Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-01-21

dispose of my business as it arises
never permit it to accumulate. The result
OF that system is that never have a piece
oi work uncompleted on my desk when l
close it for the night"
MT. Depew's desk is a big one, and as he
talked 10 me it accumulated business
ofhcers of the Central and other roads
wanted few minutes to state their nron-
osflioh or dlfhculty, which was from Mr.
DepeWs vast experience Immediately SET
ted. clerks came in with letters to sign
OF papers TO 1ndorse, and at intervals his
secretary Mr.. Du Val, adroitly sandwiched
into me conversation some one who had a
| claim on minute of Mr. DepeW's time
once or Twice Mr.. Depew excused himself
10 go INTO the adjoining ROOM and from
the sounds that came from it II was safe
10 assume that some one had told a Joke
asked Mr. Depew if he intended TO
abandon the facetious style when he enter
ca the Senate. He answered in the mega
tive. "
1t is one of the most effective STYLES Of
speaking he said. land il is one of the
most difficult 1t is a style that NAV have
boomerang effect if not skillfully used
but l have said things under cover of a
| humorous speech that | would never have
beeli permitted to say seriously 1t was
an d part OF the fun at the time. but it
seemed serious enough to the hearers when
they thought of il next day"
Depew's First Speech.
"Can you recall the first speech you ever
made?'
Very well. 1t was just after 1 returned
nome from Yale. My father was a pro-slave-
ry man. L came back from Yale an anti
slavery man. 1t caused a great deal of I n
happiness TO my father, and made many
uiherehces IN our home l regretted them
very much, because / was very fond of
my father. The trouble never reached the
point of causing me to leave home Rnt II
was We'll known 10 all the of pao
skill and they were much interested in it.
+ AT That time there were only about $50
ahtl-slaVery men among the 5000 in The
town. Most of the business of the town
was with the south. and the feeling against
the abolitionists ran very high
"One night George William Curtis was
to make speech at Peekskill. He was the
great orator of that day. He missed his
train or for some other reason did not get
to the meeting. After long wait. some
one suggested that 1 make speech. They
propably wanted to get me on record
knowing how strong the influence at NV
home was. l got up in my place and he
gan to speak. Then some one suggested
that 1 take the platform, and l did. I
spoke for two hours at that meeting. IT
was the first time / had had a chance to
learn that l could take care of myself on
my feet. l had spoken more or less at
Yale-fn fact, l had received a medal there
Tor oratory. But there 1 had always pre-
pared myself for speaking.
That was my first extempore speech.
lew days later received an invitation from
the state committee to take part in the
campaign that was on. The late General
Husted, who had graduated from Yale two
years before me, told me it was a great
opportunity. He took me to the headouar-
ters OF the committee and introduced me
l plunged into the campaign and went right
through to the end of It, I haven't missed
making speeches in any important cam
paign in New York state SINCE
As Humorous Sneaker
II suppose l have hurt myself a good
deal by making humorous speeches" con-
tinued Mr.. Depew. 1.-The newspapers have
given me a character as q story-telIer and
humorist that probably would make Soma
people refuse to take me seriously. Rut T
have every evidence that my style of sneak
| ing Is effective. In the last national cam,
| paign. for instance, l made a speech in a
western city. The man who had made a
| speech just before was man of great ma
| tional reputation. He had mace an argument
| so abstruse that / had to read it three times
| before | could understand it, / asked some
| one who was at his meeting how he had
been received. / was told that before he
was half through speaking people began tn
| leave the hail. and half were gone when
| he finished-they couldn't understand him.
When / began to speak the aisles were
/ packed, hundreds We're standing / smoke
longer than the great man and did not lose
my audience. The chairman of the state
| committee wrote to me afterward that my
| speech had done more than anything else
| to save the state to the republican party.
But the newspapers in their editorials said