The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-02-20
ONE OF OLD GUARD
L. b. Pearson, ex- Representa-
tive, Visits Old Haunts.
An Active Participant in the
State House War.
CARIlIEDhpHE SLEDGE.
Tells How the Door Vas Broken
Down.
MuZzle of Gun That Looked Big
as Barrel.

well tanned, farmer-looking man
with bushy brown whiskers and a
black plush cap was standing in the
cloak room of the Kansas house of
representatives yesterday.
1T was just fourteen years ago last
Friday" he was saying to friend,
| that we smashed in that door, and
I was the man who carried the sledge
| that did the business
The man was L. B. Pearson of Allen
county. who represented his county in
the house at the time the 'Lewelling
war" was fought in 1898. Pearson
was in Topeka to see Governor Hoch
about pardon for an Allen county
man, and he was as happy as a school
boy to be back at the scene of the
great legislative struggle in which he
participated.
Look here" said Pearson as he
| stepped to the south side of the big
doors leading from the cloak room
/ into the legislative hall. do you see
that long scar on the door casing,
right by that hinge? That was where
/ Douglass hit at that lower panel ana
| missed his aim little. That scar will
stay there as long as the door casing
remains.
| Those were certainly exciting
times. 1 came up here to the house
early that Friday morning and found
the front entrance blocked by Popu-
| list guards. They told me I must go
around to the rear entrance and get a
| pass from Dunsmore, the rump-house
speaker. Instead I went over to the
Copeland, where 1 found the Republi-
can members already assem- bling. Ii
was suggested that we might need a
speaker, sent a man named Clark to
get the sledge. Clark went to Over
toms machine shop, near the Cope
| land and got the sledge. 1t did not
come from the Santa F'e shops. That
was a Pepuiist lie. Douglass put the
sledge under his overcoat and carried
the iron head in his hand. We formed
in a body to go to the house, with
Douglass, Hoch and the officers of the
house leading the way On the way
over. Douglass asked me to carry the
sledge. as 1 had a big overcoat on and
Douglass coat was short
"At the stairs leading up to repre-
sentative hall we were met by a pick
fused our demand to be allowed TO
pass. What will we do, boys?' asked
Douglass, turning to us. GO up the
crowd cried. Douglass grabbed the
biggest Populist in the lot, and we all
closed in : 1t was a fierce struggle.
but we pushed our way to the top or
the stairs. When we reached the top,
the PopuIists who had been on guard
made rush to get inside the hall, but
we were able to prevent their clos
ing the outer doors of the cloakrOom
as they had intended to. But the only
man to reach the inner doors leading
into the hall was Jim Troutman.
Troutman got himself braced to pre-
vent the closing of the door, and the
Populists grabbed him and jerked him
inside the hall. The door was shut
and locked
Then we had a little council of war. |
Douglass tried to open the door and
found it fastened. He demanded that
the door be opened. The Populists
refused. Smash it in said the mem
Der 1 handed the sledge to Douglass |
and he smashed the upper left hand |
panel first. Then he smashed out the |
other panels Just then G. c. Glenn |
ems poked the barrel of a Winchester |
rifle up to the smashed panel, and the |
muzzle of that gun looked to me big |
as a barrel One of the members on |
our side of the door drew a revolver |
and pointed it straight at Clemens. |
Representative Sherman of Shawnee /
county grabbed the mans arm. and |
said: Don't kill him yet
Douglass was about all in from his |
fight on the stairs and he handed the |
s1edge to Sherman. Sherman took
several blows at the hinges, in an eff |
fort to break them. and then he hand
ed the sledge to Dr. Swan, another
Shawnee county man. Swan landed
some terrific blows on the lock of the I
door and finally it gave way. We all
grabbed hold of the shattered door and
pulled and it gave way In we rushed,
and as we rushed in, the Populists
were leaving the hall in a wild scram-
BILE by the rear exits
Then we camped there in the hall.
and lived on sandwiches for about
three days. I have never wanted to
see a sandwich SINCE
Mr.. Pearson's chief personal char
acteristic is said to be his old plush
cap. He wears this cap day and
night, it is said. to keep his head
warm and he wore exactly the same
kind of a cap when he was carrying
the sledge up the stairs to smash in
the doors of representative hall.