Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-11-01
MhOF MYSTERY
si s1sd.' '--
New FORKS Spellbinders Are
IN III
T 80 a Curious Lot.
WORK FOR EITHER SIDE
THEIR QUALIFICATIONS VARY
FOE DIFFERENT LOCALITIES.
Youngsters With Bowery Vocabulary
Preferred for the City oldsters
= for Up State.
WORK FOR EITHER SIDE
peei.i Correspondence Of The Evening Star.

Special Correspondence Of The Evening Star.
NEW YORK. October 81. 1902.
The professional spellbinders of both OF
the political parties in this state are a
mysterious lot. In that nobody appear:
to have the slightest idea as to what
they do to make living between
campaigns ,NIne-tenths of them are
unknowns, the other one-tenth being COM
posed of politicians outside the breast
works, rather a rundown. seedy-looking
crew, the humble, crumb-hunting hangers
on Of the campaign headquarters Of their
respective parties The busiest men at the
campaign headquarters are the chaps
placed In charge q the spellbinders' bu-
reaus, They are not excessively busy be-
cause they have to search for spouters--on
the contrary. they find ready to hand an
embarrassment of riches in the spellbind-
ing iine-but because 1t is their job to as
sort the orators and assign them to the
correct spots. ~
As rule the spellbinders who inevitably
show UP at the respective campaign head
quarters after the nominations are made
are an astonishingly capable and clever
crowd, considering their obscureness, but
1t is no mean task to sft them out and d.
rect their movements In accordance; with
binder who comes from one of the upstate
agricultural districts, who possesses the
gift of telling, with rural twang, funny
stories to the farmers, would be almost
bound to make a hash of 1t IL placed on
the tail of a cart in the middle of one Of
the tougher sections of New York city. The
tough gang around the cart tail would call
him "yap" and "rube" and "hanky-
NOR, perfectly adapted to an upstate
crowds appreciation, would not only be
totally wasted here, but would actually
serve to injure his party's cause.
Case in Contrast.
On the other hand, it, by some oversight,
one Of the sophisticated, slangy spellbind-
ers native to the city were to be ordered
up to st. Lawrence county, say, his per-
sonality would be found extensively urban
by the quiet, ground-cultivating folk up
that way his patois of the pave would
shoot over their heads, his illustrative par
ables, drawn from city sources would miss
fire, and he would in the end only succeed
in damaging the chances Of the party en-
ploying him.
The chief of the spenbindng bureau has
often as many as 200 OF even 300 men to
handle. Most of the spellbinders are ac-
tually. attached by principle to the fortunes
Of one or other of the great political par
ties, hut many of them are free lances in
the realm of talk, and will give their ora
tOf1CaA Services TO the party tHdI puts III
the best bid for their eloquence Some of
these Fspellbinders who, at SO much per
night. were shouting for Odell during the
last gubernatorial campaign, are now en-
rolled as spellbinders for Coler, and, on the
other hand others who were shouting for
the democrats two years ago are now howl
ing vociferously for Odell.
As rule, the elderly spellbinders en-
ployed here during campaign are sent up
the state. The firmly planted agricultur-
lists, with mighty positive political convic-
lions of their own dating back to the day
Of ABE" Lincoln and Steve" Douglas,
don't like to be told how they should vote
by "beardIess whippersnappers" Of thirty
or forty years of age, and it was long ago
discovered that their resentment is strong
when youthful spelbinders are sent along
to address them.
On the other hand, New York city likes
its campaign oratory to proceed from COM
paratively youthful lips. Such Is the spirit
of irreverence for ripe years over here that
street and hall crowds of both parties not
only decline to listen to the campaign elo-
ouence of old party war horses but they
actually deride them and boot at them un-
less they happen to be men of a national
prominence. They call the old-timers black
numbers. and dead ones" They want the
modern political argot and the slang of the
city swim introduced into the discussion OF
the issues.
What the Crowd Wants.
The time Is long gone when this popula-
ton was content with the cart-taH orator
whose ability was limited to the stock
phrases, "Wot we, tn pee-pul, want is
homes men," The demand Is for snappy,
epigrammatic, colloquial stuff, and the de
mand Is catered to with remarkable success
These youthful spellbnders are an adaptive
lot and the more adaptive they show them
selves the more employment they get. Thus
1t is that one may listen to youthful ora
tor expounding In really polished and witty
phrases from the back end Of cart up in
Harlem early in the evening. and an hour
later on may listen to him from the same
truck down in one Of the lower East Side
sections, emitting tough slang from one
corner Of his mouth and "spielin t TIL
bunch in the sort of language that they
best understand and appreciate
The average pay Of the spellbinders Is $40
a night and expenses. few Of them get
$40 and $50 for a nights work, and each Or
ganization has select list of spelibindefs.
who command as high as $50 night for
their services as political expounders. 1t
Is undeniable that the work Of the spell
binders is effective and valuable. Few yot-
ers have the opportunity to scan the tre-
mendous amount of partisan political stuff
that Is printed In the newspapers and the
average man Is a good deal more swayed
by the word of mouth than by the word In
type. The efforts of the spellbinders are
particularly serviceable In the city and
state of New York during campaign like
the present one. when the issue seems to be
an exceedingly doubtful one, and when old
General Apathy" seems In command of
the situation.
Experience of the Siamese Prince.
The thought must have occurred to the
| weH-behaved princeling of Siam that there
are many Individuals in New York upon
whom could be appropriately bestowed the
Order of the Elongated Rubber Neck The
Siamese youth made every effort to prevent
himself and his party from attracting gem
eral attention during. his New York stay,
singing out obscure boxes at the theaters
and 50 on, but he naturally enough felt
that he had right to dine democratically
| in the public dining room Of the ornate ho-
tel at which he registered, for the sake of
the music, the lights flowers. view of the
pretty women and all the rest of It, He
took just two dinners in the public dining
room, however, and then he had to give It
UP and have his dinners served in his
rooms Ths free-born American citizens
and citizenesses stopping at the hotel, and
a whole lot of them from the street, felt
<I,,% ktHaxys bod mic L.