The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1906-05-28

Sewer Laborer to Congressman.
On Washinstons birthday. 1874. the
stork descended at a lonely spot among
the sn0wclad fields of Hancock county
Indiana, and deposited i'm the humble
nome Of Alfred Rives, q poor HO0sler
farmer, wailins cherub. whose only
future, as the neighbUrs saw it, was
mOnOtUnOus life among the burrows of
the field-the career of the man with
the hoe. He was Christened Zeno Rives
and he pOttered about the little farm
until six, when his parents moved
across the line to LitChfield, Ill. There
the lad attended the public school for
a time, but soon money ran short and
all plans for further educating the
child had TO be put aside He was
found job as keeper in a car foundry.
but this not paying enough. he took
another as common labOrer on a sewer.
The sewer being built, he found other
work digging in the street Later he
became a bran packer In a -four mill,
an engine wiper I'm q roUndhouse.
When "A years old ne had enough
money to cease this common labor and
enter upon the study Of law In three
years more he had been admitted to
the bar. That was four years ago last
October. Fifteen months later he was
elected city clerk Of Litchfield. In a
year more he was nominated for con-
gress. He was 80 years old and within
the past few weeks he has taken his
seat in the federal house of representa-
tives. He won his seat without even
making a campo ign Of his district. It
is said that he allowed his present con-
stituents to vote as they pleased. with
out one argument from him. He was
convinced that his hope was but for
lorn, because his opponent was a man
who had been repeatedly elected be
fore. Another handicap had been a
contest for the nomination with a
member Of his own party.
To Advertise Store.
In the spring Of 1878 a ship came to
this country bearing among other i'm
migrants poor Bohemian named Mic
halek. his wife and their three months
old infant son Anthony. They found
their way to Chicago, where the father
goth work and where Anthony, as soon
az he was old enough, entered the pub
lie schools He studied bookkeeping in
a business college. and later opened a
general store in the stock yards sec
ton of the western metropolis When
the last campaign came around there
was no Republican who wanted the
nomination in the district, which in
Cludes not only the stockyards. but the
ghetto of Chicago It had always been
heavily Democratic. and what was the
use of being a party martyr? After
pleading with many other Republicans
the leaders came into young Michalek' 5
store and asked him if he would &C
Cept the nomination. He was then but
26 He spoke not only Bohemian and
English, but Yiddish, and was just
the man to bring out the many Jews
Of the ghetto. The young man consid-
cred. "Of course I shall be showed
under" he said to himself, but I viii
at least get good bit of advertising
for my store" Nichalek consented,
but with a stipulation, Whenever my
name is mentioned in speeches or in
campaign literature # must be as
/ 'NIichalek the grocer said he 1t
was agreed and after the vote had
been counted in the stockyards district
the most surprised citizen of Chicago
was Michalek, the grocer He IS the
Youngest member Of the house and the
| first man Of Slavonic blood who ever
sat in congress.
Pillow Boy to Millionaire Member.
Fifty years before this young mans
birth i'm the far-away Bohemia there
first saw light of day in Baltimore
Thomas. the son of caleb Davis. a vet
eran Of the war Of 1872. This was in
the year 1923. The Baltimore & Ohio
railroad had Just commenced to lay its
tracks upon which cars propelled by
sails and horsepower treadmills were
/ soon to ply. Caleb Davis and his fam
/ iIy soon after this bought farm near
/ Baltimore and took heavy contracts
( for construction work on the new rail-
/ wav. but in q few years he fell III
/ and died, leaving a penniless widow
| and five orphan children to shift for
+ themselves. By dint of hard work she
/ fed and clothed her little ones until
| one by one the boys could commence
/ to earn a pittance for themselves.
/ She had a sister living in the same
I county who later became the mother of
| Arthur Pue German. today leader Of
the democratic party in the senate of
/ the United States. The boy Thomas
| had a brother. Henry Cassaway Davis,
/ who also came to the Senate in later
/ years, and who, in the last campaign
! became a candidate for vice-president.
/ The Davis boys followed the pillow and
| did various chores about the farm.
/ Free schools we're then unknown in
/ their county, and they learned their
/ three RS" at their mothers knee.
But when they had grown to be youths
I strange iron horses began to snort on
/ the 3. & O., and every bOyish heart
was longing for q career on the rail.
Henry became freight brakeman,
| and finally his little brother Thomas
! got some less responsible work to do
on the road. Later they both got po-
sitions with the company at Piedmont,
W Va. whittier also went their broth
| er William. The three brothers now
be gan a private business by shipping
/ coal and buying UP cheap timber lands.
In four years all three were devoting
their exclusive attention to these en-
/ terprises. They set UP stores, opened
a bank, bought at small prices land
urder which they later dug coal and
finally commenced the building of rail
roads through the rich regions of West
Virginia, which they had opened. To
day the three Davis brothers are null
tirnilliOnaires. Thomas never held a
political office until 1928, when he was
seventy years old. Then he entered
the state legislature. When he took
his seat the other day with the other
Congressional kids" he was In his
seveuty-eighth wear He is not only