Mexico weekly ledger., 1899-06-22


ous assault upon the Republicans in
general and Reed in particular. Reed
began his answer by saying In a sheer
ing tone: 81 cannot hope TO equal the
voiume Of voice Of the gentleman from
New York. That is equaled only by the
volume of those things which he does
not know"
When Senator Wolcott of Colorado,
in his fracas with Carey of Wyoming.
dramatically exclaimed, at is a waste
Of lather to shave an ass, " 1t set peo-
pie to disputing what was the most
caustic thing aver said by one congress
man to another. The pundits were d.
vided in opinion between Wolcott's jab
at Carey and Reeds characterization
of John A. Picker of South Dakota.
When Reed first saw Picker per-
form, so the story goes, he said, not on
the floor Of the house, as commonly re-
ported, but in private to a personal
friend, 81 have read and heard much
of the wild ass colt of the desert, but
l never had any clear conception OF
what manner of animal 1t really was
till l saw Picker In action"
Mr.. Reed had a particular aversion
TO the Hon. William M. Springer Of
Illinois. One day in some controversy
with Springer, when Springer was
chairman Of the ways and means com
mittee, be said, 81 declare with Henry
Clay that I would rather be right than
president" whereupon Reed drawled
out, "There is no sort Of danger Of
your ever being either"
House FilIbusters.
Constantine Buckley Kilgore of Tex
as was one Of the most persistent and
successful filibusters In the Fifty-first
congress and gave Reed a great deal Of
trouble. Nevertheless personally they
were warm friends and joked each
other a great deal. The motion 10 adopt
the journal Of the previous day was
Kilgore's golden opportunity to fill
buster. One morning, after an unusu-
ally prolonged tussle on that motion,
Reed met the Texan in the speakers
lobby, went up to him and said, "Kil-
gore. why in the devil didn't you fill
buster against the chaplain's prayerf''
Judge Rodgers Of Arkansas, now on
the federal bench, was also an expert
in hlibustering. One morning, when
Kilgore was kept from the house by
business in the departments, Rodgers
precipitated a long wrangle on the mo-
tion to adopt the journal. When Kill
gore arrived at the house, about 3 or 4
o'clock. he went up 10 the speakers
stand and asked Reed how they had
been getting along without him, where
upon the man from Maine replied /:
''By the help Of God and Rodgers of
Arkansas we managed to adopt the
journal in three hours. Ifyou had been
here TO reinforce them, we would
probably not have adopted it before
SHUTDOWN"
Reed and Harrison.
There is no love lost between Reed
and Harrison. They speak as they pass
by. but that's about all the communi-
ton they hold with each other. II is
utterly impossible that there should be
any kindred feeling between two such
men. Harrison il cold as ''Greenland's
icy mountains, " always on his p's and
q's and plumes himself immensely on
his blne blood. Reed is hot blooded for
a New Highlander, careless Of the minor
details Of ceremonials, a self made man,
who worships his Maker.
Along in the sultry days Of August,
1894, when any tariff legislation seem
ed hopeless and when the Democratic
party resembled a dissolving view more
than anything else, Reed came to where
several free traders were sitting and
began chatting them numerically about
the condition of affairs. After awhile
some one said. "Mr. Reed, how do you
like the last Republican presidential
ticket got up by the ~newspapersi" He
lazily asked, What is itf" His friend
replied, Bob Lincoln and Fred
Grant. ''0h, the deuceI" he blurted
out. 'f they would only add Baby
Mckee to it. the thing would be per-
feet" And away be went, like a great
three decker in a surging sea.
In the greenback year in Maine he
escaped defeat by only 115 majority.
When he went TO supper, he thought
he was defeated When he returned TO
headquarters after supper, his follow
ers set up 3 mighty shout. Not having
heard Of bis election. he said to them,
"You are making q tremendous fuss
over the corpse" In relating hat Incl
dent in his life he naively remarks.
''The country came near losing the in
valuable services Of a great statesman
on that occasion"
AaabIe II Private Life.
In private Mr.. Reed is affable and
jolly. When I was introduced to him,
for a loss Of something better to say
/ remarked. "Mr. Reed. / have fire.
quently mentioned you in my speeches "
Eyes. no doubt, be drawled, while he
regarded me quizzically out Of the cor
ner Of his eye. 'But howf"
When Colonel Bob White, editor Of
the Mexico (Mo) Ledger, wal In Wash
ington, ! took several Of the big guns
out into the corridor to introduce them.
/ told Mr.. Reed that l had a Demo-
cratic editor out there whom / wished
him to meet. Looking 1T me intently,
while a smile played over his counte-
nance he said. "Win you youch for his
good moral characteT a. q Democratf"
! vouched. and Bob enjoyed a short
dialogue with the gentleman from
Maine"
Once in awhile IL happens that a vel
directed shot in congress not only places
the victim hors du combat temporarily,
but knocks him ont politically for all
time.
In the Fiftieth congress there was q
lightweight representative from Ohio
who wanted to impress his constituents
with the idea that be was constant in
bis attendance al al the sessions Of the
house. bot also desired 10 spend most Of
bic time down town sampling the pleas.
ures Of 'ithe finest capital IN the
world" So be devised the following
ingenious plan for accomplishing his
two somewhat inoongruOus purposes,
on to kill tive birds with one stonss A.
soon as bushes began Of a morning be
would Interrupt the member who had