Mexico Missouri message. (Mexico, Audrain County, Mo.) 1899-1918, 1901-03-28
ABOUT MISSOORI "
II AND MlSSOURIANS.

some paragraphs from a talk he
made the other day in Kansas City
before the Knife and Fork Club
on Missouri and Missourians. w.
| Every MESSAGE reader, especially
if he is born Missourian or has
had observation-disclosures upon him,
should save it for his scrap-book.
Some men are born Missouri
ans" began Mr.. Williams, Others
move to this State; yet others
have Missourians thrust upon
them. | address myself to all
three classes, the first two merged
into the last, and will speak awhile
of Men Who Have Made Missouri
Great. The Great Missourian, as
he should be called and as he, in
colossal egotism called himself,
was Thomas Hart Benton. He
was great in body, massive and
muscular One day he thrashed
Andrew jackson, the only man
who defeated in fair fight Old
Hickory. And Benton left Ten
nessce in consequence. He was
great in mind, cold, practical, ruth
less. His head was large and big
gest at the base. No man in pub
lie life was his equal i'll physical
strength, endurance, courage.
Twice each day IA negro servant
would rub him from head to foot
with brush like curry comb
and his skin became as tough as
that of II rhinoccros or a Kansas
City politician. 1t was the way
of the great Romans, he said, and
he was a Roman gladiator imbcd-
ded somehow in the mcsheS of the
Nineteenth century. We have too
many Ilamlcts these days. Too
many men who halt between two
opinions. know only two men
living who can compare in tower
ing egotsm to the stories told of
the Great Missourian. When he
wrote his famous work, Thirty
Years in the United States Sen
ate, which everyone praises and
no one reads, his publishers, d..
Appleton 4 Co., wrote to him,
asking how large first edition
should be printed. His reply was,
Sir, they can ascertain from the
last census how many persons
there are in the United States who
can read, sir And that was the
only suggestion he would condo
scend to make. In an autobio-
graphical sketch which serves as
an introduction to this same work
he says that his life was in the
public eye and the long list of its
achievements will be repeated with
the familiarity of household
work from the cities on the sea-
board to the lonely cabins on the
frontier aud studied by the little
boys who feel honorable ambition
beginning to stir within their boz
SONS. The very thought of the
little boys studying the congress
sional speeches of Thomas III. Ben
ton is enough to make statue
smile.
"ln reference to a quarrel in the
Senate, Benton said: / never
quarrel, sir; | sometimes fight,
sir; and when Benton fights, sir,
there is always Il funeral, sir.
Benton was sturdily devoted to the
Union; he broke with many friends
in consequence. He bore the cog
nomen Old Bullion, because of
his support of bimetallism. I'M
like many, he grew in knowledge
as he grew Older, and his last
speeches were his best speeches
He was of sensitive purity and no
dishonest dollar ever stuck to his
fingers. No relative held an Office
at his request, and, with the OPP
portunity for making IA fortune, he
died rs SO many of America 5
greatest men have died, n poor
man.
Second only to Benton in the
list of Missouri worthless is Francis
Preston Blair, the Frank Blair of
history. His statue, with that of
Benton, stands in the Hall of Stat.
uary at Washington. He came
upon the stage as Benton left it.
The lives of the two cover the en-
tire history Of the State. Benton
wrote out his own newspaper no
tees, Blair was so careless of lit
erary fame, scarce n scrap of his