New-York tribune., 1889-10-13
GOSSIP AT THE CAPITAL.
STORIES OF STATESMEN AND SOLDIERS.

STORIES OF STATESMEN AND oOhDi
uNAPpREoIArEp FREE TRADE TALK-GENERAL
SHERMAN DRAWS THE LINE-sHERiDNNS
PICTURESQUE LANGUAGE
Washington. Oct. 12.-The washington correspondent
Of well-lnown Eastern paper beat" hinsci ou' VI
good niece OF news recently Ho is personal iehu Vi
Major George S. Merrill and so when the dccnh"uo! Va
Major Warner had brought Major Merr-ns ha"o iO'
ward for the Pension CommlssonefShp' ho -
the development OF the affair with mucn -.
One day he obtained, from private source, INV
ton that Major Warner, while at Deer ,
urged the appointment Of Major Merrill 40, a.
under pledce not to use this information IN MS us
v,,cho. hui ho did not think II would be breach OIL
faith TO send the good news 10 ,'l
with his congratulations. What was "'S
chsgrn the next morning to SEQ
local paper dispatch from Boston quoting ns
sage as having been received by Major Mer.,aa Meri.-
friends And yet reputable Washington ,oo,
ents arc almost daily accused OF breach Vi ,,o
bv politicians and Others who are themselves
1" leaky vessels"
The predecessor OF Hiram Smith, VINO Is Is ,,o,oor
Inc Commissioner Of Pensions, was Coion0' ,,.o .,
eroo TIoosier tariff refor1ncr with strong uesHo "
be heard on all occasions. One day In inc ~ 60
General Black when Colonel Mclean was ACME -
missioner OF the Bureau a group Of Sioux lhuid"o
usbered into the big building. The oia' -
about the big rotunda for time uttering SUI
odd phrases of approval at the stupon 1 - .,
and mayhap the uglness-of the structure W. ,o.
had satisfied their thirst for emptiness, inc ~,
Guided them into the Commissioners oihco' ,,
Mclean arose to welcome them, ana DO 60.
duced as the man who paid tho money to the 80,
Fatberss soldiers The braves looked upon MN ~!u
come degree OF distrust, which was intenSnoN
the Acting Commissioner began, in resonant tO"o
"Gensemen: thank you for this honor, anu W
lowed this opening shot with broadsluc VI - - an
arguments The interpreter carefully uH'S A..
that was said He was not there to know that 'o Nv
ing Commissioner had been embau assed lot a .,
and that recovering himself he had conceived tie Oi
to,r ,dea NJ imposing on Poor Lo" tariff speech
which several communities OF white people had ieluseu
N lsten tn The Indians stood 1t very we'll it0'.
eountenances betrayed emotion and they "'''o
patiently 20 the end. When Colonel Mclean P
for lack of breath they very deliberately hio" o
That afternoon they called upon Indian CohlisSO"0i
Oberly, and Dog-n- Grass, after descrpAH5 -, -
the introduction to the Soldier Father" '-'O
McLeans speech in the following words;
He talk like the winds blow. Mo Know no' "A0i0
it come Me no care heap d--n."
II &c not generally known that the fatherin-iaW Oh
tho late Thomas j. e. Stonewall' Jackson. the heN.
Dr r. H. Morrison, OF North Carolina had son hai'u
after the eminent English statesman ana phIdh''io
mist william WbeIforce. This son Is dead' Ho
resided I'm Washington for some years ai'er l"'
DR. Morrison was q leading minister of the souncrh
terian Church Like Madison jefferson, Pat
,4cl, Henry. George Mason and many other great
So,tberners OF an elder age he at one time laNo'ou
gradual emancipation of the slaves by the separ"'o
action of the states In which the peculiar liSu'uo
existed for he was contemporary OF the moNenoH'
in Virginia. in the early thirties, looking 10 r-
strfction Of the legislative power Of the slave COM
munitieS.
".Grmes Davis. late colonel Of the 7th New
York Cavalry? Did / know him! should say /
did, said General Cadmus Wilcox, late MalorGehefdi
~ tbe Confederate Army. "My brother sent Davis
70 West Point His father belonged 10 the cOinilon
peope of Mississippi that is he did not belong to he
nlanter. slave holding class The elder Davis Ike
Mabone's father kept a hotel for livelihood. was
at West Point with Davis. At the academy ne was d
QUIET lad not inclined to push himself fOrWalu' ou'
studlous. Tho commandant took a fancy tn young
Davis and when looking for captain OF calets, Sc
lected him for the high honor. I stationed In
Arizona when the war broke out and had lost sight Of
Davis I subsequently discovered that he had re
maiped loyal to the old flag. l have been told In
partial explanation Of that fact that previous to the
breaking out OF the late Davis Incurred some
debts in the North that he felt in honor bound to
pay and that ibis the incentive that led him 10
remain in the Federal Army. However, that may
be- know there more gallant or efficient or-
Ger than Davis either side, and, when he fell dead
from his horse with bullet In his brain at TIE crossing
of one of the fords of the Eappahannock River In
1863. when Pleasanton feeling our left Hank
previous 20 the movement on Gettysburg, his death
was an almost irreparable loss to the Federal cavalry
narrowly escaped being captured by Crimes Davis
once 1t was just before the battle Of Antietam. !
was 80 I'll that / left behind at Hagcrstown.
Davis had cut his way through Jacksons lines at
Harper's Ferry with his regiment, refusing TO sur
render with the remainder of Miless command Word
was brought to me that I in danger, as Federal
cavalry was drawing TO the town. ! asceraned
that the statement true and ordered an ambulance
IN order 10 make my way back TO Martinsburg. l
had not gone far when heard firing. Davis's men
had run into Longstreets wagon train, which they
captured. carrying away with them what they did not
burn The hit was a lucky for Davis. His con
duct throughout tho entire affair showed that he was
man Of skill and daring and he gained by 1t Ma
tional reputation and he deserved n'
"Gus7 Thomas, the latest successful dramanst,
whose play The Burglar fresh from the Madison
square Theatre has recently been running az the
New National was once on the floor of the House
of Representatives. Twenty years ago. when he
was youngster, ne was one Of the House pages
Many Of the pages Of the House and Senate have
risen to fame and fortune. Senator Arthur German
was once a page in the Senate. Ex-RcpresentauVe
william /. Scott, the Pennsylvania millionaire was
a House page. He was called Bill' in those days
Congressman Dck7 Townshend, who died few
months ago, formerly page in fine BODY oI
which for the last dozen years Of his life he was
distinguished member. Stuart Robson, the we'll
known actor used to carry messages for the Congress
men Of thirty Yeas ago. GUS" Thomas. who Is the
last of the pages to achieve fame and the possibilities
Of fortune, is remembered youth Of many talents
one of the chief Of which was facility with ulo
pencil, which nearly cost him his place. carr
catGre Of Ben" Butler which he drew Tor the a0'c
ment Of his companions about the Clerks desk ieh
into the hands OF the Lowell statesman and deIahu
was made for young 1homas's removal, but It was
at the request Of several members VINO
--1..a ,to .Vo,c.