The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-03-12
sIGHTLEss CAPITOL GUIDE.
Some Stories About the Achieve
ments of Pref. Donaldson.
From the washington Star

From the Washington Star
The first authorized" guide who ever
served as such about the capitol was
Prof" T. B. Donaldson. There is moth
ing remarkable about this statement, but
when the additional statement is made
that Prof. Donaldson was a blind man
there seems to be a contradiction in terms.
Prof. Donaldson appeared here about the
time the war closed. He was travelling
phrenologist, and very good one-that
is, good phrenologist. As man he was
not very good man. He drank all the
liquor he could conveniently get, played
cards considerably and was about every
thing that is understood when a man is
classed as a rounder.
There We're a number of card rooms run
publicly in those days in various portions
of Pennsylvania avenue, and especially in
the neig hborhood of the hotels. To these
Donaldson was a regular visitor. OF
course, to play many games he had to
know the cards, though in some that was
not absolutely necessary, though very
convenient To place him with all his
rights he was allowed to have a boy with
him. The boy knew the cards very we'll
Card players, as a rule, did not care to
plaV against Donaldson though the
houses could not refuse plays from him
when staked against bank games.
He was borne with on account of his in
trinity, for thoroughbred card players are
generally trifie superstitious. The pro
fessor never forgot that he was a phre-
nologist, and he picked up fees constantly
in his calling. As years ran along the
professor ran out of friends and he eIed
out his living with considerable difficulty
His eyes were completely gone and his
Disagreement was covered up by large
green glasses. During the famous debate
on the French arms question in the SEN
ate, when when Senators Sumner Simon
Cameron, Logan, Thurman, Upton
Schurz, ConlIling, Morton and others play
ed such prominent parts for and against
the Grant administration, Prof. Donald
son was regular visitor to the Senate
gallery.
New Yorker, a friend and an admirer of
Senator Conkling, who was one of his
regular patrons, for things had come to
such pass with the professor financially
that he was forced to solicit aims. As he
sat in the gallery, strangers, not know
ing he was blind would often ask him
10 point out and name the leading sena-
torial gladiators of that era. This the
professor accommodatingly did 1t was
all right if the senators were seated in
their own chairs, but all very wrong if
they happened to be in other seats
In the third seat on the right from
the main aisle, second row. the writer
once heard the professor say to a visitor
to the gallery, you see Charles Sumner
without doubt the finest-looking man the
most picturesque and the best dressed
man in the chamber. To his right, with
a covering of darker hair, though gray
sits Senator Henry Wilson. In the rear
on the left, sits the grandest one of
them all, Roscoe Conkling, his hair being
you Will see, about the same shade of
red as that on the head of Carl Schurz
who sits to the trent Of him and to
his right. over there on the left YOU will
see standing Oliver p. Morton. Though
a republican. he sits on the Democratic
side of the chamber. for. being. paraiyzed
he cannot stand alone. and has TO have
the aid of the apparatus you see to hold
him up when he desires to stand which
is very seldom, as he makes. and has
made for years, all of his great speeches
from a sitting position. Behind him is
the democratic Roman, Allen G. Thur
man.
He would go on with his entertaining
descriptions in this way and give his
hearers better idea of the scene than
could many who were possessed of sight
But It was not alone in the Senate he sue