Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1912-12-07
UNCLE JOE CANNONS LONG SERVICE IN HALLS
=. OFSTATE IS COMING TO CLOSE IN FINAL DEFEAT
Born Fighter, the Man from H.
IIn0lS Had Too Much
Irish to Yield


have arisen over Mr.. CannOn's Off
rial acts and political opinions, and
hey have been many in recent years,
nobody ever attempted to dispute the
fac, that Uncle Toe has stood alone,
a unique figure in the life of the ma.
tional capital
! Able, fOrceful, a born fighter and
, one of the homeliest' and most low
able OF men, the passing Of Uncle Joe
] Cannon and his inseparable cigar will
| leave void at least for folks who
| thought they could see in him the
! typical rough and ready American
politician of earlier days
When the former Speaker closes
| his public career on March 4, 1913,
! he will have served longer as a mem
Der of the House of Representatives
than any other man. 1t will have
been forty years since he first took
/ his seat in that BODY, and during
! that time he was a candidate twenty
times and elected nineteen times.
| He entered the House when James
| q. Blaine was Speaker. His only del
feat until adverse political fortune
overlook him this fall was in 1890.
Uncle Joe's Record.
But Uncle Joe has established a re-
cord in another respect, He served
longer COnsecutively as Speaker oil
the House than any other man. The
aggregate Of Henry Clay's broken
terms as presiding officer of the low
or branch of Congress exceeded Mr..
Cann0n's period of office, but only
by q year
/ Uncle Joe will be Il years old npA;
May. He has no intention of ever
again seeking office. He probably
wouldn't accept another nomination. ,
He didn't want the last nomination. |
He told his friends when they came |
to Washington from his home in Dan
Vile to urge him to run again that !
he expected to see the Republican !
party go to pieces on the rocks Of |
taCtionalism this year, that both Pres !
idont Taft and Col. Roosevelt were
weights upon the party's chances for |
success, that each was in a measure !
responsible for conditions and as for |
himself be desired to be out of it,
But his friends were insistcnt and !
the eX-Speaker consented to permit |
his name to go on the petition for a |
place on the primary election ballot
He had several opponents for the Re,
publican nomination, but he cleaned |
them all up and had handsome ma
Jority in the primaries. His Demo
cratic opponent, aided by a Bull
Moose candidate in the field. who
also drew. largely from Mr.. Cannon,
succeeded in the recent election in
defeating the veteran by about 500
votes.
Foresaw Defeat.
Mr.. Cannon expected it, His only
surprise was that the majority against
him was not larger, in view of the
conditions. He is glad he is out of
it finally. He says that he has none
Of that pride voiced by the late Will
liam S. Holman of Indiana of "dying
in the harness"
Uncle .IOes friends are urging him
tOPWrite book. He has not been
very partial to the idea, but with
their knowledge of his picturesque
phrasing, his wonderful memory, his
quaint appreciation of the aneCdOtc
in politics, his public career, begin
ning with the Civil War, and his per
Sonal acquaintance with Abraham
Lincoln to draw from, these friends
of the former Speaker hope to pre-
vail on him to make a contribution to
the political literature of his day.
MIR. Cannon began holding office
the same year that Abraham Lincoln
became President. Almost his first
official duty, as prosecuting attorney
Of the judicial circuit in southern H.
iinOis which Abraham Lincoln rode
as Il practitioner, was to begin lrs-
Cecdings against disl0yal men for a
lacking Union soldiers and seeking
to embarrass the administrations in ,,
Washington and Illinois in their Cf-
forts to preserve the Union.
Remembers Lincoln Well.
Mr.. Cannon remembers President |
Lincoln very well. He heard several
~ the Lincoln Douglas debates. Alter
Mr.. LincOlns election to the PrcSi-
lcmcy and before he came to Wash
ugtOn to be inaugurated Cannon paid Z
= visit to the home of his srcpmOther
near 'harlcstOwn, which was in the
'iStrict for which Mr.. Cannon was act.
M as prosecuting attorney. They mot
r." train and Mr.. Cannon introduced
Himself. and they had a pIcasan, con ,
crSatiOn.
Tho first important committee scrv. ,
f' in the House performed by its fut
re speaker was as member Of the
r. mmittCe of Post Offices and Post
>oads. Speaker Blaine assigned the .
Eow member from Illinois to that com
II jttcc. MIR. Cannon reported and
p :: Scd the first law providing for tn" ,
r1nsmiSsion Of mail matter at til"
pound rate. Previous to that act ncWs-
1"p"rS were sent through IL" mails
,ud the subscribers we're required to
"a! postage on them when tn" mail
: ~ taken from tho office.
In tn" nCXt Congress- Wh'Ch VA i
''"mocratl", Speaker Kendall phi Mr..
unou on tho Committee on Appr1-
,riationS He told tho new m"mh"r ,
lat no had given him the appotu'
ave ut because of Tic intimate kno"I- (;
'c@c he had shown regarding postal ;