The morning times., 1897-01-15
Warm Friendship Between Him
and President Arthur.
INCIDENTS OF CAMPAIGNS
He Travelled With Hts Political
Rival and Took u Turn at the
P1ow While the Other Talked.
A Country Poker Game-He Cowed
Bully.
Chicago Record.

L
home of Senator Voorhees, there is universal
| regret that the generous, impuisive and pic
! turesque statesman has passed the zenith OF
| his career. When he was lying at the Terre
| Haute House in this city recently and not
| expected to live the sympathy and affec-
| ton expressed for him came froirl all par
| ties and from all classes of people. 1t
| seemed to be utterly forgotten that he was
| a Democrat. 1t was only remembered that
| he was great and eloquent man, peculiarly
unseffish and charitable, whose represen-
| tation of this district and this State in the
| national legislature for a third of cen
| tury had been of a character to command
| admiration and respect.
| 1t was realized, when his death seemed
| imminent, that the Senator's was far
| broader and loftier personality than the
| smoke of political battles had permitted to
| become clear. In the silence that muffled
| him about in what was considered his last
| illness his greatness spoke i'll clearer tones
| than ever before. All ears appeared to
| hear and all judgments to yield accord. The
| conviction grew that the title OF Tall
| Sycamore OF the Wabash was especially
| appropriate to the stricken Senator, as
| descriptive not alone of his giant physical
| proportions, but more particularly of his
| intellect. his rich imagination, his tender
| sympathies and his generous soul
Little has beensaid aboutth warm friend
| ship that existed for number OF years be-
| tween Senator Voorhees, ana Chester A. Ar
| thur. When Arthur succeeded Garfield as
| President OF the United States he had no
| other Companion in Washington who was
| quite so close TO him as was Voorhees,.
| This was true despite the antagonism OF
| their political views. They were peculiarly
| harmonious personally. Arthur had great
| confidence In Voorhees, judgment on deli
| cate points OF executive policy, andhe would
| talk TO the Senator with as much or more
| freedom than he talked TO any other person.
| The President was continually inviting
| Senator Voorhees, to the White House. He
| consulted the great Hoosier Democrat in re-
gard TO Indiana patronage as freely as he
| consulted any Republican They are said to
| have had many bottle of wine together in
| the President S private office while discuss
| ingmatters OF state and dwelling upon those
| thousand and one other questions which in
| ferest sympathetic and enlightened men. 1t
| is known that Arthur always regretted to
| have Voorhees, leave him, and frequently in
| duced the Senator to spend the night at the
| Executive Mansion.
Senator voorhees, was Just as deeply at
| tached to the President. he held him in
| high esteem because OF his strong mental
attributes and his gentleness OF disposi-
tion. The affection of these men for each
| other was singularly like that of brothers,
| and it continued throughout the life of Ar
| thur. When Arthur was a candidate for
| the Presidential nomination before the
| Minneapolis convention one of his most
| ardent champions, so far as sympathy was
| concerned, was voorhees,. The Senator
| took an extraordinary interest in the con-
test and for some reason seemed to hope
that his friend would win. When his dis
| appointment came it is said by those who
| were with voorhees, at the announcement
| of the news that he broke down and erie d
| like a child.
| No man is better known among the old
| timers of the Terre Haute Congressional
district than is Senator voorhees,. In
deed, it is doubtful if any other person ever
connected with the politics of this part
OF the State had a purely personal follow
ing so large as that of the Tall Sycamore
of the Wabash He knew and still knows
hundreds OF the voters of the district by
their Christian names. He has stopped
over night at their houses and has made
himself familiar not alone with their fam
lilies but with their antecedents as well.
When young Mr.. Voorhees, was candi-
date for Congress in the da Us before the war
he canvassed the district on horseback, fire.
quently travelling with his rival on the op-
posing ticket This was true in $50, when
he and the late Col. Thomas Nelson. ex min
lister to Chile and Mexico, were candidates
| for Congress on the Democratic and Repub-
lican tickets, respectively. They were speak.
ing in joint debate in Parkc county,
One night they appeared at Rockville and
they were billed to speak on the following
| night at country town several miles dis
tant. In the afternoon of the next day Col.
| Nelson left for the little town alone. On the
way he stopped TO talk toan old farmer who
was plowing in a field near the road. The
| farmer stopped his team at the corner of his
land near the fence and climbed UP and
sat beside Nelson on the top rail to hear his
| exposition OF the Republican side While
| they satthere talking Voorhees, rode up and
| spoke to them in his usual most cordial
| manner. The esituation ighteasily have be
come some what awkward, butv oOrhees did
| not permit anything of the sort He dis
mounted and tied his horse to the fence
| chatting pleasantly meanwhile with the
| farmer and his rival Then voorhees, got
| over into the field, threw the farmers lines
| about his shoulders and started the team
| Heplowed a round" with as much ease
| and skill as any rustic in the country could
| have done it. When he came back to the
| starting point Nelson and the voter were
| still talking and the politician ma de an
other circuit of the field. As he nearet
the place of beginning the second timt
| Nelson had got down off the fence ant
voorhees, overheard the following eonyer
| sation:
You say your names Nelson?"
| Eyes
well, amt got nothin' ag'in you, MIR
Nelson, and I must say you know how
to gass bout as smart as any feller evel
Isee; but guess I KANT vote fer you. ]
| like the style of this feller voorhees, bet
ter-ef you don't mind me sayin' so. He's
| show ed willin' ness to help me out this
afternoon and he might do it ag'in some
| time when he gifts to Congress. Good
| day"
Nelson got into his buggy and drove
away. leaving voorhees, leaning between
the plow-handles, and the oil d farmer, with
his straw hat on the back of his head and
his arms folded, standing IN the furrow
and cycling the young lawyer with admira
tion. Several years ago when the phrase
tariff reform was being heard for the
first time in American politics a great
Democratic speaking was arranged to
take place in the fair grounds at Bloom
field, the county seat Of Greene county, Ind.