The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1891-11-10
snce for him-''but 1 get there just the

inglY with me about the narQSnlps OF
campaigner's life. 81 was three years in
the war" he said, land l campaigned
against that brilliant soldier, Tecumseh
| Sherman; but the hardest campaigning l
have ever experienced is that ON the
| stump in northern state. do not mean
| to say that the people are unkind to me or
| discourteous, for they are universally re-
spectful and pleasant. A man from the
south is as well treated on the stump in
the north as any northern man could be.
What l complain of is the apparent as
sumption Oh the part of the campaign COM
mittees that public speaker is sort of
animal who can stand anything. We ar
rive in a town, after speaking two hours
the night before hundred miles or more
away, tired and hoarse and very sleepy.
We want nothing SO much in the world as
a chance to lie down and rest and be alone.
But the campaign committee orders it
otherwise They appear to think we are
in need of amusement, and if they don't
entertain us we will go away feeling neg
lected and lonesome. So they bring in the
prominent men of the place to be intro
duced, they take us carriage riding, they
pilot US through their factories and their
public buildings, they show US their seen
cry, they get up dinners for us and finally
ask US TO stand out on platform and view
long parade. All this is well meant and
all interesting enough to man who is In
condition to enjoy it. But the weary cam
paigner, who has had two or three weeks
of it, wants to go away to some place where
there are no bands, no torchlights, no din
ners, no prominent citizens anxious to
shake hands, no scenery, no anything Of
that sort and lie down and die in peace.
''Then there is the outdoor meeting"
continued Mr.. Mills. "You see how hoarse
/ am. l can hardly speak above whisper.
don't believe you would be able to whis-
per if you had been making speeches in the
open air every night for two or three
weeks as have-out where the cold fall
wind blows down your throat and puts
husks on your organs of speech. Another
dreadful thing about this political cam
paigning is the way in which the local COM
mittee puts fellow upon platform built
about ten feet high. Every man who has
had experience at public speaking knows
that a good, spirited, a kindling speech
is impossible from such an elevated posi-
ton. The ideal platform is about eighteen
inches or two feet above the level of the
ground or auditorium. The speaker wants
to be as nearly on level with his hearers
as possible. One can't throw his voice
down at people as he would fling stones at
them from an eminence. He must be
where eye looks into eye and man stands
face to face with man in a normal, natural
position. Eye kindles eye and spirit warns
spirit, and the public orator who wants to
magnetic his audience, and be magnetized
by it in turn, will not suffer himself to be
perched upon a scaffolding."
A queer feature of official life at Wash
ington is the first nights at the theater. A
company comes along for weeks engage
ment. The manager is anxious, naturally,
for good start. He wants his first night
to attract attention and "catch the town."
The first thing he does is to go over to the
White House and invite the president and
his family to attend, placing box at his
disposal. If two boxes are needed to &C
commodate the presidential party they are
forthcoming. Then he goes to two or three
cabinet ministers and tenders the remain
ing boxes, and if these invitations are not
accepted then enough foreign ministers
are invited to fill cut the quota. Often
half hundred seats in the parquet ara
given out to high officials and senators.
At a recent first night at one of the local
theaters every box was occupied by the
president and his family or by cabinet Off
GERS and members of the diplomatic corps,
while fully a hundred seats in the audi
forum were occupied by officials and their
wives. 1t is rather odd that the president
of the United States and members of his
cabinet can be used for advertising pur-
poses in this way, but it is done almost
every week of the winter season, and has
been done for many years. 1t is one of the
customs of the capital.
There has been great deal of talk of late
concerning the government of cities. /
fancy many of my readers will be glad to
learn how this, the national city, is gov
erned, for in the judgment of many stu
dents of the science of government it is the
best regulated municipality in the United
States. Of course every one knows that
the president is virtually the mayor OF
Washington, while congress is the local
board of aldermen; but not every one
knows that the administration of the local
government is placed in the hands of a
board of three commissiOners-one Dem
ocrat, one a Republican and the other an
officer of the engineer corps of the army,
and known as the engineer commissioner.
These commissioners are appointed by the
president and are generally chosen from
among the most highly respected citizens
of the district. The board collectively
manages all departments of the local gov
eminent, but a division of labor is made
for convenience and better attention to de-
tails. The engineer commissioner, of
course, takes charge of public works, such
as bridges, water works. sewers and build
ings One of the other commissioners
takes the schools and fire department; the
other the police, finance and streets. There
is no politics in the administration, direct
ly or indirectly. The politics of candi-
date for appointment or employment in
the city government is never asked, and if
known cuts no figure whatever. The civil
service law applies to a majority of the
clerical employees of the district, and civil
service spirit pervades the entire organiza-
ton from top to bottom. With such con-
ditions as these it is not surprising that
the government of the federal city is con-
sidered model of excellence and economy
ROBERT GRAVES.
Marketing Their Postage Stamps.