The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1888-03-03
The Humor OF Sunset Cox.


of the whole during the Forty-eighth
Congress-" Mr.. Cox lately said,
"when we had two characters in
the House, one on each side of the
chamber. One was White, of Ken
lucky, a man of fair ability, but an
undoubted crank. and the other was
the remarkably loquacious and viva
cious Iowa man who was known as
Calamity Weller One day these
two men had taken up the time of
the House in vigorous and irrele-
want debate on opposite sides of
certain motion. The House was
laughing at them, and the question
was ordered to be taken by the tel
lers. l called the gentleman from
Kentucky, Mr.. White, ana the gen.
tleman from Iowa, Mr.. Weller, to
act as tellers, and as the two APP
preached each other in front of the
Speaker it was like the meeting of
two intellectual DrOmios. The House
grasped the situation. and the roar Of
laughter sounded like the bowling of
Barnum's menagerie. Speaker Car
Isle heard the noise in his private
room, and he rushed into the House
with his eyes prOtruding, ana was
about to assume the gavel to restore
order. A moment later, however,
he learned the facts, and saw that the
procedure was regular, and that the
socalled fun was rather accidental
than intentional. 1t was the only
thing that could have been done I'M
der the circum instances, as the two
were the champions of the opposides
sides of the question at issue. In
this case got the credit for being
humorous. where, indeed, l could
not have acted otherwise.
"At another time, while l was in
the chair" continued Mr.. Cox,"Gen.
Steele, Of Indiana, had the floor for
an hour on favorite measure. He
was parceling out his time, as is the
custom, giving certain members a
few minutes, and endeavoring to
preserve the last few minutes for
himself. He had, however, given
out all but quarter of minute, and
he asked that this might be left for
him. He neglected, however, to
claim the floor at the proper time,
and he lost his quarter OF a minute.
His measure was called up without
the previous question, and he was
thus placed in coventry. He rose in
great Indignation and cried, shaking
his fist at me:
"Mr. Chairman. what has become
of my quarter of minute?'
ITO this | replied, 1t has gone to
the rearward and abysm of time =
Here the House laughed Justify, but
it was not nv fault that the situation
was a humorous one. | stated a
plain matter of fact. Gen. Steele.
however, was not satisfied with
losing his quarter of a minute. He
nursed his wrath and kept 1t warm
until the end of the session, when |
had the floor on some critical bill and
was persuasiYely asking for more
time. Then came Gen. Steele's Cd.
portunity. He claimed the floor and
offered to hand over to me the quar-.
ter of minute which he sal | | had
once stolen from him. OF course the
House roared, and l got the credit
for being funny, when it was. in fact,
Gen. Steele.
LAS to the funny things which
have happened during the time
have been in the chair this session
they were not intentional. At one
time, when the House was being
counted, made the routine inquiry :
las many as are in favor of the
proposition will rise and stand until
they are counted No one rose.
l then announced affirmative,
none,' and followed with the formula
required, which states: Yeas will
be seated and the nays rise.' There
were no yeas, and the Irish bull was
at once caught up by Collins. of Mas
sachusetts. and O'Ferral, of Virginia,
and several other Irishmen, who are
always ready with their lariat to
lasso the Celtic bovine when he is
loose.
''At another time, while 1 was act
ing as Speaker, 1 committed what
might be called an objectionable
bull, 1t was during time of great
confusion on the floor, and | ex-
claimed: If the gentleman from
Missouri would be heard he must
suspendp But / had no intention
of setting the House in roar, and
suppose my mistakes come from my
Celtic extraction. which is certified
to by my middle name of Sullivan,
of which am proud"