The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1898-03-16
"oLD HoWDY."
Famous Texas Member of the House who
Blew Out the Gas.
philadelphia Record. }

The recent death of William 81. Martin.
quaint manners and character. 1t was
on the night Of November 25, 1887, that
Representative Martin, Of Texas, better
known as cold Howdy,' first arrived in
Washington to represent the Lone Star
State. He turned into Pennsylvania
avenue from the Baltimore and Potomac
depot, carpet bag in hand. and began to
| inquire the way to 'Willard's Tavern. -
He found it without trouble, got his
supper, and watched game of billiards
until II O'Clock, when he inquired the
| way 80 his room, blew out the gas and
went to bed. Toward morning the es-
Gaping gas was discovered. the door bro
ken down. and the Major rescued in an
unconscious condition. The story was
telegraphed to nearly every newspaper in
the Union, and the Major became a ma
tional character.
The Major was greatly interested In the
merits Of government publication en-
titled Diaries and Dairy Farming and
he introduced a resolution providing for
| the printing of several thousand extra
copies. When the title of the bill was
read preparatory to sending it to the
Committee on Printing the Major took
the floor. In stentorian tones he shouted,
"Mr. Speaker" 1t was in the Fiftieth
Congress. Speaker Carlisle was In the
chair. He looked at Old Howdy in as
| constituent. OF course no debate was in
order while bills were being read for ref
ereIlce. "Sir,'' roared the Texas Con-
gresham, Cpd rather be the author Of
| such a work as Diaries and Dairy
Farming than to be the most. ipowerful
Constitution. az
man is out Of order" the Speaker said.
| Eyes" persisted the Major, unlnind
full of the interruption, lone of my con-
stituents was a reading Nv it to me-, and
was just done surprised at the variety
| and extent of the Information. '''
Atevery word the gravel fell. "The
gentleman must take his seati' roared
| the kentuckian.
| But Old Howdy was thoroughly en-.
wrapped in his subject. Needless of the
Speakers interruption, he elevated his
voice still more, shaking his curly head
ard swinging his long arms. My con-
stituents, sir; I can't get shut of them
unless you print more copies of this book.
They sense it's importance, sir indeed
they d. and I reckon"
BY this time the House was in spasm
of laughter, and Carlisle was lashiDg
himself with fury. Bang, bang, bang,
went the gavel. 1.-The House must be in
order" pronouncing the word House
as though it were spelled shoose."
| (Smash, smash, smash.) 'Will the gen.
| tleman be seated? The sergeant alarms
will see that the gentleman from Texas
is seated. - (Whang whang, whang.)
But Old Howdy kept warming up and
pouring out words more t1uently than
ever. Members had gathered around
him in dense body, and the sergeant-at-
him. The Speaker kept shouting and
beat such an Internal tattoo with the
gavel that the noise was deafening. Old
Howdy roared at least five minutes, and
resumed his seat as the sergeant-at-arms
1 reached him. The House resumed its
composure, and the call of bills for ref
erence proceeded. Meantime Roger @.
Mills approached his colleague. "Ma-
jor," he said, "thab was an excellent
speech. You couldn't have bettered it.
but it was entirely out of order. You
ought to have obeyed the call of the
Speaker. Such speech as that ought to
be delivered in order. -
"Well. Mills" rejoined Old Howdy,
you and me fit in the war together for
| nigh on to four years. l don't know
what you learned in the war, but /
learned one thing that never can for.
get, and that is that, if you want for to
| fight the time for to fight is when the
fights going on"