The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1909-12-31
SPEAKER CANNON RECITES NO
MORE YULETIDE CAROLS.
Head CT the Houce Will Not Respond
to Requests Of Sunday Editors;
Claims He Has Been Pestered for
Contributions of All Sorts; No
More Plun-Pudding Outbursts From
Enemy of Insurgents.

"Uncle joe has been pestered to
death during the past week, he says
by second assistant Sunday editors,
space writers, giddy amateurs, and even
to mis- profound distress, by accredited
members of the house press gallery,
all of them On the trail of plum pud-
ding outburst over the signature And
he's tired.
Ever since Mr.. Cannon broke into
public life he has been regularly and
publicly thankful on the last Thurs
day in November, independent on the
Fourth of July, Yuletidish around the
Christmas holidays and resolved to lead
better life beginning January l..
He has never been particularly en-
thusiastic over this holiday comment
proposition, whjch privately he char
acterizes "a 'ros' bus heretofore he
has been willing to Issue over his
signature all of the different varieties
of timely hot air, carefully prepared
BY HIS hardW1rked secretary, l.. White
Bushey. Rut now he's through.
Paper Three Days Late.
"UEcle Joe has an idea that all this
sort of thing started way back yonder
in the dim and distant when Benjamin
Franklin: who was then editing an
IN to the minute newspaper with a
sporting extra attachment in Philadel-
phia, got hard up for live news and
sent out all the rest of the staff, whose
name was Smith, to stir up some
copy. 1t happened to be a holiday, and
the staff came back with so many
"what I am thankful for" interviews
that the paper was three days late
in going to press.
"And ever since the7," said the
speaker, Contemplating and up-to-date
newspaper men have been following
Franklin's plan and running holiday
interviews every time they got a
chance"
OF course, it has taken Speaker Can
non a good while to get worked up to
the point of lying down on the news
paper fraternity in this comment bust
ness, but really this year the demand has
been fierce. 1t has taken up a little
of his time talking to the people who
want this sort of stuff, a good many
of whom are lady reporters-and Mr..
Busbey nearly sprained his voice die
tating Danville Christmas carols be-
fore it was decided to quit.
Girl is Rewarded.
Just yesterday member of the house
from middle western state hurried
into the speakers room, tailed by a
frightened looking woman whose clothes
might have been made after the latest
Paris prints by Aunt Jennie, who, af-
ter Hiram died couple of years ago,
opened dressmaking parlors on Main
street, and is catering to the elite.
Uncle Joe" said the congressman,
who knows Mr.. Cannon pretty we'll,
this is Miss Bankerina, who is down
here visiting her cousin Carrie-dis-
family related to Joe Thompson, who
ran against me in iSS4-and who'd
like to get Christmas story out of you
for the Clarion-that's the little paper
in her home town."
And the speaker had to take the
young thing by her fluttering hand and
soothe her with his most churchly
tones, and finally make her happy
with a carbon copy of his latest
mistletoe and holly effusion, which he
had never read, but which Mr. Busbey
had assured him was all the mustard
Another young woman-not the timid
and shrinking rural variety this time
self possessed, gentle to the eye and
with half a yard of white satin rib
bon in her buttonhole, almost gave the
speaker a bit of a jolt a day or so
ago. Truth is, she never got as far as
the inner temple, for Mr.. Busbey side
tracked her to a seat in the public
reception room However she was will
ling to give him an idea of what
she wanted of Mr.. Cannon. She was
sort of floating representative of a
small but intense publiscation designed
for the uplift idea, the subjugation of
rum and the Qualification of the inner
spirit.
Begs Prohibition Testimonial.
81 have been given to understand
said she, or words to this effect, "that
Mr.. Cannon has been accustomed to
daily, in an entirely moderate way,
with the cup that cheers, and | thought
if l could get him to come across
at this suspicious season with state
ment to the effect that there's moth
ing in it, and that young man
bound for anywhere would better spike
himself to the water wagon # he
wants to arrive, why it would selp
our cause a whole lot"
This young lady also was furnished
with copy of the mistlestoe and holly
essay and personal assurance that
Mr. Cannon was too busy to see xisi
tors at that precise moment.
So these few incidents, joined to a
few dozen more, have finally resulted
in the speakers resolve-it remains
TO be seen whether he will keep it or
motto quite the holiday comment
business.
I'm through with it." he says with
emphasis. 'Fm all through"
You Bet 1t Is.
ST. Paul Pioneer Press: Isn't it