The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1904-08-27

EUGEh DEbs HON
As SEEN by 4 REPORTER
TERRE HAUTE STAR PRINTS AN AP-
PROBATION OF THE MAN.
-" ~-------r. =. -. - ),
Decidedly Fair Character Story OF the
Great Socialist Agftator and Presi-
DENTAL Candidate-A. Prophet II Not
3. Without Honor Save In His Own
Country-Mr. Debs is n .Favorite
Among Leading Literary Men Of the
Day.
The greatest living SCIENTIST, Alfred
Russell Wallace. writing from Park
stone, Dorset, England, last March, paid
the highest possible tribute to Terre
Hautean when he said: eugene v.
Debs is great man. With a few more
such to teach and organize the people,
the cause Of justice must prevail"
It has been only few years since the
name of Debs was synonymous with an
archy according to the popular concep-
ton, and daintily scented men felt
tainted in his presence. Today he is
candidate for president of the United
States. He has attained a remarkable
personal popularity in conservative
Boston. He has averaged a speech a
day for the last ten years and has come
to be understood. However much men
may disagree with his policy, they can
not help but love the man. And in
Terre Haute, where he is best known,
the name Gene Debs," Is spoken with
an affectionate infection on the Gene
That the readers of the Star might
have better acquaintance-a fairer ac-
quaintance with this unusual and in
teresting man, representative of the
paper spent three delightful hours at
Mr.. Debs' home on North Eighth street
the other afternoon. There was moth
ing on the outside to suggest spirit
Of anarchy or disorder. Vines half hid
the porch, flowers bloomed beside it,
A canary bird outside the door made
the air melodious.
The Library.
And in the library while awaiting Mr.
Debs a rapid survey of the room told
a similar story Of refinement, order
and culture. On the wall hung pic
lures of Hugo and. Beethoven. On the
mantel stoodbronze busts of Reubens
and Rembrandt. On the book shelves
were the choicest books that have been
bequeathed by the geniuses of ages to
the world. Hugo, Locke, Balzac, Scott,
Shakespeare, Burns, Goethe, Browning,
Swift, Ebers, Michelet Maeterlinck, In
gersoll, and similar authors told of a
literary taste that explained the own
er's personal popularity with so many
of the literary giants and artistic men
of the present day Mr.. Debs, who had
been down town, entered the room with
his arms full of papers and in his char
acteristically breezy fashion made his
visitor feel unusually at home.
Lets go up to my den," he said, with
| a. smile, and up we went. It is a. plea
SAINT north room. Here is another H.
| brary in which books on Socialism pre-
| dominate, a work table covered with
| papers and manuscript. Close beside
| the table is a sewing machine and work
table where Mrs. Debs works: 1t was
an ideal arrangement. -.
With modesty, and at the reporters
| request, the candidate for president
! and foremost Socialist ins*Americas told
the story of hts tion. 5I3tl
went L years oId ir
the .Yandalta shops, and 1T 16 was :fir-
! ing an engine And yet today he. IL
one of the few men In public life whose
utterances are literature. How did hi
do it? In answer to this important
question Mr.. Debs smiled and then HI
looked serious. He told feelingly of his
intense humiliation when he quit schoo
hi ain
going ahead of him; of how hopeless:
the future looked and black. He came
to the conclusion that he would hav,
to educate himself. For eighteen Ions
months, while firing an engine at nigh
he studied by day, read the best liter
allure, history, poetry, magazines. III
company with others, he helped form
the Occidental Literary club and be-
came it's mott enthusiastic member.
II. hear that the Star had some ref
erence to my speech on Patrick Hen
| ry,'" he observed smiling II had al
| most forgotten it. It was the mos
| terrible experience Of my life. TIL,
club arranged for a public meeting a
Corinthian hall at the northeast corne
Of Third and Wabash. The place wa
packed. Father McEvoy was on tn
program and I expected him to TAX
up most Of the time. My consternatio,
was heart-rending when I learned tina
he was not to speak, and that tn
whole burden was on me. I remembe
how great beads of PRECIPITATION cam,
out on my forehead. The sight of tn
audience almost "paralyzed me. TIL
audience was sympathetic and made i
rs easy as possible and when I con
cluded they saw how crestfallen wa
and pushed about me and told me hov
distinguished myself. I knew bet
ter and that night went home through
the alleys. But like all the rest, de
termined that one day they should real
ly hear me speak,"
Elected to Legislature.
For thirteen years Mr.. Debs wa
Grand Sec'y and Treasurer of the Bro
therhood Of Locomotive Firemen an,
Engineers. In 1884 he was elected t.
the legislature.
"And how did you become Social
| }@&0