The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-02-03

Struggles Harder Ills Ancestry The
Reeds DO Not Enter the Local Society.
The starting of the Reed club In Port
land, Mo, during the past few days and
tho enthusiasm growing out OF 1t have
cgain ~quiokcned outside interest In Mr..
Reed and all that pertains to him. Indeed
over since Speaker Reed has loomed into
prominence as n possible candidate for tho
presidency people rave turned TO that lit
Ito city by tho sea, his birthplace and
homo whom ho Is not In Washington, for
information concerning him. They somo-
how seem to think that Speaker Reed Is
so big "a figure In q small place that any
one they accost mnst BIO ablo to tell Thorn
oil they want 10 know about him. As q
matter OF fact, Speaker Reed, whom Mt
homo, can walk daily from his house, on
Deering street, to his Office, on Exchange
street, "a distance Of about half a mile,
without accosting or being accostod by
those ho meets m tho way. Only a day
or two before he Inst left for Washington
be entered "a store on Congress street,
where moro than adozon men were loung-
ing. and after ho had passed out IA OF
them remarked:
"That's big fellow. Who is her and
even the shopkeopcr couldn't answer.
A good-deal of this Is duo to village
apathy, for the average Portlandor, despite
the 264 years since tho towns foundation,
Is In his outlook and feelings still practi-
cally a villager. Hence, though the people
can boom and cheer themselves hoarso
over an nble son OF the place after the
great outer world has put It's patent upon
that ability, IL would BIO difficult to name
- -. .f.. ...t,. nLtltsxr
would find IL harder TO mako itself felt.
And it has always been thus. Longfellow
wrote rhymes there in his native town,
but he had to go 20 Boston TO establish his
caliber. n. p. Wills and his sister, Fan
ny Fern, from tho very start, found tho
air too choked with Puritan miasma TO al
low them utterance. One can still find an
odd old man and woman able % tell the
story OF their ostracism In their native
town before New York found room for
thcm. And it Is not very different today.
The true spirit OF ancient Puritanism is Of
course dead, as 1t Is everywhere, but in no
large city can one find the people all still
wearing tho mask and old clothes OF their
ancestors as they do there aud In towns
still smaller.
Doubtless II was as lucky a thing for
Tom Reeds local prestige as it was for the
training Of his mind that one or two men
of tho richest Congregational church In
the town had early suspicion OF his ability
and worked on tho church 10 send him
through Bowdoin college, with the pur-
pose OF having him enter its ministry. In
"a town where church membership md
church vestry meetings still dominate and
give social intercourse whatever life and
color It has this fostering Of his education
by the church gave n certain responsibility
60 tho son of n very poor a A proof of
this Is yet visible IN tho fact that one may
any day hear the story of how the State
Street church gavc Mr.. Reed his educa-
ton, while rarely indeed is that statement
supplemented by tho no less important
fact that Mr.. Reed paid tho church back
every cent after he had decided on anoth-
or career than the ministry and spcnt
valuable years teaching school in order TO
do it. Had his early youth been better
provided for no would probably have now
been 80 years instead of 20 In congress.
Really. therefore, despite local pride and
loud cheering and oil the zeal Of political
managers in "A promising political am
paien, the average Portlandcr has always
been promo to look upon Thomas Bracket
Reed rs his protcge rather than his leader.
Even Mr.. Reeds air Of self conscious pow.
or, his easy mastery Of ever ready retort
and never failing sarcastic wit seom to
nave been half resented I'm the local phrase.
Reed, tho great and only"
If Tom Reed ever comes to write his
recollectious, whether no reaches tho pres
idency or not, It will doubtless he seen
that his aggressive personality was In
many ways "a greater weapon even than
his now unqucstiuned intellect. Com
pared with any other equally prominent
man In the land, his position seems
unique. Other public mon have risen
from beginnings as small and obscure as
his, but no other. 1t Is safe TO say, has
arisen from obscurity who could mt the
eamo time claim such n background Of
farreaching American ancestry. Two
thirds Of oil that is now spoken and writ
ten about Reeds parontagc and ancestry
is nonsense or fiction. The writer OF this
has seen both the father and mother of
Reed, his only sister and cousins and rela-
tives by the dozen, all honest, hard work
ing pooplc and proud, with that sort of
pride which comes from honorable tradi.
tons and self respect. Reeds father was
no lout, but n man OF limited education
and practical intelligence, and above the
average of wo%rkingmcn In addro.s. A
couple of aunts Of his, sisters Of his father,
are still living and wear tho air and as
pect of we'll bred ladies OF the old school.
Reeds mother was u woman Of rcmarka-
BILE b%rilliancy, keen, witty, sarcastic, Of
much beauty and all the qualities which,
In u different condition of life, would have
made her n social leader. But what makes
Reeds position really peculiar among the
self made public mon of our day Is that
the farther buck you trace his American
ancestry the higher mp they loom In place,
until you reach George Gloves, tho FIRST
white man 60 found n homo within tho
limits Of Casco bay, In 1882. To find a
man among tho colonists who could write
his name was q rarity, but Clcovcs could
do far moro than that In the way of let
ters, rs documents prove. Ho was indeed
an adroit tactician, rs Is proved by his
crossing of tho soa TO obtain nm interview
with Cromwell regarding lands hero, and
his returning armed with authority. His
daughter. AN only child, was married 60