Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-03-29
STRANGE TALES SENATORS TELL.
Some Curious Yarns About Messrs. Pet.
tigrew, Sanders and Manderson.

tigrew. Sanders and Manderson.
"a tenderfoot Judge from the east, when
went out TO Dakota fifteen years ago" said
Senator Psttigrew TO . SrAR reporter, was
holding court on the extreme frontier in .
town on the banks Of the Missouri river, when
it CHANGED that an indictment for murder was
brought against three men who had hanged q
horse thief to telegraph pole. The accused
were released on their own bonds. and when
the day came for their trial they came into
court, unaccompanied by an attorney, and
advanced toward the Judge, each one Of them
with his hand on brace OF 44-caliber revolvers,
and moved that the case be adjourned for u
year, during which they should be released
before on their personal bonds. The Judge
promptly granted the motion, remsrking SUBJ
sequently that the argument in its behalf was
the most powerful he had ever heard in q court
Of law.
when the year had gone BY no further
action was instituted, until il happened that one
OF the three men was elected to the legislature
his seat was contested and the contestant,
wishing 70 throw odium upon his adversary,
had him arrested under the old indictment for
murder and confined ins the jail, which was
Immediately beneath the room in the court
house where the Legislature met The county
was not willing to pay the prisoners board, nor
would the town or territorial authorities, and
SO the contestant paid it. But he lost bis case
and thereupon announced that he would not
pay for his opponents support any longer. So,
lnasmuch as no one else would become re-
sponsible for it, the man was liberated. walked
upstairs, and took his seat in due form in the
legislative body, Of which was myself men,
ber."
RESPECT FOR THE CLOTH.
Senator Pettigrew had some account to give
Of the town of Bismarck, which was in those
davs tam ,,us NJ h.
way. That center of population was then COM
posed of seventeen saloons and gambling
houses and thirteen other buildings. When
Mr. Pettigrew arrived q variety show-admis-
sion Is cents-was being given in the middle of
the principal street in a big tent. parson-
one of the enthusiastic missionaries which such
an exigency in civilizations advance brings
into being-was mounted on a box outside the
tent declaiming on the advantages of salvation
for the benefit Of gathering of gamblers and
other rough characters of all degrees. This
distraction annoyed the manager of the variety
show and presently he came out and, mounting
upon another box, shouted:
"Gents, salvation is free all the year round;
this show is free for precisely thirty minutes"
And every man in the preachers audience,
without a moments hesitation, deserted the
parson and walked in to see the show.
Nevertheless" added Senator Pettigrew
'my observation has been that the gamblers
and roughs Of mining camp have a very great
town they are the ones who contribute most to
the support Of religion. In this they are in
fiuenced in two ways. Primarily they were
born more or less under the shadow of Chris
tianity, the influence of which is never Alto
gether lost. and secondly they have an instinc-
tive belief in the propriety of giving what they
call fair deal to any man who is trying to do
his level best. In a town like Bismarck in its
early Gays it is q usual thing for a clergyman to
ask the privilege OF speaking in a gambling
house. And as a rule not only is the privilege
granted but the game is suspended until the
preacher has been heard, and not infrequently
a collection is taken up for his benefit at the
end Of his performance"
Row SANDERS GOT ON THE FLOOR.
A remarkable Senator (supposing that he is
seated in the upper house, is Sanders Of Mon
tana. Not the most sensational hero of dime
fiction ever approached the wildness OF his
adventures, particularly during the period of
ms leadership OF the vigilantes. Sanders
queer experiences date back to his very young
manhood. In 1861. when Andrew johnson was
still in the Senate and the Senators of the
southern confederate states had left that
body, there was q late night session drawing
near to the close of the Congress. There
was so much noise that Charles Sumner de-
manded that the gallery should be cleared
Senator johnson objected, but the galleries
were cleared, Sanders and the present Senator,
Chas i. Manderson-at that time law partners
III Sduton, OulO, III washington 1Or 1un-g0lng
out with the rest Of the crowd. Later on the
galleries were reopened; but Sanders said that
he didn't care to 60 back there-he meant to
go on the floor of the Senate. Henderson
marveled at his cheek and contented himself
with seat in the gallery, while Sanders an
nounced to the Senate door keeper that he was
"a senator of the southern confederacy" and AS
such entitled to admittance on the floor. The
door keeper was SO dumbfounded that he let
Sanders pass and he seated himself coolly
H. - l.. r.
gallery. At the close of the session he beck
oned Henderson to come down, but that indi-
vidual did not respond, SO that at length
Sanders went up to the gallery to see what the
matter was.
IN HIS STOCKING FEET.
Now it so happened that Henderson had on a
pair of these 81 boots with French heels which
were at that time the joy of every unmitigated
swell. They were awfully tight. of course, and
he had tax en- them off to ease his feet while he
sat In the gallery and watched with admirlng
eyes his cheeky friend Sanders on the floor
he put his feet up on the rail of the gallery in
delicious comfort, while they swelled and
swelled until, when Sanders came up to wake
HIM, he could not get the boots on again at all.
And II is an actual fact that he was obliged to
walk down Capitol Hill and along Pennsylvania
avenue to the Metropolitan Hotel, where he
and Sanders were stopping, in his stocking
feet. The most interesting point about this
story Is found in the circumstance that one of
those poor Canton lawyers, Manders on, is now
a Senator Of the United States, while his former
partner. Sanders, will, in all probability, BOON
be bis colleague in that august body.