New-York tribune., 1905-06-04
a Notable Feast for the
Legislators OF Connecticut.

that they might become dull boys, knocked OF
lawnaking at II o'clock Thursday morning
in order TO participate in an old fashioned barbe-
cue. or sheepbake, given by State Senator Allan
W. Paige. Of Bridgeport.
Six big open trolley carried the 400 guests
10 the biggest barbecue Connecticut has ever
known.
After a two hours ride through beautiful
green country the place of the barbecue was
reached and the lawmakers Of Connecticut
piled out of the like boys on Sunday
school picnic There was 10 be a ball game
between the reporters and a nine picked
from the legislators. Representative Willlam
Henry Hall. of Wilmington. once menbe! OF
the Yale varsity nine had arrayed himself in
baseball uniform consisting Of a cap ana Z
catcher's glove. The remainder of his uniform
was made up of his legislative attire. but he
looked formidable as ne essayed to beguile the
reporters with the most deceiving "expectora-
ton ball ever delivered from a pitchers box
Then there was Senator Finton J. Phelan' OF
Waterbury. once the captain of the Georgetown
College nine. who vest of immaculate
whiteness He attempted to catch but a ball
went through his hands and left a mark OF
green upon his bosom that refused to come on
anv more than Representative Henry w. Aver
Ills smile.
Before there were any fingers broken or
runs scored the ball game was broken up by
Senator jeremiah Donovan threatening 10
jump into the lake if his hunger was not i'm
,nediately appeased His delicate nostrils had
inhaled the delicious odor OF the ten sheep thal
were baking for the occasion Others lnhaleo
the appetizing aroma, and there was rush Iof
the scene Of the baking. Governor Roberts and
Judge James J. Walsh, of the Common Pleas
Court of Fairfield County were among the nrst
10 inspect the mysteries of the art of sheep
one man
the bake who had a face that looked as If ne
might be twenty years old and hands that in
o!cated that he was between eighty and ninety
This little man Arthur ". Bailey, VINO for
fifteen years has been making up sheepbakes
ell over Connecticut
And never had failure yet" ne declared
proudly to Governor Roberts.
T. Over forty-foot trench that is four feet deep
and as many feet wide, long, low shed is
built as z protection from rain. Under this
shed the sheepbake expert was walking up and
down basting the ten sheep that were stretched
on sticks across the ditch Of live Goals.
y got up at o'clock this morning to get ready
for this bake" said the sheepbake man, and
at O'Clock had them cooking First. ye have
10 dress the sheep and stretch them on the
sticks Always use black birch sticks feItthere
amt 70 oGor in black birch; no taste wiz come
out Of them sticks and spoil the flavor Of the
tom of the ditch. not right under the sheep but a
fire between each one. that If the grease, drops
down from the middle of the sheep wheIAit is
laid across the ditch il won't strike the fire. fer
# Il does ye'd have blaze in second and yer
sheep would be burnt up in time. It's careful
ye have TO be TO be sheepbake man Them
sheep has been cooking here ever since o'clock
this mornin', and it's o'clock now. That's seven
hours But they want long rin.e TO cook TO be
beTre
ye bake the inside and then turn them over and
cook the other side. The preparation l baste
them with is my invention. Nobody else
around here knows what 1t iss II was handed
down TO me- but il amt nothing that ye couldn't
drink without hurtin' yerself- But when git
through with a sheep. L don't care hos old he
is there won't be any Of that strong mutton
taste about him, not smell of it. That prepara-
ton takes il all away
ont in q big vacant lot back Of the big dining
hall the man who was preparing the clans held
forth In four great troughs he had eight barrels
of round clans steaming- Great logs OF WOOD
were piled around the iron troughs and fire
was raging Around this small inferno the law
makers gathered in silent wonder, and their hun
ger rising q degree every time Whit from the
baked sheep or the clam troughs came TO their
postrils
Then the voice of Senator Paige, the host OF
the four hundred hungry and Joyous souls. was
heard from the dining hall door
An State officials and Senators come TINS
way and be seated" he cried.
Wouldn't you like to be q Senator now ??
yelled back the members of the lower house;
.'fo- then you'd get something TO eat first?
But there was little difference in this respect
SO far as the serving was concerned All looked
alike 10 the walters and many Representative
was served before a Senator
We're all from one town to-day, sang out
rural Representative who has earned the name
of spending all of his $500, which he gets Tor
making laws entertaining his colleagues
And we're all one party, even If there are
few Democrats among u.s., called back another
Senator Paige who has been called the De-
rnosthenes of the Senate, called for order, ana
amid the rumble of voices that were eager TO
make noise he said that although the chap
lains OF the House and Senate were present, he
moved that the rules be suspended and that the
services of the gentlemen. be dispensed with.
Somebody proposed TO drink TO the health OF
some one else No one could hear whose health
was proposed but it made difference. Every
one OF the four hundred hands grasped a glass
Of red ienonade-wgth something OF a stick II
it-and smacked their lips and yelled for some
body 70 drink the health OF some other big man
The walters scurried back and forth. bringing
in big plates heaped with baked sheep. new po-
tatoes and The sheep was so tender that
IL melted in ones mouth
Here's TO the sheepbake man. cried os1t some
one on the big verandah for a table had been
set there the inner hall being too small 70 hold
all OF the guests. Long may he live and bake
more Sheep and everybody drank some more
red lemonade. The band played In the Good
E1