Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1900-12-27
FAMOUS MEMS MEMORIES.
Politicians Great on Names and Faces
-Stanton's Recitations.

Politicians Great on Names and Faces
-stanton's Recitations.
Retentive memory is to be priced
above rubies, yet many men have
achieved phenomenal success in
spite of memories abnormally
poor-at least. in some direc-
lions. The late DR.. McCosh of Prince
ton must have had a memory
| highly cultivated in some way,
| but for the life of him
he couldn't remember faces. and
on numberless occasions he caused no
end of modification to himself and
others by failure to recognize persons
with whom he had been on terms of
close intimacy for years. 1t has been
said of the good doctor that his in
ability to remember names and faces
would have prevented him from MAX
| ing a success in political life, but that
doesn't follow. Many public men
have possessed almost perfect mem
DRY of names and faces. and this was
true of James G. Blaine. but other
prominent men have managed to get
along pretty well without that faculty
Conkling, for instance, forgot names
and faces often. He had a wonderful
memory, though, as his opponents
often discovered when, speaking pub
licly, he recalled utterances of theirs
they would fain forget. Nor was his
memory confined to political matters.
1t was stored abundantly with poetry,
not fragmentary lines of brief stanzas,
but entire epics, page by page. He
could repeat nearly the whole of
Moore's 'Lalla Rookh" and Scott's
| Lady of the Lake" These were
his favorite poems. but the odes of
Horace, in the original, were almost
equally familiar to him, and he often
amazed his few intimates by reciting
the Latin poets lines by the hundred,
with perfect information and superb
elocution, while he knew by heart the
first book of Homers Odyssey"
Bryant's translation.
1t is an interesting coincidence that
Thomas Bracket Reed, who has gone
to practicing law in this city, after
devoting most of his life to the public
service, thus following Conkling's
footsteps, is also able to recite Horace
at great length. Mr. Reed has men,
orized long stretches of the odes, in
translation as well as in the origina1.
His liking for them has led to his
making collection of translations in
English and French. When he has
| for an auditor an enthusiastic admirer
OF Horace. who understands Latin he
! delights to quote various versions of
special passages by the half-hour,
sometimes commenting thereon in
way that shows complete mastery of
the subject. Reeds memorizing is
not confined to the old-time classics.
either; he knows the work of some of
our native poets, and delights in moth
ing more than reciting such bits as
the production by ''Ironqulll," begin
uing:-
Once a Kansas zephyr strayed
Where a brass-eyed bird pup played
Besides, he memories prose with
remarkable facility, and almost with
out effort. Thus he can recite long
passages from Dickens and Thack-
cray, especially the latter. To hear
his repeat the passage descriptive of
the meeting between Lord Steyn and
Rawdon Crawley in Vanity Fair" is
said to be as good as to see tba
dramatized version enacted. The late
Edwin M. Stanton. President Lincoln's
secretary of war, astonished Charles
Dickens at dinner party given to the
novelist at Charles Summers house nv
reciting, on suggestion, chapter after
chapter OF his works 1t didn't matter
what chapter of what story the author
called for, Stanton could give the text
from memory. almost letter perfect
IN answer to the amazed Englishman's
query, the war secretary said he had
done the memory almost uncon.
sciously. While the war was ON he
mad found it almost impossible to for.
get Tor moment the heavy burden he
was bearing, ard had lightened the
pressure regularly at night by readino
something from Dickens before irvine
10 sleep. One night, not having :
volume of Dickens handy. he had
sought to recall a few random nas.
sages, when, to his delight. cbantar
after chapter came to him.
Concerning Mr.. Reed. IL NAV ba
added that though he can memorizo
literary gems without effort. he Is IN.