Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1912-12-11

about it. Young Lewis did that,
though he probably had never seen a |
motto card But he chose for study .
about the hardest, most intricate and /
abstract subject anyone could find
the subject Of railroad economics.
This young lawyer, doing a justice
of the peace court business, settling
petty squabbles and executing an oc-
casionaI deed or will, in a mountain
town of Maryland, burned the mid
night oil probing such abstruse sub
jects as railroad and express rate
differentials and declensions. Who
would thing he ever could find use
for his knowledge?
Let US jump now TO the spring of
1911, when Lewis, at the age of forty
1 two, and after a hard fight which had
/ put his district in the democratic
I column for the first time in twenty
/ two years, was in congress. He had
/ asked and obtained permission to
make a ten-minute speech on par
! cells post. AS is usual when a new
congressman arises TO make his
maiden speech. most of the bored
older members fed to the cloak room.
But a few who had curiously OBJ
, served the powerful stunted figure
/ Of the man fingered to hear what he
had 10 say. At the expiration of his
ten minutes they were still lingering.
and Oscar Underwood, the demo-
cratic floor leader, moved that the
time of the gentleman from MARYLAND
be extended one hour.
At the end of the hour there was
a closepacked group about the
speaker, whose head scarcely rose
higher than his desk, and the gal
leries were filing, while there was
rapt silence in the chamber. Then
Underwood asked that the gentle
mans time be extended another hour.
At the end of the second hour the
chamber was crowded with listeners.
Underwood then suggested to Repre-
sentative Mann, the republican floor
, leader, that he move for another
hours extension of time. And Mann,
instead of asking for an hour. asked
that Lewis time be extended indefi.
/. nitely.
Lewis began his ten-minute speech
at p. m. and he finished shortly
after o'clock that evening, and he
: held his crowd the whole time. In
that speech he told congress more
= about the postofice and the express
, systems than it ever knew before. He
!, amazed veteran members of the post
Office committee by telling them thai
the United States postoffice is tht
4 most efficient in the world, and later
| they were compelled to admit the
II truth of this tatement. He showed
H them that, because of more advan
II tageous contracts with the railroads
II the express companies could Away!
II carry packages cheaper than a par
!, GELS post could do. He advocated
II the condemnation and government
II purchase of the express companies t
II get those contracts.
Such is the story of Davy Lewis,
story with beginning only Largel,
due to his speech and his subsequen
efforts, a parcels post bill wa!
II passed Many Of the best feature
II of that bill, such as admitting farm
II products to the mails, and provid
III ing for the c. o. d. feature of tn
III act, were due entirely to his efforts
II Lewis is commonly regarded now a
h the highest authority on parcels pos
II in the house, if not the greatest VIII
N has ever sat in that chamber TIL,
III new law grants the postmaster ger
I! eral wide power in extending tn
II operation of the parcels post. An
\ that is why strong Influences ar
II urging president-elect Wilson to pu
n the administration of the law int
II the hands of the ex-coal miner c
HI Cumberland