Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1902-05-02

niversary event In the style char
acteristic of his writings he related
as applicable to his own case the
fable of the man who travelled from
home to respond to a toast at a BAN
quet, and found himself so taken up
with the events incident to the main
feature that when the time came to
talk he was unprePared. Mr.. AIDE
proved in the nature of his talk that
the talent that has made him famous
does not desert him as an impromptu
after dinner speaker.
Some Little Laughs.
Richard ii. Little next rose to re-
spond to the toast, The Army in the
Philippines" Mr.. Little is Il humor-
list of the happiest type and he had
no sooner drawn himself up to his
six feet six, or SO, than the audience
found it out. Mr.. Little was so bub-
bling over with merriment that he
could not enter into the more serious
side of the military operations in the
Philippines, and merely touched brief
ly on some of his own experiences.
Among other things the speak.
cr claimed to have found
out IN his visit To the tri-
cities the reason that Chicago,
with its three million" people, had
never destroyed the equilibrium of
the state of Illinois and caused it to
tilt up with the western edge project
ing up into mid air. He declared that
since he had seen Rock Island and Mo
line he had ceased to wonder what
kept this corner of the state down.
His scintillations kept his audience
in paroNysms of laughter. His eX-
cusc for saying less of his toast was
that the topic had been assigned for
May /, but that May , having arrived
before il came his turn to speak, rem
dered the subject irrelevant.
John NJ. CoIligan sang IF l But
Knew" from the sultan of Sulu."
responding To an, encore with
catchy selection entitled Carrie"
Mr.. McCuteheon on Dewey.
Then John Il. McCutcheon delivered
the final address, his subject being
Dewey" The speaker touched fire.
quently upon the battle of Manila bay.
of which he was witness, and as a
result of which he wore last evening
for the first time one of the only two
badges awarded the United States
government to civilians who were
present on that glorious occasion.
Mr.. McCutchcon declared he believed
Dewey to be one of the greatest
Americans who ever lived. In
the manner of conducting
the campaign in the Philip
pines. over which he had command,
the admiral was shown to have acted
i'm the right i'm all things manifcsting
bravery and ability in battle, diplo-
macy in dealing with all the compH
Gated matters that he was called up
ON to settle, and personal fairness
toward others through il all. The
speaker expressed the belief that Ma
Mia would have been captured with
out the death of "a man had il not
been for the eagernesS of the army
to open hostilitiess in order to see
real action.
Mr.. McCutcheon, who was greeted
with vociferous applause at every
mention of Dcwey's name, paid
handsome tribute to the hero of Ma
Mia, both from personal standpoint
and that of speaker inspired by the
highest impulses of patriotism.
He graphically told of the recep-
ton of the news of events leading to
the war with Spain. on the revenue
cutter McCuIloch, ON which he was
passenger, from port to port i'm the
cruise from Manila to Hong Kong.
where Dcwey's fleet was joined.
Yankee Guns at Manila"
Toastmastcr Rexdalc closed the
program with the recital of this stir
ring original poem entitled The
Yankee Gums i'm Manila:"
O, bark TO the roar of the echoing
guns,
As the light leaps the sky
There's a cry from the deep to
Olympia's sons,
''lc must conquer or die!"
From our brave Dewcy's lips
Speeds the word to the ships,
And the guns answer Aye"
The battle is fierce and the pillows
are red
With the blood of CASTLE!
Aim away-fire again-and the missile
has sped
To the bulwarks of steel.
Mark the course of the shell,
On its crrand of hell.
Where the poor devils reel.
Our eyes meet the eyes of the fight
crs of Spain,
In the glimmering dawn,
AS the guns volIey forth, I'VE remem-
Der the Maine,
And a people forlorn,"
There is death i'm the bay
As they thunder away,
But a glory is born.
O, true is your aim at the far battle
line.
Where the red current runs.
Ye men of the prairie and men of the