Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1902-04-21

good subject" he replied, II thinkI could
talk for three days"
but suppose you had no time for prep
aration and found it necessary to hold the
floor" suggested the questioner.
Then" said Morgan, II could talk In
definitely"
The house of representatives is sadly
lacking in humorists. Since John Allen,
of Mississippi. left 1t the only men on the
floor who have been really funny have
been those who were making most ser!-
Gus efforts.
Champ Clark, of Missouri. is classed as
a humorist, but Champ was funny only
when he first came to congress and be-
lieved hey had been entrusted with a great
mission and was in deadly earnest in
everything he said He had a quaint man.
ner of talking and used many homeiy
western expressions that made the house
and the gallery laugh, and it began TO
Dawn upon himsthat he was really a hu-
morist. i,
Then it was that Clark began to grow
tiresome and when he found the house
cared little for his stories he began saw
! ing them for the lecture platform. He is
credited with deriving much profit from
the telling of these stories to persons who
pay for the privilege of listening.
Aliens stories are told over and over
again in the coat rooms, and any refer
ence to Tupelo brings a smile for the
recollections the name produces.
One of the funniest stories with which
Allen is connected was told about him and
not by him. He was coming to Washing
ton from Atlanta with a party of con-
gressmen, and secured a birth In a Sleep
ing car that came only to Columbia, s. C.,
while the others of the party had berths
in the sleeper that ran through TO the
capital There were no women in either
car and during the evening game Of
poker was suggested.
"Get Allen" some one said.
Allen was found sleeping in his berth,
but when told what was wanted he woke
up and Joined the party ahead, arrayed
only in his pajamas. The game was inter-
esting and it lasted through the night and
well into the morning. Then II stopped to
permit the players to get breakfast.
Allen started back to his own car. He
realized for the first time, when he reach
ed the door, that the car with all his
clothes and baggage had been switched
off at Columbia and was already hun
dred miles or more behind.
The unusual spectacle of a congressman
arriving at the capital arrayed in a suit
| of pajanas and a borrowed overcoat and
driving hastily home in closed carriage
is still regarded as one of the most start
ling sights witnessed in Washington.
! Inc investigation Dy the senate commit
tee of the state Of affairs. in the Philip
pines is bringing a general realization
that the country has acquired a very diff
cult set of persons to deal with, and that
| their usefulness to themselves or any one
else is a matter of grave doubt. The DEM
ocrats have taken. up the inquiry with
great avidity with view to proving that
| the United States made a bad bargain
when it took the islands, and that the
cheapest thing the country can do now IS
to give them away to anyone that wants
/ them. This is one of the reasons there
/ has been so much fencing by the Demo-
cratic and Republican members of the
/ committee while General Hughes and
! others have been giving testimony.
The frequent Tits between Senator
| Lodge and Senator Patterson however are
! of different origin. Senator Patterson
owns a newspaper in Denver. and Senator
Lodge accompanied Roosevelt on his west
ern trip during the campaign. There was
some unpleasantness in their reception at
Denver, and Patterson's paper printed a
4 story which was anything but pleasing to
son knew no more about the story prior
to its publication than Lodge did, but the
Massachusetts man has never taken this
view of the matter. and the two are on ex-
tremely bad terms.
Other members of the senate who under
stand the feeling between the two regard
il humorously, ard are inclined to urge
| them on when they begin to exchange
! bitter and sarcastic remarks either in the
genate or in the committee ROOM