The Banner-Democrat. [volume] (Lake Providence, East Carroll Parish, La.) 1892-current, 1900-05-19
RHODES Is A MYSTERY
READABLE CHARACTER SKETCH O.
AFRicA'S "UNcRoWNED KING"

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A very readable character sketch O.
Cecil Rhodes appears in Ainslee's.
written by Allen Sangree, CORE.
| spondentrecently returned from Soutl
Africa. He says, in part:
SIN the land that bears his name,
Cecil Rhodes receives the homage oil
q monarch. He stands for the coun.
try's rise or fall. He is the source oil
good and evil; praised for completing
a railroad and blamed for continued
drought. Among white men he is sub.
ject of hero worship. To black men
he represents the whole Anglo-Saxon
race. They call him Separator OF
/ Bulls. Son of the GreatWhite Queen
and the man who eats a country fol-
his breakfast To them he is Des-
tiny itself
1.-The first thing you notice about
Mr.. Rhodes is an absence of affectation.
He receives alike the day laborer and
the foreign minister. In voice, man.
ner and conduct he is ever the same.
Nothing is studied. Unlike most HUI.
man beings, he is not an actor. There
is nothing mysterious about him. He
makes use of no subterfuge. but
comes straight to the point. In con,
versation he meets your eye squarely
and impresses you with his sincerity.
i could not stand out against him,
vailed BarneyBarnato when berated by
friend for merging his interests with
the De Beer syndicate. He just
roped me in-roped me in because l
knew he spoke the truth
"Tbis righteousness disarms you
one moment, but engages your ad-
miration the next It is instantly
forced upon you that here is man
who holds life too serious and brief
for masquerade, whose thoughts
are detached from petty things and
engrossed in vast ideas. Mr.. Rhodes
gives evidence of this by breaking off
conversation when it becomes small:
and concentrating his mind ON some
entirely foreign subject
''You need not talk with Mr..
Rhodes five minutes to learn that
he is thinker. DIR. Jameson and
other lieutenants, who have achieved
more or less distinction, seem
but as moths flying about an
arc light. They think in penny
weights; Rhodes in tons. He never
bothers with details; they take care
of themselves. Half the time he does
not even have pocket money. Travel
ing on street car in Cape Town one
day, he found himself without the ne
cessary 'ticky' (threepence), and &C
copied loan.
Rhodes, exclaimed the American
conductor in writhing sarcasm,
Dusty Roads, I guess. Indeed, the
Colossus looked rather dusty, having
been on tramp along the docks. The
detail of dress. however, is one to
which he is especially Indifferent.
His favorite garb is white flannel
shirt with polka-dot tie, soft felt
hat and modest gray or black clothes.
He wears no diamonds. In this cos
TIME saw him call upon Sir Alfred
Miner at the executive mansion. The
turnkey at the door, nevertheless,
cracked his spine in making an obeis-
ance.
''But Mr.. Rhodes clothes attract your
attention last, so domineering, almost
oppressive, is his presence. Not that
he is unlike other men--an immune
to human passions, frailties and
Injuries. Far from it. 1 noticed
that he greatly enjoys good cigar,
drinks Scotch whiskey and cham
payne.
''Cecil Rhodes is keen observer,
a philosopher, shrewd of wit, not
given to long speeches. brave, and
lavish with money when he thinks it
profitable to be SO. His countenance
is not an encouraging study for the
sentimental. In the knowledge OF
South Africans he has never shown
attention to any woman. Disappointed
in love stories about him 60 the rounds
at intervals, but are never verified.
There seems to be little room in his
makeup for that sort of thing. He
treats the gentler sex with indiffer,
ence and even rudeEess. For his
two sisters alone does he exhibit fond,
ness, and they, in turn, have the repu-
tation of being 'man-haters.
Nothing aggravates Mr.. Rhodes
more than for one of the Chartered
company's employees to get married
l came down from Beira on Ger
man steamer with newly welded
couple who were returning to Eng.
land most detected. The bridegroom
had been trusted lieutenant in
Rhodesia aud went home on leave
of absence at his generals suggestion.
When he returned with rosy-cheeked
bride, however, Rhodes received him
coldiy, and remarked shortly that the
climate in South Africa was ruinous
to woman's beauty.
"While this might be construed as
a 1ittleness, it is popularity of the
man that falls in line with his life's
aim and work. He holds that the
unmarried man will take greater risks
and accomplish more for him on the
fringe of civilization. He looks at il |
in purely business way, aud is viii.
ling to pay the highest prices for the
most efficient work.
Rhodes fac and form command
your respect. His forehead is mas.
sive, the grayish light hair lies close
to the head and is inclined to curl.
The ears and nose are big. the chin