The times., 1899-10-01
JOHN T. M'CUTcHEoN.
What George Adc HAS to Say of the
''Record" Correspondent.

Hecord' Correspondent.
From the Chicago Record.)
In the course of a very harsh attack on
the newspaper correspondents who pro-
soTship at Manila the Chicago Times
Herald under date OF July 10, prints the
following:
JOHN I. MCUTCHEoN,
Chicago Record
Who is he? An exceedingly clever cartoonist
who won recognition during the campaign OF
1896 for some humorous cartoons in which figured
a lop-eared pup.
Mr. McCutcheon happened to be on a trip round
the world on the revenue cutter McCulloch when
the war broke out He secured permission to
accompany it with Dewey's feet 10 Manila.
The writer of the editorial submits the
foregoing as a biographical sketch and
lets it go at that. He admits that Nc
Cutcheon is a cartoonist. He sneers at the
dog-a most kindly animal. He says that
McCutcheon happened to be on a trip
around the world" Possibly he should
have been at home playing golf He Sc
cured permission to accompany Deweys
fleet to Manila doubtless on account of
his standing as a cartoonist.
1t is hardly worth while to enter into
discussion as to the merit of McCutch-
cons work in the Philippines. He mas
been sending cablegrams and letters at
close intervals ever since May, 1898, and
readers of the Record" know by this
time whether or not he has been seeing
things and reporting them truthfuily.
The man who wrote the editorial be-
littling McCutcheon and slandering the
dog had to make some kind OF an effort
in the general direction of endorsing the
Administration at Washington. He could
not write any other kind of editorial He
had to blame somebody. He couldn't blame
General 0tis-as yet-so he blamed the
correspondents, and selected McCutcheon
as shining mark because McCutcheon
had drawn picture of a dog in 1896.
AS a matter of fact McCuteheon started
around the world SO as to get away from
that dog. But he didn't succeed. He
writes home that occasionally he meets
an American soldier out in the jungle, and
when they have sat down in the shade of
a palm tree TO escape the killing heat the
soldier says: so your names McCutch-
con, is it? Are you the man who drew
the dog?
Then McCutcheon looks for another tree.
McCutcheon does not disown the dog,
but he is trying to live it down by meri-
torious conduct in the field. It's a mean
thing to bring up on a man when he is so
far away.
Acknowledging the dog, therefore, 1t
must be urged in all fairness that it does
not stand for a complete biography of
McCutcheon. The Times Herald asks
the question, John T. McCutcheon-who
is he?" and then fails to answer the ques-
ton.
It is true that McCutcheon was known as
cartoonist and not known as a writer up
to the time that he happened TO be on a
trip around the world and made arrange
ments to see the battle of Manila. He had
been writer all the time, but he hadn' 1
been working at it. Some people thought
that a miracle had happened in Eastern
waters, seeing that a cartoonist had been
transformed into good war correspon-
dent. Those of us who had known McCutch-
con for years were not greatly shaken. In
fact, McCutcheon was sending from the
Orient brilliant letters of travel TO the
Record A somewhat extended answer
to the Times Herald" question, who is
he?" will explain why McCutcheon was en-
abled to see things in and about Manila
and make an interesting and veracious re-
port of them.
John T. McCutcheon was born near Rom
ney Ind, in 1870. His father, Capt. John
B. McCutcheon, known throughout Tippe-
canoe county as Barr McCutcheon, had
fought on the Union side throughout the
Civil War and was severely marked with
wounds. He was the most popular man in
or around Lafayette, for he was the only
Democrat who could overcome Republican
| majority of 800 and be elected sheriff two
terms in succession. AT the time of his
death, about twelve years ago, he was city
treasurer of Lafayette.
Without trying to establish the fact that
| McCutcheon Is or was a hero, the hero
market being glutted at present. it may
! be worth while to tell OF something that
happened to him when he was fourteen
years of age. His father was sheriff at the
time. Young McCutcheon was assisting
the turnkey at the Jail and was directing
the transfer of about twenty prisoners from
! the dining room to another part of the
building. A prisoner who was under peni-
tentiary sentence stood behind the solid
door leading into the dining room and as
! the boy came in he upset him, bounded
through the open doorway. and reached the
street. McCutcheon locked the door,
grabbed a revolver, and went in pursuit
/ The prisoner made for the Wabash River,
and the boy was after him, firing as he
ran. One bullet came close to the pris-
oner and he lodged into a lumber yard,
into which the boy followed, taking two
more shots, finally cornering his man and
marching him back TO the jail.
! McCutcheon took his degree at Purdue
( University in 1889 His reputation in col
! lege was earned by writing. although he
/ had attempted some pen-and-ink draw
/ llS- he Wrote most OF Inc STUN and
| drew nearly all the pictures for the first
annual" ever issued at the university.
and he was the author OF a very clever
! burlesque performed at the classday ex-
! ereises of his class. When he finished col
! Iege it was his intention to try for a
/ writing job on a newspaper, but after he
had looked around and observed the sup
/ ply and demand in newspaper offices he
! decided that the larger opportunity and
| the more becoming salary awaited the
illustrator, SO he came to Chicago in Oe-
! tober, 1889, and succeeded in getting a
I trial with the Record" He became a
newspaper artist, and in time developed
/ into a cartoonist, against his will, but he
never promised anyone that he wouldn't t
/ be a frst-cass war correspondent if he
/ found the right opportunity
| 1t is true that he happened to be on
/ his way around the world" which proved
/ that he had the enterprise of travelcr
/ or as previously suggested, was trying to
escape the distinction of being the man
/ who drew the dog. His arrival at Mrs
| Bay in the nick of time was not in the
nature of an accident Neither was his
presence on the firing line during the con-
| tinned weeks of fighting. This last surely
| cannot be classed as an accident. 1t is
too prolonged,
| McCutcheon entered Malolos with Fun
ston. He entered San Fernando with
Major Bell. Probably when the United
! States soldiers capture some more Filipino
! capitals he win enter them with the ad-
vance guard also.
In drawing pictures or telling stories
! McCutcheon has a natural preference for
! exact truth. He can't help il. Formerly,
when he drew men and women for the
stories in the Record" he made real men
| and tFnF IN