The Portland daily press., 1894-11-03

worth chatting with. He is frequently at
his wittiest when, mounted upon the ooet-
blacks brass ornamented throne in the oase-
ment. he exchanges a joke with the Alsu-
man, or, reading the paper, chuckles over
some funny anecdote or report, and lheh
turns to his neighbor, whether stranger OF
acquaintance, and makes some whimsical
comment on it. And the man thus ao-
dressed, If he knows who, his ccmmunlca-
tive neighbor is, is SUE to say to himself )
What! that Tom Platt. Why, he is as full
of quiet fun as a cherry is of juice"
In the early evening, too, after dinner
and before he goes to the theatre, Mr.. Piatt
takes an intellectual airing again in the
foyer. If he sees man who is witty OF
can tell him something that is worth know
Ing, then there is sure to be an intelleo-
tural wrestling match. Platt despises the
commonplace, the trivial, unless it be fun
ny, but he is fond of the unusual either in
intellect or in temperament; quaint man
delights him.
II was nearly three years after Mr.. Platt
retired from the Senate before the Kepubli-
cans understood that he WAS not .solitically
dead. had not even been sleeping, but had
been only waiting. He came forward at a
doing his share ana willing to do it in sub
ordination. By 1856 he again dominated a
considerable influence in the party, especi-
ally that coming from the southern from
tier. In 1888 he had pushed himself SO far to
the front that it was said of him and of Mr..
Depsw, Senator Miller. and Senator His
cock, that they were the big -Four" of
the Republican party. In 1891 he named
the candidate for Governor. reckoning to
more than 500 delegates in the State Con-
vention, Who obeyed his call and spoke the
name that was upon his lips, that of Nj. Fas-
sett. Mr.. FasseGt was beaten that year, not
because he was Mr.. Platt's candidate. but
because any Republican would have been
beaten.
The country does not know, nor does the
Republican party, now superior to all otner
individual effort of political leaders in New
York was that of Mr.. Platt in the campaign
of 1883. Sc far as it can be said that any
one ma n did it it must be said that Mr..
Platt carried New York State for Gen. Hair
rison. Quiet and self-contained as he was
every moment in the whirl and fury of that
exciting canvass, he was nevertheless the
pre-eminent. ever-pressing, constantly pres
emit personal influence in the canvass.
During the past year while Mr.. Platt has
been occupied with three very great business
enterprises, he has also paid closer heed to
the politics of the State possibly than any
other Republican in it. 1t was that labor
which taught him nearly a year ago that
Morton WAS the available candidate. 1t was
subsequent work which made it possible
for him to appear in these later days as the
successful leader of that Morton sentiment
rather than the follower of it.
Mr.. Platt owes his successes to an usus-
ual understanding of human nature, and to
his skill in playing upon its chords. He
owes it, furthermore, to an extraordinary
and yet almost invisible industry, and he
owes it to faculty which causes him to
cling to 9 friendship with grip which moth
ing can shake. and makes him true as steel
to those who are true TO him.