The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1890-09-19

| prevent our interfering, called out In SUD-
stance. as nearly as can recoilect: What!
take hold of man by the legs. That is no
way to take hold of bim.' Notwithstand-
ing / persevered, and l think Mr. Havens
assisted me in drawing Mr.. Griswold apart
from Mr.. Lyon. Mr. Lyon went direct
from that place to his seat where be got a
small cane, and went from thence south of
! the baT, where l saw him and Mr.. Girls
void soon after meeting, and Mr.. Lyon
making up to him, Mr.. Griswold retiring
from Mr. Lyon, and Mr.. Lyon making a
! blow at him with his cane, which Mr..
! Griswold, think, received on his arm or
| shoulder
1.-THE loud cry OF order from all parts of
the house and from the chair here put an
end TO the ARRAY. Mr. Griswold's cane
was delivered to him by Mr. Sitgreaves. l
think, just as he stepped within the bar.
which he took from thence, think, direct
to his seat Mr. Lyon remained without
the bar, and thus the ARRAY ended, and
the house proceeded TO business"
1t was in 1874 thar John B. Weller, a
member from Ohio, and subsequently, SEN
ator from California, assaulted and severe
ly beat Mr.. Schriver, one of the reporters
of the house. The assault took place in
the lobby, and Weller endeavored to escape
punishment on the plea that the lobby was
not a part of the house, but he was ar
raigned before the bar and censured by the
speaker. Forty years ago nearly Joshua
r. Giddings, of Ohio, quarreled on the
floor of the house with Mr.. Meade, of Vir-
ginia Meade seized Giddings by his neck
tie, and was proceeding Herewith to choke
off his antagonists wind, when Long
John" Wentworth, of Chicago, who died a
year or two ago, and who was a giant,
rushed in to separate them, when another
Virginian, Mr.. Edmundson, climbed upon
a chair and threw his whole weight upon
the huge Chicagoan, carrying that gentle
man to the floor with him. On another
occasion Dixon Lewis an extraordinarily
large and strong man, veritable Samson,
stopped fight on the floor by holding the
combatants at arms length
About 1860 Mr.. Graw, member from
PENNSYLVANIA, had a fisticuff encounter
with Mr.. Branch, of North Carolina, over
the slavery question. A challenge fol-
lowed, but mutual friends prevented a
hostile meeting. Mr.. Graw was a fighter,
and about that time had a pugilistic en-
counter with Mr.. &eitt, of South Carolina.
When the culprits were arraigned before
the bar of the house Mr.. Keitt took all
the blame on himself and apologized to
Mr. Graw and the house
There have been three or four duels be-
tween members of congress The only
fatal one was that in which Mr.. Graves, Of
Kentucky, and Mr.. Cllley, of Maine, were
the principals. Cilley was killed at the
first fire, and Graves was expelled the
house. and Col. F. W. Jones, mem Der and
afterward senator from Iowa, who had
acted as Cilley's second, was censured
This was IN 1898, and it was between 1885
and 1855 that most of the fights and duels
of statesmen took place. That was dis
tinctively the fighting era. The most
celebrated fighting congressman was Ed
ward Stanley, of North Carolina, who in
1910 had hot words on the floor of the house
with Mr.. Inge, of Alabama. The men
met in the field, and after the third fire a
reconciliation was effected. Stanley then
fought n duel with Pickens, of South
Carolina, the result being another recon
Citation. The debate in the house became
very bitter one day, and among the dis
putants was Stanley and Henry A. Wise.
At the racecourse that afternoon Mr..
Wises horse became unmanageable and
ran against the horse of Mr.. Stanley. and
the latter, supposing the collision to be in
territorial on Wise's part, drew his whip
and struck Mr. Wise OF course a duel
followed, and it was while coaching Stan
ley's craftsmanship that Reverdy johnson
received in the eve bullet from Stanley's
pistol which had glanced from a tree, an
accident which eventually cost him the
sight of the eye. The duel took place. but
a reconciliation was patched up before any
one was hurt
Gen. Clingman, then a senator, and who
is now occasionally seen in Washington,
was challenged by Yancy for words spoken
in debate Reconciliation took place after
one or two shots had been exchanged. The
challenge Of Breckenridge by Cutting, which
created so much talk, grew out of words
spoken in debate. Other noted challenges
between statesmen which were not followed
by meetings were those between Burlin-
game and Preston Brooks, and Potter and
Roger A. Pryor. In 1858 Senator Givin, of
California, challenged Henry Wilson. Mr..
Crittenden, Mr.. Seward and jefferson
Davis patched the matterup. On the floor
of the senate Henry S. Foote drew pistol
on Thomas II. Benton, whereupon Benton
claimed: Let the assaS;in fire" There is
but one well remembered case of personal
assault In the senate, and that was the IT.
tack of Preston ). Brooks upon Charles
Sumner.
Representative Cobb, Of Alabama, and
the late James Laird, of Nebraska, had a
fight in the Capitol few years ago. Cobb
gave Laird the lie, and the latter dared his
antagonist to go outside the house and set
tie it. Cobb accepted the challenge, and
the two men, one armed with revolver
and the other with a knife. went TO the
basement TO fight an impromptu duel
Members interlered. An hour or two later
the men met in a corridor, and Laird, who
was an athlete, thrust his hand toward
Mr.. Cobb and against his nose, causing a
profuse flow of red blood.
Sunset" Cox WAS in two quarrels which
came near resulting in personal violence.
John A kassOn, the con gresham and dip
Tomato of Iowa, spoke Extensively of Cox
In debate, and Cox ran toward Kasson
with blood in his eye Mr. Garfield put
his arms around Cox and held him till
peace was restored. Ben Butterworth and
Cox, two of the best natured men who
ever sat in congress, once shook their fists
at each other and threatened all manner of
things. In day or two they were IS good
friends as ever. Gen. Weaver, the Iowa
Greenbacker, and Gen. Sparks. of Illinois,
talked of pulling each others nose. and
actually came together and pushed and
hauled little while, but exchanged no
blows. Jones, of Texas, pulled off his coat
and prepared TO sail in to help Weaver.
but A. :, Hewitt, of New York, took the
Texan hv the collar and sat him down.