The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1895-12-15

|
uced Tor thirty years AT her bar. He is
genuine Yankee in everything eXecpt
physical appearance. Everybody knows
now round ana stout his body is, how
rolling his walk, and how chcrubic his
| lace at a distance. for near, too, il seems
Ike Bismarck's, and you can see the
power behind it. he has all the Yankee
shrewdness and sagacity, and the Yankee
| wit comes forth In the Yankee voice, and
even with Yankee pronunciation and the
| Yankee drawl.
lie has. all the strong New England
| traits and some of the fine ones His
ieet are always on the ground, and his
| eyes are always on Il level with those
| OF other men. There is nothing of the
! trahScendentalist about him. and he is "A
| philosopher rather than poet. but he
mas ideals as well as ideas. and he ad
inires and practices the sierner virtues.
| lie is not known to be n member of any
church, and | have not heard of his be-
ing regular attendant of any one here,
| hut no one doubts that he il an upricht
man. HIS private life is irreproachable.
ana his home life is beautiful. His wife
and hs daughter and he are three most
| devoted aud intimate friends.
lie has never been rich, and probably
never will be, for he is not money
maker, and he has neglected his practice
a good zeal of the time that he has been
IN public life, and he was elected to the
state house of representatives three
years after he was admitted TO the bar.
lie has never been able TO keep house
mere or TO entertain extensively. and this
winter. as last, he aud his family Will
have siual fiat in Nice-PreSidcnt Nor
tons hotel, the Shureham. and up on the
| 18th floor, at that. He has little leisure
OF late years for his law practice and
has made, | suppose, almost rs much
money by writing for the magazines as
lie DDS from nf hie lnV,
ever, he has always lived comfortably.
and ! imagine his Yankee thrift has
Kept him out of debt. He keenly enjoys
what are called 1.-THE good things of this
life by most people.
lie likes society, at least the CONVEX
sauonai phases of it, and especially din
lus out, although, Ike most public men,
he dislikes pubic dinners and since he
trst became speaker he has been prom
inent in Washington society as he never
was before He is by far the greatest
of the few public men who do appear
IN society. most Of whom are more prom
| inent there than they are anywhere else.
| although Allison. Hale, Lodge Wocott,
Cameron, Hit and few others are ex-
ccptions to this rule.
lie is fond of the thcater, and of mu-
sic, and of art, and of literature, in
French as well rs in English.
He is fond Of fun of all better sorts,
and especially of the kind that is found
at Gridiron Club dinners under the robe
OF secrecy. Indeed. his fun and his love
of fun are the most serious wbacks
he has AS a presidential candidate OF
candidate for the presidential nomina-
ton, even in this country, where we
laugh more than we do any where else in
the world. But these help to make him
/ "a doll sal
be out OF doors, and usually walks TO and
from the capital, stopping to look in ut
the shop windows, although now l sup
pose he VIII ride past on II bicycle. OF
course, he has never been able to main
tam stylish equipage. or, indeed, any
Kind OF carriage and horses. He reads
newspapers and frankly says SO, unlike
some smaller men, who think that is be-
meath the dignity of statesman, and he
told me once that the New York Sun
was his favorte newspaper.
Simple and straightforward in man
ner. like almost all really great men, he
hates prcteutiousness as he does hypoc-
risy, and is to all appearances us dem
ocratc in his dealings with everybody
us when he was unknown outside his
own State. He is cyerhearing and sar-
castle at times, but he docs not truclle
and t0ady and he does not bully, and
underneath it all he has really kind
enemies like the Roman that he is or
shall say Greek? But he helps some
times as well as hurts even those who
are opposed to him, and he does favor
most gracefully. Ii is perhaps needless
60 say that he IS man of his word, who
makes promises carefully, but keeps them
even more carefully.
| thing he has made model for his poit-
ical life out of William Pitt Fesscnden
whom he told me once was the greatest
man he had ever known. fessenden,
imagine had been Kind to him as Il young
man. | think he perhaps got his appoint
mcnt as an acting assistant paymastcr
in the navy during the last eighteen
months of the war through Fessenden,
and perhaps he favored his election to the
State house of representatives,. But graft
tude would not bliud Reeds eyes, power
full rs it would be with him, as with all
manly men.
IT was admiration rather than graft
tude which prompted Reed to risk his
own personal fortunes in supporting Fos
sender when thc later came home to
Maine TO face that opposition which
Blaine had stirred Mp against him be-
cause he had refused to vote for the i'm
parchment of Andrew Jackson. Blaine's
power was increasing ana FcSsendcn =
decreasing, but Reed took his political
life in his hands and supported Fessen-
den. although he fully realized all it
might mean to him. Il was a young
lawyer" said he. in speaking Of il. "and
my ambition then was 10 be attorney
general of Maine. ! actually needed the
salary. But could not keep from sup
porting Mr. Fessenden, and | have never
regretted that | did
IL was his support of, Fessendcn at
that time which gained him the ili-will
of Blaine, and 1t was not until year or
two before Blninc died that they were
on friendly terms. even Of a formal char
acter. II was known that Blaine oppos,
cd his nomination rs attorney general of
Maine in 1870, and it was suspected
that he opposed his nomination every
time he was n candidate for that or any
other Office. but, nevertheless, Reed was
elected attorney general in 1870 and
served three years, and was afterward
! four wears city solicitor Of Portland be-
fore he began his long career in con
greSs.
MAY AND DECEMBER.
| can not think that spring fair flowers
| no truly fade and pass away,
! That heaven the fields so richly anwers
! For just one gH'itly icstsns May.