The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-05-26
MOST INTERVIEWED MAN.
Chauncey N. Depew in Serious and
Sarcastic Vein Before the
Quaint Club. 4
Amusing Description Of the Gem
tleman from Canajoharie and
His Partner.
funJent observations On the Subject Of
Inspired Editorials-One Of Depew's
Very Best.

"1As VI O0W9W q &
Very Best.
In the talk about town the speech which
Chauncey M. Depew made recently Mt the
frst annual dinner at the Quaint club, oi
which he is a member, has been gradually
acquiring with time a significance which
most of those who heard it seemed then MOI
to appreciate. 1t was the first dinner oil
the club which Mr.. Depew had attended
and for one or two reasons, petty in them.
selves. but each no doubt having some
direct bearing on the subsequent course Of
his thoughts and digestion, he seemed to
take a moro serious view of matters and
things in general than il usual with him al
festive gatherings. This %seriousness did
not fail. it would appear, to give tone to his
remarks.
In at least two New York newspapers pub
locations have recently been made of opin-
ions on public and semi-public subjects
which it ia fair to infer were specially in
teresting to Mr.. Depew. As he himself
said, he Is "the most interviewed man in
the world" and there was printed last Sun
day a symposium to which a half dozen
we'll known interviewers were supposed to
contribute their own views on the art they
follow for a living. MI. Depew's criticisms
on their lack of success in interviewing
themselves were spicy and exceedingly
weighty.
There have been also within a month edi-
torial expressions of opinion in Frank Les
lies Illustrated Weekly, Of which the pres
ident of the Quaint club il joint editor and
proprietor with the presidents son,
which have excited IN ever grow
ing crop of comments, and which
must have been read with almost as much
lnterest BY MIR. Depew as by President Har-
rison or his secretary of state. The publi-
cation made in The Sunday Press Of what
some people thought was an inspired reply
to, or at least criticism on, the editorials in
Frank Les!ie's has naturally been discussed
conversation, and it is entirely warranted
by the fBcts, as we'll as by the appearances.
to infer. when Mr.. Depew arose to make the
after dinner speech which was expected of
him as a matter of course. that he had in
mind these and other cognate matters of
public Importance.
The sem%i-jocose O n in which our great
American after dinner speaker is acous-
toned to handle the topics on which he
touohes-and he touches nothing which he
does not orn-soo faded out of his voice
and gesture as, after talking down the in
terruptiOns which members of the Quaint
Club are supposed to delight in, he ad-
dressed himself to the serious business of
She evening.
As few others know how, the speaker de-
scrlbed his recent journeying through the
magnificent scenery of Colora 10 and the
west. bis eioquenoe carried his auditors
with him back INTO the vast canyon of the
Colorado river, and the flights of his mag
nation, as he depicted the towering. snow
capped, impossible and i~mpregnable walls
Of that wonderful chasm, were almost as
lofty. He went on: II stood at the base
miration of their grandeur and magnia-
cence. On either side they stretched away
until they were lost in the vastness Of
space. These said my guide, are the
walls OF the great canyon OF the Colorado;
and here" said he, lis a photograph which
unique view and experience But on
examining the photograph" the orator CON
= tinued, II was surprised, nay, amazed to
see standing boldly out in the foreground a
group OF men-younR, imposing looking
men-men who seemed to have risen fully
grasped their opportunity and so much at
tention had the artist devoted to them that
as a matter of fact the walls of the grand
canyon of the Colorado we're almost hidden
from view in the background, shut out by
the lmpressiveness of the beings in their
front.
"'Who.' cried / to the guide, who are
these distinguished p%ersonages whose pro-
portions ocolude the grand canyon of the
Colorador (Here the speaker turned and
looked full at the chalrman.) Why was
his reply, don't you know who they are?
Why, that's the Hon. William j. Arkall. of
Canajoharie, N. Y, and his partner, the son
of the president, the Hon. Russell 3. Harri-
son!''
II came to the glories of Marshall pass,
and as l stood in that tremendous niche in
the everlasting hills, and the guide, point
ing to the vast, inaccessible, stony eIpanss
above me, lid, those are the walls of Mar
shall pass which tower 5000 feet above your
head l felt my spirit thrilled with awe and
a realizing sense of the sublimity of nature
and the insignificunce of man. When he
offered me AS a souvenir of that visit Il pho
tograph of the impressive stone, i S gladly
purchased it, but to my surprise, nay, to
my CONSERVATION, almost the whole of the
picture was again absorbed by an imposing
group of gentlemen who had evidently
come from down east.
who said l to the guide, who are
these distinguished s~trangers?' Why
said he, don't you know? That is the Hon.
Russell B. Harrison, the son of the prcsi-
dent of the United States, and his business
partner, the Hon. William j. Arkell, of
Canaioharie!'
Now, gentlemen, it was not in the ma
ture OF things that on my return from such
an experience | could fail to be impressed
with the true merit and worth of our chair
man, a product of C~anaioharie, which, |
believe is famousa all over tho country for
its output of paper bags and amateur jour
nalists!''
The speaker. then went on with the most
trenchant but good natured sarcasm, to pay
his compliments to amateur journalists and
journalism, and in particular to animad-
vert upon what had become known az "the
inspired editorials" in Frank Leslie's
Weekly. This enterprising Journalist he
continued" was not content with securing
the son of the president of the United
States for his business partner. Having
gained the prize and prepared to ssalize upon
it to the world, he proceeded = ship his
partner, the presidents son, to a locality in
approachable to the telephone and inacoessi-
BILE to the telegraph, and thereupon he be-
gan to publish i'll their joint newspaper
those inspired statements of which we have
all heard 30 much, which were, it seems to
me, well calculated to make President Har-
rison wish that he had never been born
and MIR. Blaine wish that he could be born
again."
How about Depew?' interrupted a voice.
both of these Wishes the orator con-
tinued, were of course impossible, but
their very impossibility is II commentary
amateur journalism, which dares any
thing