The Van Buren press., 1897-08-28
Gov. Bob Taylor's Address to the
I. +. A,

drummer travelling in northwest
Arkansas for the Shibley & Wood
Wholesale Grocery Co.. we publish the
address Of Robert l.. Taylor, governor
of Tennessee. in welcome of the Eighth
Annual Convention Of the T. p. A at
Nashville June 4.
Gentlemen of the Travellers Protect
i've Association: In the name Of the
whole state Of Tennessee, in the name
of every man, woman and child IN 1t, l
welcome you today with all the
cordiality contained in the one word,
welcome. You are travelling men. but
you have never travelled over land
where welcome grew more luxuriantly
than in this beautiful land we call
Tennessee. You have seen much of the
world, but you have never beheld a
spot where you We're more welcome
than the capital city of Tennessee,
where every heart throb is welcome
to your coming and every breath will
be a sigh of sorrow when you leave us.
If welcomes were flowers l would
give every travelling man in America
an armful Of American beauties.
would pin ON every lapel cape
iessamine, and Nashville would be a
wilderness of roses today. tApplause.
If human hearts were banquet halls |
would welcome every travelling man TO
....o mould baruuat than nu ruiltr
and honey, the milk Of human kindness
and the honey of human happiness, and
they should drink deep of the wine of
brotherly love. If my heart strings
were harp strings I would make the
music for the travelling men which the
angels made for the first happy pair in
the Paradise of long ago. If my words
could be coined into silver and gold
would give every travelling man $40,
900 a year at the ratio of 10 to /.
(Long. continued applause
The travelling men are the advertising
agents of all the goods and wares of
mankind. They are the advance guard
of General Prosperity, but l fear they
are now temporarily cut off from the
main column by the forces of General
Hard Times.
The world does not appreciate the
travelling men They are the very
life blood of our civilization; they are
political economists they are politi-
clans; they are diplomats; they are
expert accountants; they are lawyers;
they are workingmen.
The travelling man can labor all day
with his hands and his head and then
put on the swallow tail and patent
feathers in the evening and with song
and sweet converse charm the most
refined circles Of fashionable society.
He is the thermometer and barometer
of nations. When prosperity follows
in his wake the nations are prosperous,
when hard times drives him home it is
a sure sign of poverty among the
masses.
| love the drummer for his versatility,
| love him for the sacrifices he has
made, and for the happiness he has
given to the world. The women love
the drummer, not only because he is
brave and gallant and genial, but
because he is as graceful in overalls as
in the swallow tail; and. above all
they love him for the happy homes ha
has made.
Distance lends enchantment to the
view, and, therefore, the wives and
sweethearts of the drummers are con
stantly enchanted by their husbands
and their beaux. daughter
once heard of a drummer who had
contracted the habit of coming home as
drunk as as lord, and when his weep
ing wife one evening asked him through
her tears why thus he came continually
intoxicated, he looked at her affection
ately and replied, my darling, you
are so sweet and pretty naturally love
to look at you double. - daughter
But be it said to the honor of the
craft that there is less drunkenness
among those who carry the grip than
any other profession under the sun,
except the preachers. If | wera' a
young lady would marry drummer,
not only because he moves the world
with his snap and grip and push, but
because he is the prettiest thing on
God S footstool. daughter
If / were sculpture l would chisel
from the marble my ideal of man.
would make figure of drummer with
his grip. If | were painter would
paint picture of Jacob s ladder. and
upon its golden rungs | would paint the
angelic forms of drummers ascending,
with the best line of harps on the
market to sell to the inhabitants of the
celestial world.
God bless the drummers. They are
the personifcation of Christian en-
deavor, and all they need is pink tights
and gauze wings 10 make them equal to
the cherubim and seraphim. and who
can imagine vision more sublime than
innumerable drummers flying through
the air with grip sacks in their hands
diving and sporting among the clouds
like porpoise in midoeeanG But
The drummer wears no golden wings
Round this merry world he swings,
sweetly laughs and softly sings.
sells his goods aud wares and thugs.