Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-08-12
OLD SENATE CHAMBER
Memories Recalled by an
Ante-Bellum Page.
FAMOUS SIGN NATURES
THAT WERE GATHERED IN THE
LONG, LONG AGO.
Senator Hale's Wit and Sarcasm-His
Sharp Lance at Stephen
A. Douglas.
FAMOUS SIGNATURES

about the old Senate chamber when 1t was
where the Supreme Court holds its sessions
now, were topics that recently entertained
small party of gentlemen by one who,
more than half a century ago, was minor
official of the Senate, and who continued
in its service from the date of his appoint
ment, as page, and in other capacities
for about thirty years.
This gentleman. as might readily be i'm
agined. is one of the Oldest residents of
Washington and widely known In the
| community, and also highly respected by
all who know him. His fund of recollec-
tons and membranes seem inexhausti-
BILE. and naturally an evening" or morning
either for that matter could not be marked
down In chronometrical register as time
LOST. One OF the fads of his youthful days
was the collection Of autographs, and this
was no dir1cult matter for him to do con-
sia .gI the opportunity he had.
~ was great fancy in those times" he
salo, TO collect autographs, and l fell in
win the procession, and 1 suppose 1 have
as fine collection as any amateur col
| lector in America"
To make his word good he produced the
books. filled from cover to cover with
great mems signatures These were, of
course. subject of inspection by his friends
lne narrator In the meantime edging in re-
| natures
These 1 gathered" he said "for my own
aelectaton and entertainment. They rep
resent me work of many years continu-
ance but, like old wine they become more
valuable as they grow older"
AND wonderful collection Of names they
are, and wonderful variety of chirog-
lines of some great men to the great I,
broad flowing John Hancock style of
others. They include almost every mem
per OF ooth houses of Congress about those
nth
ages :so
Inc youthful messengers of the Senate
ABOUT the time that l was playing a part
IN mat capacity" said the reciter of the
events mere recorded, included names that
nave become very prominent. and I am
happy to say that several of the boys are
sun IN the land of the living, and in no
Guy eity other than i'm Washington is these a
better knowledge Of them. Among them
were arthur z. German, John NJ Wilson,
Z. c. lvey, George S. Bright, Fred b. Gil,
peri, Andrew H: Ragan. John NJ. Kava-
| naugh. AMI Smith now the venerable su
perintendent of the Senate document
room. Samuel s. Smoot, William Nauman
and Henry Bergen.
William H. Rohrer, formerly we'll
known citizen of GEORGETOWN was mage
IN the office of the secretary of the Sen
ate lie died recently in North Carolina.
Or Senator Georman and General Wilson
we all know. There is another name in
the list l have men toned who had a re-
markable career; that was Henry Rereen
| IL.
lie went to China soon after he left the
senate and became a power in that land
don't know what the exact intrigues and
dlplomacieS he employed were-aIthoupb
they are on record-but they We're of suffi-
Gent weight as to almost cause a revolu-
tioh IN the celestial empire and then Ber-
gen would nave worn an imperial crown
His plots, however were not destined To
meet with success. Bergen was arrested
ana but for the interceSSion of the Amer
lean consul would have been decapftated
He was made prisoner on Chinese Junk
or some kind of a Chinese ship. and while
taking exercise on deck one evening some
one suddenly gave him a push He went
overheard and that ended his career for
ever.
Bright became a chief engineer in the
| old navy. 1 think he is dead now. He
married daughter of John c. Fitzpatrick.
she was sister of the first wife of John
Russell Young. I recollect perfectly well
when Mr.. German put on the toga as a
page in the Senate. He was a green coun-
try boy, but he caught on to affairs very
soon and it seems that he holds on to them
in pretty good shape.
about these days William Hickey. the
compiler of the Constitution was execu-
tive clerk of the Senate. He was brfgadier
general of the District Militia, Roger
Weightman being mayor general, and 1
recali that at one time during the war.
when the confederate troops were getting
into SO close a proximity to the capital
that 1t was thought the militia would have
to be called on. 1 began to experience a
very warlike and martial feeling. so I went
to General Hickey and said:
General, I want to ask a favor
What is It, he replied.
Then I told him 1 would like to have a
captains commission on his staff He said:
Wen, l have a senior and a junior
capta1ncy. Now, German has asked for
commission as well as you, so one of
you can have the seniority and the other
will have to be content with a Junior can
an
how 1t will be-
II Immediately sought out the present
senator 1--WE had both been promoted to
higher official positions than paees than1
and explained to him what General Hickey
had said. We agreed to toss a penny for
first choice and German won We were
both invested with military rank but, in
the meantime, the enemy, after souintinp
at the Capitol through their field glasses
had sober second thought and at night
folded their tents like the Arabs. and as
silently stole away
/ David Atchison of Missouri.
Il remember David r. Atchison of Mis-
souri, very we'll A remarkably handsome
specimen of manhood he was. He figured
extensively in the border ruffian troubles.
The border ruffians. If 1 recolect correctly.
were principally immigrants from Missouri
into Kansas. T. D. Pomeroy, afterward a
senator from Kansas, was a leader of
forces opposed to Atchison's. He kept his
people we'll supplied with the sinews of war
in the shape of beans. gunpowder and
muskets. Pomeroy was captured one day
by some of Atchison's men, who were not
aware of his Importance, and brought to
Atchison, who was also ignorant of the
identity of his prisoner.
WHO are YOU? Atchison asked when
Pomeroy was brought before him.
Only meek and lowly servant of the
Lord said Pomeroy.
at hat nIar
IF he had known who his prisoner was
he would have had him shot or hanged to a
certainty, for these were parlous times on
the border between Kansas and Missouri.
The greatest tobacco chewer 1 ever met :"
said the recounter of the episode, was
Lazarus w. Powell of Kentucky. Rarely
was he seen without pretty nearly half a
plug between his jaws. 1 am something of
a chewer myself, and the senator, il he got
out of supply. foraged on mine; and as
one good turn deserves another he gave
me free permission to ransack his desk and
keep myself from his store when mine be-
came depleted. One day when was at nv
door indulging in the pleasure of masticat-
ing some Of Senator PowaIs fine old
Gravely plug. Senator Pomeroy, the same
man who was conspicuous in the border
ruffian troubles came out of the senate
and looked at me with an expression
of no little disgust upon his countenance
Young man. he said don't you know