The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-09-03
AN INGALLS,
How He Was Once Interviewed
Against His Will.

Against his WILL
The following was printed undo a
Washington date line in the st. Louis
Republic:
John J. ingalls, wasn't a hard man to
Observation-Disclosures, he was singularly APP
proachable and unusually amiable to
newspaper men, whom he trusted-but
there were certain periods in his career
during which he didn't want to talk for
publication, and I was assigned to ex-
tract an interview from him during one
of those periods" said one of the lead
ing Washington correspondents this ev-
ening.
1T was shortly after ingalls, had been
defeated for the United States senator
Ship he continued. Senator ingalls,
drifted into Chicago a few weeks after
the unfortunate event-as unfortunate
for Kansas as it was for Ingalls,, in my
opinion-and put up, as usual, at the old
Grand Pacific hotel. Twas a reporter
for my paper at that time, and my city
editor rounded me up and told me that
he wanted me to drill a long, high-grade
interview out of Ingalls,. / rather felt
that I was up against it when I got the
assignment, for ingalls, had beer as
cloSe-mouthed as a clam since his de-
feat, c~Ontenting himself with sardonical-
~ telling the newspaper men in other
cities who approached him that in his
capacity of statesman out of a job he
didn't nave anything to say that would
be of interest to the public. I a often
met Ingalls, and knew him pretty well,
n 1 was quite familiar with he fact
that when he didn't want to talk he had
a knack of tanning interviewers SUCH
as few men in public life in his day pos.
seSsed.
IT set off one dark afternoon, the day
after Ingalls, arrival in Chicago, to get
the talk out of him. When I told Paul
Gore, h Grand Pacific's chief clerk, to
send my card up to the senator, Paul
leaned over the hotel desk and whisper
ed to me that Ingalls, was in a very
| crusty frame of mind, and that, although
he had received representatives from a
number of the papers that afternoon, he
had passed 'em all up as Gore put it.
wlthou giving them so much as a
phrase that could be twisted into an in
terview.' 1t was a good tip. I sent nv
card up, anyhow, n shortly the bellboy
brought back word that the senator
would see me In the parlor in about a
quarter of an hour. So I went up to the
second floor, where the big, dim-lit par
Tor OF the Grand Pacific was coated.
1t was dull work sitting there and
tWlddllng my thumbs while 1 waited for
the statesman out of a Job to come
down, and SO, noticing an open piano
over at the end of the parlor, I crossed
over to 1t and sat down before the in
strument. In my early youth I'd been
dubbed into practicing three or four
hours a day on the piano, so that I was
able to Strum pretty fairly on the in
strument: l put my foot on the soft
pedal ana ega to run over some of the
old things that I remembered-a snatch
or this, q fragment of that and a small
section OF the other-just to divert my
SELF until the eminent Kansan made his
appearance. I became SO interested thar
1 dldnt notice the passage of time. but
played on softly, trying to dig up rem
nanrs OF my repertoire, when I heard a
slight, half repressed cough behind me.
and wheeled around on the stool. There
In the dark corner opposite me. sitting
on a sofa, with his long legs crossed and
q pecular smile on his thin features,
was MI. ingalls,. I jumped up, of course,
and started over to him.
l. Dont STOP, said he, motioning me
back to the piano. go right ahead ia
rather listen than talk
IT had quite a natural feeling that he
was Jolly1ng me, and so I shook my head
IN my well known, gracious manner. took
MS extended hand and said:
Wen, enatOr begin at the be1in-
ming and tell me the whole thing. Won,
needn't hurry. I've got lots of time. You
can take the narrative back 20 years. If
you 50 desire. All I want is a whole lot,
mats all. III take you down in short
hand, so that you'll be sure you're quo
ted right. What, for instance. is fhe
condition Of politics in the state of kan
MI. Ingalls, looked me over with a
quizzical smile, uncrossed his legs and
crossed them h other way, cleared his
throat and said:
AS between music of the Italian and
music OF the German schools 1 find nv
self In a dilemma The the
passion, the warmth, the melody. the
heart interest, the humanness, so to put
1t, of Italian music appeal to me strong
ly, and sometimes have inspired me
to- N
"To flights of ~eloquence, such as If
would be a delight to listen to. SEN
ator, ! interrupted, did one not par
at first as to the condition of bottles
in b state Of Kansas
and sometimes have inspired me
70 dream that, with the vast annual in
hux of Italians to these shores we
Americans shall at some remote dav
n most eminent italian masters OF
m amiable and e~levating art of music,
Yet, for all that, I fear that there is a
soporifc and saccharine quality in the
great bulk of Italian operate music. II
is too sugary, most of it. 1t appeals tic
the senses, but not to the intellect
Therein lies the difference between
Italian music and German music. Ger
man music-the music of Wagner, WI
VIII Say-appealS directly and conVinc-
ingly to the intellect. Tt is neither taw-
dry nor maudliu. 1t containeth no can-
died balladeS to my lady'S eyebrows. II
is masculine music, whereas much OF
h Italian music, melodious as it may
be, and admittedly is, seems to me to
be effeminate. Put Verdi's Aida be-
side WagneT's Lohengrin'; both works
are masterpieces. Well, Aida is Nile
music; it is dreamy; it is the last note
IN the dangerous In music; it effects
one like q heavy heady old wine; the
melody is almost too overpowering for
endurance. Aida affects some women
like a too-heavy fragrance of flowers.
Then, Tohengrin. Iohengrin' is at
times as clear and cool as q. mountain
sesseS is the s-ensuousnesS of the open
air, of the meadow and forest; it is
healthy; 1T is vital; 1t is strong it is
49, - = %Aa sound I1T+A [uh4<n-