Gulf Coast breeze. [volume] (Crawfordville, Fla.) 1897-19??, 1897-12-03
A REMARKABLE CAREER.
DRAMATIC EPISODES IN The LIFE
OF EDMUND C. ROSS.


| senate BACK to the Case" Again uow
lie Was Appointed Cater Executive a.,
New MeXIco--'Gov, Ross, itNou Please"
| FOrty-oue years ago, write, j. s..
WairOus in the Chicn 90 Times I,.ald,
IA family named Ro,s, then and for
some time residing H. Milwaukee, CON
stituted part of Kansas colony
which went all the way from WiScon.
sin in covered wagons. II is not nee.
essary To- say that there were truuh.
lous times in Kansas in 1870, when
John &. Fremont was the first Repub.
lican candidate for President and
James Buchanan the Democratic.
Shooting between men was an every.
day occurrence, and men shot To Kill,
too. The colony from Wisconsin was
armed, both men aud women carving
revolvers and the men rifles besides
Nearly every day, while on the way To
"bleeding Kansas" there was II stop
to practice shooting at mark. Some
of the young fellows madea frightlully
bad showing; couldn't even hit the
tree upon which the mark rested. 4
printer. Ed Ross, member OF the
family mentioned, was II most dismal
failure as a marksman. His mother
quite an elderly woman, wearing spec
tacles, stood for some time watching
the practice. After the printer Ed
| had shot four or five times and missed
the tree each time, his mother said;
"My boy, you can't shoot for shurke:
give me that revolver Shecareiully
reloaded it and took position several
yards further away from the marx
than Ed and the other poor shooters
had been located. Planting her left foot
sixteen inches behind her right and
bringing the revolver up like profess
sional she took quick glance at the
mark through her glasses, pulled the
trigger and down came the white
patch.
stick it up again, said Mrs. Ross.
Again the mark fell to the ground
and again it wasrepaced and knocked
down.
When Mrs. Ross offered the revolt
yer to her son he said "No mother,
you keep it. I'm no gunner; you are.
l will get IA sit in a printing oil,e
when we get there and use another
kind of shooting stick, and you can
kill my share of those border utlians."
Ross kept his promise. Hewent to
work at his trade and in due time be-
came an editor and proprietor. Not
long after the war Kansas had one Of
its regular rip-roaring senatorial con-
tests, which resulted in the election
of the printer editor, Edmund e.. Ross.
He went to- Washington Republican,,
but would bot follow his party. in the,
ttentefpflse NJ dsiscss f'fesident andrew
Johnson. The Kansas Republicans
never forgave him. Since then he has
been Democrat.
When Mr.. Cleveland became presi-
dent the first time Ross was typeset-
ter on a New Mexico paper and very
poor. One day, while setting up a
list of presidential appointments, the
old printer, whose family had been
scantily clad and fed for some time.
got TO thinking over his past good for
tune. He said To himself: "The last
Democratic president was saved by
my vote, and have suffered for that
vote ever since. | could have been
reelected to the United States Senate,
maybe several times, but for that act.
As tits, I'm poor, in need, my family
lacking the comforts Of life, and /
working at the case. I'll ask the new
president for the governorship of
New Mexico"
The next day his application and the
letters of several influential Democrats
were on their way to Washington. Ii
was not many weeks after that when
the foreman handed the old printer
another take" of presidential ap-
poin .,nents. When his dim old eyes,
looking through spectacles, fell upon
Edmund q. Ross, to be governor of
New Mexico" the stick" fell from
his hand, and when the foreman looked
over his lease" the printers face was !
In his half-closed hands, resting on |
the space" and "a" "boxes."
What's the matter, Ross?" asked
the foreman.
The old man slowly raised his head,
looked at the foreman and said. Gov
ernor Ross, if you please; look at
that, aud he pointed to his "copy."
Drop your work and come here,
all Of you," called the foreman. 81
want to introduce you to the governor
Of New Mexico. Together, hip, hip,
hurrahr"
One of the printers lodged out Of
the Office and ran over and told the
Ross family of the good news, and
when the governor was about halfway
home he saw his household coming to
meet HIM. The baby, q winsome
young lady, threw her arms about his