The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1909-04-11
Turning Point in Life of Fam
Gus Speaker When at
District School.
MORRILL, WAS HIS FRIEND
ED IN CONNECTION WITH THE
DEATH OF THE FORMER KAN.
SAS GOVERNOR.

Topeka, Kan. April 1O.-The death
Of former Governor E n. Morrill, at
his home at Hiawatha recalls some IL
teresting Incidents in his life. One Of
them is that when a member of a dis
trict school board in Maine he con-
firmed the employment Of the late
Speaker Thomas B. Reed IS teacher
and later stood by him and saved him
when other directors and patrons of
the school sought to displace him.
It was so years ago, that Reed. then
| about II, appeared at the little village
of Westbrook. 10 miles west of PORT
land. Me-, and applied for the job OF
teaching the district school. West.
brook. now a town Of 5000, was then
hamlet.
E. N. Morrill,. who later came to
Kansas and served this state as con-
gresham and governor, lived on a
farm near the Westbrook district
school. He had been elected a mem
Der Of the school board. and among the
other duties devolving upon that body
was that Of employing a teacher for
the eight weeks school term during
midwinter. Reed was a student al
Bowdoin college and was doing chores
mornings and evenings to pay his way.
He had eight weeks vacation during
winter and decided to rut in the time
| teaching country school at $25 a
month. He selected Westbrook be.
cause of its nearness to Portland.
Not q Happy Valley.
| DR.. III. c. Linn, Kansan who has
spent many years in Washington and
| was personal friend of Speaker Reed
and Gov Morrill,, in reminiscent talk
about the early friendship between
these men in the village of WestbrooE.
said:
Il wish I could tell the story as I
heard Tom Reed tell It in Washington
when he and Governor Morrill, were in
congress. Nobody on earth could put
it in black and white as 1t was told in
his inimitable drawl with the twinkle
in his kindly eyes, the jolly laugh Or
slowly coming smile that changed so
marvelously the whole expression OF
his face.
From Reeds description of this his
first business venture in the world the
district was no Happy Valley by any
means. There was a neighborhood
broil always on the Goals at Westbrook
and one was stewing away when he put
in his application for the district
school 1t was there that his patti
crossed that Of Governor Morrill,, who
though only five years his senior, was
chairman Of the district school board
u Thomas B. Reed passed the examine
|? ton and was engaged to teach the
school for eight weeks, Governor Nor
rill signing the certificate
Objected 70 City Methods.
Reed didn't get along very we'll
even At the first, because, as he said
he undertook to introduce city methods
into a country school. He was very
strict. He insisted that lessons SHOULD
be learned and proper decorum observ
ed during school hours. .
when pupils made poor recitations
he sent them back to their seats ant
kept them after school hours. laborins
with them long and earnestly. Mis-
demeanors were visited with sever,
condemnation also. remember hear
ing Governor Morrill, ask Reed II h.
wasn't something of a car when h;
boy.
"'Oh hang it, Reed replied, what!
the use of doing = thing unless you d.
it properly? was there to teach tn
school. l was paid for. 1t and I in
L Z a 4
fight every day
I'm describing one particular en-
counter which led to Reeds arraign
ment before the school board, he SAT-
his attire was sadly rent and disoi
dered and he looked to have been tn
| under dog in fight.
II Reed Won Out.
| But the former speaker added
| with a twinkle in his eyes, the othe
"The neighborhood row that was &c
ing on finally involved the distric
school, and charges Of czarism agains
the teacher or something akin to /
were preferred against him, and b.
was accordingly arraigned before tn
, school board. The battle waged
whole day, Chairman Morrill, of tn
!, school board, standing by the sturd,
youth to the very end.
/ Might came on and Tom Rec
walked out Of the board meeting con
iqueror With Morrilrs help he ha'
been able to count a majority in hi
{ favor He taught the school to tn
, end of the term and 50 we'll did he sue
coed that he was engaged for secon'
{ and third winter and he might hAv
: gone on indefinitely had he not grad
, uated with honors and gone beyon
I the narrow horizon that environe
. westbrook.'
t More than . years later Tom Rec
] and Mr.. drill were in congress togetn
er and the boyhood friendship was r,
established. Naturally. when NJ
Reeds ambition to become speaker Q
the Fifty-first congress became knows
among his most ardent supporters va
Governor Morrill, OF Kansas. togethe
with the rest of the states delegation
During his lifetime Governor Morrl
frequently talked Of the intima,