Meade County news. [volume] (Meade, Kan.) 1900-1918, 1905-11-02

gagged in the promotion of irrigation
schemes. Six months ago chicago
specialist pronounced his case nope
less and for ten days prior to MS
death life had been sustained only
through the power of rugged VIII.
jeremiah Socrates Simpson was the
name presented him by his parents in
New Brunswick, where he was born
March 81, 1872 But to those VINO
came in contact with him in the days
of his political fame he was known
and will be remembered as plain
Jerry while the great masses VINO
form their conception of men in pub
lie life at long range-who Judge
characters by the idiosyncrasies that
are exploited by the oddities and cpl
sodes of a career that attract hu-
man interest" rather than by the
basic elements that go to make up
the real man-knew him only as
"Sockless Jerry"
One of his first efforts, after he had
become we'll enough acquainted with
the ways of Congress to address the
chair. was to offer ocular as well as
oracular evidence that the sockIeSs
story was a myth. He did it so enter
tainingly, albeit without effect on the
public that he at once was placed on
the list of representatives in the
House who were worth listening to.
Politically Jerry Simpson was
| product of the Populist uprising that
| began in the West in 1890. Previous
to his election to congress in 1880
Jerry had been a Republican and
| Greenbacker In private life he was
| at that time farmer.
God Almighty sent our family hard
knocks in lunches" said Mr.. Simpson
one time in speaking of the poTelty
of his youth.
At the age of IA Jerry started in as
a cabin boy on the lakes, and for
twenty-three years he followed the
life of a sailor, on boats plying be-
| tween Chicago and the upper ports,
| with a brief intermission following
| his enlistment in the army in 1861,
where he served only a few months.
|
| Simpson thought a life on land was
preferable to a rowing career on the
waves. He had purchased farm in
Indiana with his savings, but after
running that for brief time he NOV
ed to Kansas, where he pre-empted
100 acres, buying in addition an en-
| tire section in Barber county. In the
| late sos he gave up farming owing
to the i'll health of his wife and NOV
ed to Medicine Lodge, where they
| elected him marshall, and where he
distinguished himself. by stopping alb
solutely the sale of liquor.
At Medicine Lodge opportunity
| found him when the Kansas Farmers
Alliance sprang up as the forerunner
of the Populist movement. The farm
ers of the seventh district concen-
| the allurements of official life was
| rendered to him on a silver platter.
| The "sockless' episode occurred at
| Sterling, while Jerry was making his
campaign. He was making a speech
to a composite audience, largely made
| up of alliance men, some Republicans
| and a few Democrats. Jerry's per-
sonal appearance was far from what
the appellation of "sockless states
man" would naturally suggest to one
| unacquainted with the man. Although
uncouth in speech, he looked more
| like a prosperous country banker than
| rough, weather-beaten, mortgage
| plastered old farmer. So when he
| touched up the corpulent aristocrats
| the incongruity of this well-dressed
| man calling them silk stockings"
mortgage sharks" and the like seem
| ed altogether preposterous. A horny
handed old farmer who hadn't joined
| the alliance at this juncture called
out: "'Pears to me, Jerry. that you
uns wear silk stockin's, too"
| Quick as a wink Jerry pulled up his
trousers. my friend, them are all
the stockings I ever wore. If you
| don't see them from where you are,
come over and touch them" And
| Didn't Realize Treasure He Had.
| While working in the cellar of a
house at Falkenberg, Pomerania, Prus-
| STA, a laborer found a porcelain urn
containing a number of gold pieces.
Not approaching the value of the
| treasure, the man gave some of the
| coins to children to play with, and had
a collar made for one of his dogs with
the remainder Examination proved
| them to be excellently preserved gold
| pieces dating from the sixteenth GEN.
| tury and the owner of the house has
| now claimed the treasure, which is be-