Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-06-15

shocked to find the dead negro, hanging
to a nearby telegraph pole as his sole
Wilson held the fort with the corpse
dangling a few feet away from the
station.
1t was the intention TO ask every man
who abandoned one line OF work FOR
another his reason for so doing This
interrogation was not put 10 the rep
resentative from Florida. IL such A.
nights experience in lonely country
box car town was not enough TO mako
him want to be a statesman or almost
anything else. instead of an operator.
1T should have. and that is reason
enough
The exception always proves the rule
OF anything, 1t is generally admitted.
Therefore. this about William H. CAL
falfa Bill") Murray representative at
large from Oklahoma, better known ;
the sage OF Tishimingo.' lie wanted
to become a representative. and now
he is one.
Incidentally. it might be noted. MUIR
ray followed thirteen other lines before
he got into politics. and one of tho
lamentations to which he now gives
vent is that in a period Of mad speed
to get MS DlOSrapny INTO the Congress
sonal Directory he overlooked five Of
his jobs. Only eight yocations are ac-
credited to him there.
The representative was sitting with
his feet cooked up on his desk a long
cigar in his mouth and his thumbs I'm
the armpits of a white vest when the
interviewer arrived. Alfalfa Bill" gave
an Oklahoma salute. crossed his legs
sunk lower in his chair and told his
story.
Il was making a crop Of cotton and
corn on some rented land down in
Texas when | first aspired TO come to
Congress-" he said. Il reckon 7 was
about twelve years old. and. having
run away from home. 1 was scampering
around working in the summer and GO
ing to school as much as / could in the
winter.
The folks 1 stayed with never en-
couraged me to study. In fact, their
whole plan Of life was this--belong to
the Baptist Church. drink straight
liquor. be honest and vote the demo-
cratic ticket. SO one day while 1 was
out on my rented patch of land. stand
ing ankle deep in crab grass. / says
to myself:
bill. what you getting all this edu-
cation for. anyway And then some
thing within me answered: Bill. you're
getting ready to go to Congress- And
so l was but l didn't know 1t,
Win my wagon n1tcneu To that par.
ticular star. l want right on studying
every book I could Obtain | read as
much history; law and politics as | could
md, saved my money and. eventually,
was able to leave farm work and take
up school teaching and newspaper re-
porting. Things broke pretty well for
me and / got into law.
Finally decided that. after all. may
be didn't want to come to Congress, nor
to have anything more to DO with poll
tics of any kind. With a view of getting
away from all that sort of thing [ emf
grated to Oklahoma, and doggpne If
didn't get into more pol tics in a minute
than I'd heard tell OF in a month over
in Texas"
Murrays work in Oklahoma brought
him n close contact with the Chicka-
saw tribe, of whom Douglas II. Johnson
was governor. He made Murray the
tribes attorney, and later the young
lawyer married a niece OF the governor.
She is one-eighth Chickasaw and a tall
ented woman. He drew up the Oklahoma
constitution, which would be a long job
for any man, held various minor offices
and finally, last year. was sent to Con.
gress by an overwhelming vote.
The vocations Murray has followed out
side OF politics are cotton picker, cotton
chopper, woodcutter, brickmaker farm.
hand. cattle puncher, SHOOT teacher. book
agent, travelling salesman. newspaper edi-
tor. newspaper solicitor, teacher and law.
yer.
He might have been a professional ath-
lete, too. IL he had desired. He can run
like a deer, wrestle. jump and stand fat
footed and kick two feet above his head.