The Appeal., 1910-04-16

T: ;: E !: !:
H II green-carpeted senate Is ] NJ
II sure to be impressed and III
tIf puzzled, If not actually lU
IN thrilled, by the presence %iu
II of blind man in that III
lA-}l droning citadel of feder- II
alism; senator without
power to see the youngest member of H
the "American house of lords" repre- IL -.E
senting the youngest state in the III
Union. - ~
If the story of Senator Gore of NJ
Oklahoma could serve no other pur- MI :.
pose than to illustrate how a brave w
heart and persistent ambition can ~
overcome even the greatest difficult kN ~.
ties in life it would be worth telling NM -.
Loyalty to set purpose maintained 0NN
resolutey through Is years of bitter VWW
struggle raised this poor blind Ameri- MNW
can boy to a seat in the most distin- AWNW
gulshed law-makng body in the world WNV
although he sometimes lived on the W\N\
verge OF starvation. Nothing could W\N
| snake his determination to be a sem W.
ator. He had eyes, but he had a Va
tongue. He had no money, but he had <NX0Z
courage. He was obscure, but he had MN
nigh ambition. He could not see the ~
world about him, but he had smile =
10 win it, a perseverance to compel Do
us admiration and support :
few months after Mississippi was -
readmitted to the Union in 1870 Thom l. II
as Pryor Gore born on an 80acre !
1arm ~ miles from the nearest rail- @
way "
Here the boy grew up among the l.
creeks and pines stocky, gray-eved 1itt1a fol,
low' VINO could outrun any of his comnanions
"nen ne was six years old the village of Walthal
was established in the woods nearby and the
core family went there to live Young Tom at
tended small school set among the trees ont
side of the village.
AT the age of eight years the boys left eve
was blinded by an accidental blow from stick.
1nree years later he was employed as a page in
the Mississippi senate and boarded at the house
OF Senator ]. z. George in Jackson One dav.
While playing with crossbow an arrow entered
o1s right eye and destroyed his sight,
In spite of his atHiction young Gore MANAGED
TO stand at the head of his class in school and at
ehe age, OF II years entered a normal school
whch was opened. Here he gradually became
totally blind. yet he mastered the high school
course.
While Gore was attending the high school his
Closest companion was a classmate, Charles H.
flttman. Th1s youth used to read to him. One
day they found an old volume of the Congress
sional Record Going out to the stable, the blind
| student would stand for hours while Pittman read
to him the speeches of the lawmakers at Wash
ington.
Dur1ng that winter Gore and his sister taught
school for few months. All the while his moth
er, bedridden invalid read to him history biog-
| raphy and other subjects connected with his po-
AAeASoA
! strange smile on his blind countenance dreaming
and brooding and waiting for the day when he
might take part in the great battle of politics like
! other men.
His great chance came in the spring of 1891
The Populist movement was spreading rapidly
| and he joined it. In the state campaign for
legislature to elect United States senator he
took up the cause of Barksdale against George
| although as boy he had lived in Georges house.
The blind orator shrank from no conflict. He
even debated with Senator Money, whose tongue
| all Mississippi dreaded and who smiled majes
tically when told that his opponent was "a poor
blind schoolboy." Senator Money declared that
but for his antagonists blindness, he would hold
him personally responsible for his words-a
deadly thing to say in Mississippi. Gore prompt
ly replied, LET him then blindfold himself and
will meet him."
In September Of that year he went to the law
school at Cumberland university Tennessee and
studied law for ten months. He was one of the
leading six students in class of 49, This expe
r1ence cost him 1891 and he returned to his Mis-
slss1ppi village with only Is cents in his pocket
| In suit of clothes he had worn for IA months
He had almost been compelled to leave the law
school months before for the lack of suitable
clothing.
Yet his unquenchable ambition to reach the
United States senate grew more intense as the
difficulties of his situation increased.
Cores father had taken up the practice of
school in 1892 the youth was welcomed as an
assistant in the Office. That year, too he was
presidential elector on the Popust ticket. at.
| tackled Grover Cleveland on the stump and carried
his county. @
The practice of law was not an inspiring occu-
patton in Walthall. There were actually As law
yers in that small, poor village. The blind adyo-
cate tried few cases. - ..t
After two years effort to earn a living an
| lawyer in the place of his birth Gore decided
to go to Texas. ~.r...
Having saved $40, he started in April, 1894.
for Texarkana, arriving there an absolute stran.
ger with only $21 in his pocket. He secured
boarding house and promptly offered himself to
Che Populist leaders for service in the approach
ing state and county: elections. His political
speeches brought in money enough to pay his ex.
penses but he found no chance to practice law.
IN tho winter he went back to Walthall and for
year made another desperate effort to win success
as lawyer. He was nominated for congress- hv
the Populists. but was defeated. Yet his speeches
In the campaign attracted much attention
l