Omaha daily bee., 1918-08-30
TYPO GETS NEGRO
Vote AND HELPS
START PERSH|NG
Bee Linotyper Pulls Smooth
Trick in 1882 Election and
UnknowingIy Aids Career
of the General.

That comparatively insignificant
events sometimes lead to mighty re-
suits is illustrated in the story OF
Victor P. Gay, linotyper in the COM
posing room of The Bee, who unwit-
tingiy initiated train OF events which
are responsible for the presence OF
General John ]. Pershing at the head
OF the American armies in France to-
day
These are the links in the chain
OF events which have placed General
Pershing in command of the forces
which will change the course Of
worlds history.
Gay was a cog in the political ma
chine which brought about the elec-
tionof Charles Mansur to congress
from the old Third Missouri district
in the fall OF 1882. Mansur soon aft
erwards appointed John Pershing,
then Missouri sehoolmaster, to West
Point, and so started him on the
career which was to embrace leader
ship of American forces over half
world, from the Philippines and the
wrecks OF the Spanish empire to
France and the borders OF the Ger
man empire.
Calls Meeting Of Negroes.
at was back in. the early eighties"
said Gay, "and Charley Mansur, whom
we all knew, was candidate for con-
gress once more. He had lost by
only three votes in the previous cleo
ton, and the word had been passed
out to the boys that we were to break
our nceks If need be to elect old Char
ley this time. was a printer in Chill
licothe, Mo-, then.
"Just before election a brilliant idea
occurred to me. There were about 80
negroes who lived in and around
Utica, FIVE miles west OF Chillicothe.
These negroes were voters, but no
one had ever attempted to swing their
votes one way or another in the cleo
tons. Many OF them were friends OF
mine and through them | brought
about the trick.
"The night before election called
a meeting of them in schoolhouse
on the edge of town. | told them
what the election Of Charley Mansur.
staunch old republican, would mean
10 them, and told them what the party
had done for them during and after
the civil war. l secured the promise
OF all of them to vote for Mansur the
next day.
Votes Bring Election.
Election night the votes were
counted. Sixty-hve of my 80 negro |
votes had gone III a solid block for
Charley Mansur and he was elected by |
SO votes. He'd have lost out sure il
1t hadn't been for those negroes. oh,
we had close elections those days in
old Missouri
II was only few months after he
took Office that Mansur appointed |
Pershing to West Point, where the |
Missouri lad afterwards rose to be in
,structor and from where he went to |
begin his active career of leadership. |
And the strangest part of the story |
Is that. although Gay knew John
Pershing by sight, he has never cx-
changed . word with him in all his
life, never was introduced to him and
1as probably never been heard Of by
he general.
Gay Rooted for Pershing.
Gay also was one of the Chillicothe
'ootcrs, who backed the base ball
cam from Wheeling, Mo-, on which
ohm Pershing was star third base
nan.
"You had to be star to play on
hat team" says Gay, "and the
'Haymakers,' as we called
hem, won the amateur championship
II the state. They used to beat semi
professional teams from ST. Louis and
other big towns right along. Al
though Pershing was school teacher
md was native of Laclede, Mo-, he
used to play on the team"
"Yes, ! guess it was partly my
Iault that Pershing is licking the
boche today" concluded Gay, reAec-
lively, "but it was all an accident and
suppose just another trick of that
Did lady they cali Dame Fortune"