Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-09-21
SENHToR GEo.C.PERKINs
OF CALIFORNIA Has BEEN a
Jack OF-A1L-IRADEs S.

SNAASk& \110. Nj 6NNAi
OF CALIFORNIA has BEEN
"JAcK>OF-AlL-RADE
getic youngster worked on brickyards
and punched cattle. but. mind you. put
ting In as much time at school as his
money would permit. Concerning his
brickyard experience, he said:
Il worked once in a certain brickyard
owned by an old man with large num-
Der of sons. This old fellow daily lee
tured me on right and wrong and sought
to impress upon my mind the wisdom OF
honesty and uprightneSs. A number of
years after I left his employ I learned
that he and his sons and some of his
workmen of the brfckyard comprised one
of the worst bands OF horse thieves in the
state. They were finally captured and in
the light OF the discovery of their true
formances. such as frequent night trips
and meetings which at the time conveyed
no intelligence to me as to their object
AS to when he first thought of coming
to Congress Mr.. Murray said:
was making a crop of cotton and
The folks l stayed with never encouraged
me to study. Their whole plan of life
was this-belong to the Baptist Church,
drink straight liquor. be honest and vote
INC oCAhOSIdllS tiChct. oo, OUc Ody, willie
on my patch of land, standing ankle deep
in crab grass. / says to myself, Bill
what're YOU getting all this education
for. anyway And then something in
side of me answered; Bill. you are get
ting ready to go to Congress- And SO
was. but ! didn't know it!''
y
Education being passion, school
teaching at frequent intervals yielded
small financial help and was a step for
ward toward the fuifiiment Of his ambi-
ton to become lawyer. When there
was no school he sold books, clerked in
store and was q solicitor and travel
ing salesman. He also did general WORK
on weekly paper. and, later on. with
his brother owned and edited a Corsicana
paper, during which time he studied law
at nights and was admitted to the bar.
Seeking new and more promising fields
Mr.. Murray settled in the Indian coun-
try, and through acquaintance with Mr.
ID. H. johnson, tribal governor. and his
wife's uncle, he was made attorney Of
the Chickasaw tribe. Later on he draft
ed the constitution for the new state.
Then he elected to retire from the prac-
tice of law to give attention to farming
and cattle raising. Very soon politics
began to interest him, and after a brief
career In the Oklahoma legislature dur
ing which he served as speaker of the
house. he was elected to the Sixty-third
Congress.
Representative Maurice Connolly OF
Dubuque. Iowa, has the distinction of
being the most thoroughly educated man
in Congress, il an accumulation OF diplo-
mas may be taken as criterion
Though a lawyer and a congressman.
Mr.. Connolly started life with a very diff
ferent vocation In mind. A DIPLOMATS
career was his ambition from early how
hood, and toward that end he mapped
out his plan of education. He studied law
at Georgetown University. Cornell and
the New York Law School. Then, since
he was only twenty-one, his father
thought him yet too young to begin either
the practice OF law or the initial steps
toward a consulship. So he suggested for.
eign travel.
After a conversation with Senator AL
lison, who suggested that graduate work
in one or two OF the representative uni
yerSities in Europe would he yaI,ahio
preparation for the diplomatic service he
started out the next day for England
and was soon established at famous Raj
liol College. Later he went to HefdeI
berg, Germany.
Mr.. Connolly Is an authority on colIa,a
lie and customs and has a wealth ~
"reminiscences and amusing incidents of
his progress through the lecture halls
laboratories and the campus at these 10
situations OF learning ~
Despite this preparation, a diplomats
berth did not materialze Instead H.
death of his father and the care of q
so estate brought the young man
prosaic roles of business He was elactaJ
To Congress. the youngest man. tho 6rst
native born and the first democrat To rem
resent the "monkeywrench" district OF
Iowa. -
Never before has the newspaper frat.r
MY Deen SO much IN evidence as In the
present administration. for many OF the
new men are members of the press Presi-
dent Wilson. himself writer of MOI
has shown his faith ana uol,io.,ma ,e
writing men by calling MANY IF th.
from private life to I'LL high places in III
government service. ~
degrees. highbrow and hack = famoms
authors, like Edward w Townsend nou
elist and creator of Chimmie Faddon
and Henry Cabot Lodge-magazine wri.
a forcible illustration of the might and
power of the press. Some idea of the dis
tributton Of the scribes may be cleaned
from the fact that twenty-five states
nave sent newspaper men to Congress
them may be found the names OF Speaker
Champ Clark. Senators Joseph L. Bris-
tow Of Kansas. Gilbert NJ. Hitchcock OF
James H; Brady of Idaho.
resentatives Victor Murdoch and Daniel
Read Anthony Of Kansas, Albert Johnson
or Washington. Carter Glass of Vir-
ginia. Richard Bartholdt of Missouri,
frank Lester Greene of Vermont j.
hampton Moore OF Philadelphia, Henry
George IT., OF New York. Claude L'Engle
Pa. -
FOR persistent effort Clyde H. Tavenner
OF Illinois Is inspiring. Beginning at the.
age OF thirteen to set type on a country
newspaper. he acquired the newspaper
craze and soon issued Boys Bulletin.
When about seventeen wears old he be-
gan working on large city dailies. In
1908 he dec1fed to fill a distinct and ex