The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-02-27
HOWE ON BRYAN.
The KanSan Travels With the
Noted Nebraskan
Who Gives the Former Set Of
Books.
CARRIES HIS GRIP.
The Great COmm0ners Lugs
Globe Mans Valise
TO the BUS and Plays Host to
Atchison Man.

Drake Watson" who is e. W.
| Howe, has this in the Atchison Globe:
Last Monday I went to Lincoln to
appear before the Nebraska Press
association. and on the Burlington
train I ran across w. J. Bryan. ]
talked with him all the way to Lin
coin. In the back of my note book,
he wrote an order for number Of his
books. and when I presented 1t. I in
sisted on keeping the order as a SOU
venir. His brother Charley who is
the publisher of The Commoner gave
me the books. and permitted mo to
keep the order. A short time ago Eli
bert Hubbard sent a check for two
dollars to The Globe office. It was
drawn on the Hubbard bank, and I
am keeping 1t as a souvenir; the Hub
bard bank will never see 1t.
Some years ago 1 met Mr., Bryan
and 1t seemed to me he had greatly
improved. Which is natural enough;
every man should learn as he goes
along. His health seems excellent. He
Is not good looking in his pictures, but
as I sat and talked with him,
thought him positively good looking.
And he is a better talker than be-
lieved him to be, and I knew of his
fame in that line. 1t Ia a joy to listen
to him, he talks so easily and natur-
ally. Occasionally he said things l
didn't agree with, and I would say, 4
don't agree with that, but I'll not ar
que with you. You are too smooth
for me- He told me about meeting
Andrew Carnegie and Lyman J. Gage
in New York. The papers say he
bested them in a. financial argument.
Wasn't it due to the fact that you are
q better talker than Carnegie or
Gage?' I asked him. He said it
wasn't; In his opinion they know
nothing about finance. That's bolo
statement: that Andrew Carnegie ano
Lyman ]. Gage know nothing about
finance. I remember one statement
Mr. Bryan made: I am more conser-
vative than TAFT
ST say I talked with Mr. Bryan all
the way TO Lancoln. AS a matter OF
fact, I listened to Mr.. Bryan all the
way to Lincoln. He talked about ev-
erything; about politics. about his
travels, about John D. Rockefeller
about religion. His father was a
ligious. Lately he is delivering a leo
ture entitled The Prince OF Peace
which is a layman's defense of the
Christian faith. I asked him how
long he thought 1t proper to- talk to
an audience: When the janttor gfves
to lock UP when I go out, conclude
1 have talked long enough He ex-
pressed the opinion. however, that a
lecture should not be more than an
hour long. This is theory: Mr.. Bry-
an always talks two hours, and some
times longer.
"Mr. Bryan is not only a better look
ing man than his pictures indicate, but
I found him more intelligent than
had imagined him to be. OF course I
knew he was a very bright man, but
there was a depth to his talk that sur
prised me. His life has given him
great opportunity to study, and he
has taken advantage of it. I confess
to entertaining a prejudice against
Bryan political. not a personal
one-and I also confess that he made
me admire him, IN spite of my pre-
1udice. When we reached Lincoln,
and stepped off the train, he insisted
on carrying my valise to the bus: he
is citizen Of lincoln and newspa-
per man, and was visiting Lincoln
as a guest Of the state press asso-
citation. Drake Watson.