The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1889-09-21
his tour through Montana, Washington and
Tho Dalotas was "A continued ovation

continuous service. His nickname Of Sun
set Cox" may have been given In consequence
Of his initials, rs. S." but its first applica-
ton was soon after the publication in his
paper, The Statesman, OF Columbus, o.,
May 10, 1858, Of sophomorical description
Of a sunset, beginning as follows;
GREAT OLD SUNSET
What stormtul sunset was that OF last night
How glorious the Storm and how splendid the set
ting OF the sun Wedo not remember yer To have
seen the like on our round globe, The scene
opened In the west, with whole horizon fuil or
golden interpenetratng lister. which coiored the
foliage and frightened every object In Its own
rich dyes The colors grew deeper and richer,
until the golden llster was transformed into
storm cloud, full of finest lightning which leaped
In dazzling zigzags all round and over the city.
The wind arose with fury, the slender shrubs and
giant trees made obeisance to its majesty Some
even snapped before It's force. The strawberry
beds and grass plots turned up their whites" to
see Zephyrus march by.
Az the rain came, and the pools formed, and the
cutters hurried away, thunder roared grandly,
and the fire bells caught the excitement and rung
with hearty chorus The south and east received
the copious showers, and the west all at once
frightened up In q long, polished belt of azure,
worthy Of Sicilian sky. Presently cloud ap-
peared In the azure belt, In the form OF castri
forms of peerless fanes and alabaster temples, and
glories rare and grand In this mundane sphere. II
reminds us Of Wordsworth's splendid verse In his
Excursion"
The appearance instantaneously disclosed
Was of mighty city, boldly say
A wilderness of buildings, sinking far
And self withdrawn into wondrous depth.
Far sinking into splendor without end
Mr. Cox's first speech in congress attract
ed much attention, and his address late in
1862, when he describeda brother congress
man as flying from the field of Bull Run
hanging to the tail of stampeded steer,
"like Anchises borne from burning Troy on
the shoulders of Eneas," made nation
laugh in spite of its sorrow. In this same
speech he summed up the Missouri contro-
versy Of the time in such an admirable and
humorous style that it was at once accepted
as correct by the public This was the speech
in which he told how Fremonts greatness
| twas blasted by the consuming torrent of
! 'Blair's Rhetoric "-that being the title OF a
popular school book of the time. One OF his
last speeches was on the fisheries and fish
commission, in which he said:
Mr. Speaker. there never was an interest in this
country so cared for by the government as this of
| fish, Our first efforts, at least in New England
| began with fish. When our ancestors-l refer to
| New England, where l was educated-when our
ancestors went to King James for a charter to go
across the seas and colonize Massachusetts,. the
| king asked the Purtans:
what is your objectY What do you intends"
Their answer was: ITO worship God and catch
| fish, Laughter.
Then the king rejoined: II give you the char
ter. Fore Cad 1t Is the apostles own calling"
| [Renewed laughter
| Why sir even In the early churches Of New
| England the early and pious Puritans used to
| sing:
| Yemonsters of the bubbling deep,
Your Makers name uprase;
| Up from the sands ye codliugs. peep.
| And wag your tails always
| Laughter and applause.
So that in early New England the cure and care
| of fish was concomitant with commerce, liberty
| and sanctity. In later times New England has OBJ
tanned congressional enactments giving free salt
| for her fish, while the miserable man in Chicago
cannot get free salt for his pork. Laughter Con
gress has always had kindly word for the fisher
| men. For many decades it gave bountieS at SO
| much per cod. These fishermen have not become
less tenacious of their rights since the bounty
ceased. They are power in numbers and influ-
ence. They number a million or more Of men
constantly engaged in their hardy and hazardous
| occupation. Their calling is associated at the
present time with some curious wrigglng in diplo-
| macy [I.aughterl But wherever they are, and
wherever they adventure, they should be cared for
| by the fostering arm of the government.
The main object Of this BILL sir. is not to assist
the fishermen so much as the consumers of fish.
1t would send out the seed broadcast that food
harvests may grow in all the waters Of this land.
trust there will be nothing done here to impair
the usefulness of this bureau. I trust, as this
bill takes no money out Of the treasury, that no
further objection will be made to its passage;
that the president may be able to select good
practical man Of science and energy, whether he
be Democrat or not, to occupy and honor the
position. / am not sure but that there may be
found some good, scientific Democrat in this
country to administer this office. Laughter. All
the sciences cannot be monopolized by the Re-
publican party. There may be e Democrat dis
covered with the qualities OF a good scientific
fisherman. The president will find him. The
president himself is somewhat Of an expert In
that line Laughter.
The last letter written by Mr.. Cox referred
to an engagement to lecture ON the Yellow
stone country before the Stecker association
Of New York city; 1t was to julius Harburg-
er, president Of the association, and ran thus
New YORK, Sept. 9, 1889,
DEAR FRIEND-After your work is done to night
come around to my house and see me. am down
sick with a malaral fever, and have been since
we nXeu our lecture. nave tried ana medlcated,
etc, in hope to be well for the 10th inst Perhaps
! may fail. Come and let me talk it over. 1t will
be great disappointment to me If l can't get up In
time Yours, s. S. Cox.
Four evenings later, at $50 p. m, the very
time he should have been before the club, he
breathed his last. The immediate cause Of
his death was peritontis. His wife, who sur
wives him, was Miss Beecher, Of Muskingum,
O., an heiress and very intellectual woman.
They had no children.
Maj william Warner.