr.. Sher-
man. The senator from Ohio lives at 1919
X street northwest It has been stated over
and over again that Mr.. Sherman is man
of very large wealth running way up into
the millions. This may or may not be the
case, hut certainly his mode of living in
Washington does not indicate II. His house
is neither imposing in appearance nor gor-
geous in its furnishing. 1t does not com
pare with the residences Of Senators Ed
munds, MCPHERSON. Cameron, or Palmer
1t is simply q substantial looking house.
three stories high, brick wiiE6rown stone
trimmings, and high stoop. 1t is situated
in II very desirable portion of the city, op-
posite Franklin Square, one of the most
beautiful spots in Washington. The in
terror of the house gives evidence of the
good taste Of Mrs. Sherman. There is no
attempt ut display, but everything is az
ranged with view to use and comfort The
library is Mr.. Sherman's principal resort at
home. 1t is of ample proportion, and well
filed with the books Of reference. chiefly
bearing upon economic questions of which
the senator stands IN constant need. Mr..
Sherman is Il well read man outside of those
questions with which his name has been
identified. His knowledge of English and
French literature is very good, and while in
no sense Of the term college bred man,
he has always kept up partial 0cquaint-
ancc with the classics.
In his mode of life Mr.. sherman is very
methodical. lie rises about $50 Il, m, eat