The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1896-09-20
BRYAN, THE IMAM,

is quite likely that he has besn nsor
wearied 10y listening 90 people thar
by talking to them. For example. AL
one point outside 81 tho SSAtS,. which
il is noe necessary IS mention. thg
crowd poured in gapingly upon him,
He had just finished a long speech Iii
the hot sun. and had lost much xieep
the night before. lsut th{S Gid act
matter 10 them.After having made al
most a personal scramble fer his hags
and oxercoae, ne Went tN his large
chair in the rear coach. took OF bis
coat, tied q plain rcd handanna hand
kerchief about his neck and sat down,
Throwing his head back his eyes closed
almost Instantly under the weight of
the work he had undergone.
The crowd increased, and pressed a.
bout him. Said one; Mr..
Bryan, couldn't | help you eff with
your veSt9s
Opening his eyes. and smiling, he
said. with some hoarseness:
NO thank you, l do not care to
take OF my vest"
Then one after one would come with
something until the man was allowed
absolutely no rest between speaking
places. Some OF the more persistent
would bury their lips in his ears in the
snle and him is intimate" kind of way.
And yet Mr.. Bryan was passive and
smiling through il all. The crowd
would now and then be put out, but
they would soon bob up again. One
chap was on guard every moment, a
lanky somebody with a shock of tow
hair which he kept combing back with
his fingers, holding his wide brimmed
tournament-shaped hat in the other
band. while he put on a pose worthy of
a Texas Statesman"
There was not, that I saw. an i'm
stance of this kind of thing in North
Carolina. the people were patient to
hear what Mr.. Bryan had to say, rem
dering their own Yerdicts by the enthu-
siasm of their cheers. But this does not
mean that there were not the most
touching evidences of affection. For
example, at Asheville, when Mr.. Bry-
ans hands were so sore from much
shaking as to force him to ask the
men to ''be easy, don't squeeze, boys!"
the response to his wishes was imme-
date. One man exclaimed: well Just
hang your hand out of the window, so
we can touch it." Mr.. Bryan cut his
eyes around and smiled broad anna
bic smile and put his hand out Of the
window. Then one by one up into
the hundreds, the men came and SIM
ply touched the back of his hand. The
train was about to move, when not be-
ing able to touch his hand from his pos
ition in the crowd another cried: .'WeIl,
hold his coat out here SO can touch
that them" and while he was holding
his hand out at one part of the crowd,
gentleman who was sitting by him
caught up his thin coat-the same ala
paca one he wore at the convention
and held it to the window when the
man grasped the edge of it in his
hands and letting go his hold upon
the window fell back and was sub
merged in the pillows of men. At Hot
Springs, a very fashionably dressed
woman pressed to the steps of the
platform. 'My husband is a Republic
can, Mr.. Bryan" she exclaimed with
laugh, ssbut / am a Democrat" Mr.
Bryan smiling said to her: That's
better than if it were the other way"
The train was making fast time, and
the cheers of the stopping-places seem
ed to fill the air even while the train
was in motion just as the rolling sensa-
ton of a steamer continues after one
has come ashore. But the cheers were
not always imaginary: for example,
at one point, with the train at full
speed a yolley of voices were heard
just for an instant. The cheers were
from several men ploughing in the
fields, and now the men had jerked off
their plough-handles off, and were way-
m m 4 hQ ogr of h L.
able man. This pleased Mr.. Bryan very
much.
A touching incident much akin to
this occurred at Salisbury, where a
workman was late in reaching the
train. The tempest of people had been
tossed from station to the speaking
stand and back to the station. The
train was moving away toward Lex
ington, hats and hands, handker-
chiefs and cheers rising and falling
in swells. Finally the man, not to be
outdone, set out in hard run with his
plasterer's bucket and implements. He
reached the platform almost breath
less. But throwing down his bucket,
he held up his trowel, shouting: "Just
touch that Mr.. Bryant Touch it!
Touch It'll" And Mr.. Bryan reaching
his mana IdFOuJ ulu SOs ana the man
dropped back, waving his trowel. Fri.
day morning, just after Mr.. Bryan had
taken his coffee, one of the party in
the sleeper referred to this incident,
but told the story with a hoe instead
of a trowel. NO" interrupted Mr..
Bryan, sit was not hoe, it was a
trowel.'' He had not forgotten to
house this act gratefully in his
memory. BY the bye, it was Mr.. Theo.
+. Kluttz, I think, who made a very
acute observation; he said: 'SMr Bryan
is the most recollectiye man / ever
saw" His humanity, also, must be
mentioned by the side of his "recollec-
tiveness." just as the train was pull
ing out of the Raleigh station, lad
having climbed up to the window, thrust
his hand in and Mr.. Bryan took it. The
train was beginning to get good mo-
ton; it was near the gate: the lad
was in danger, but nobody saw it. The
person sitting by Mr.. Bryan took
his arm to introduce him to
a gentleman hlIt he kent his