The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1920-03-05
THE BIG JOKE COL. (. III. HOSE
PLAYED ON WILLIAM i--sRYAN

then Q1sc the tHe III OIu6I W Just
visft around" has habit Of running
up to Washington every six months
in order to, as he puts it, give the
law makers and national capitalers the
once over
During recent trip he got real
chummy with western congressman
one nighf as they sat in a hotel lob
by. Following discussion of the
field of presidential candidates, the
old Texan chuckIingly remarked that
the funniest thing that had ever hap
pened in all his life was the time Col.
EdNsrd MandelI House played prac-
tical joke on William Jennings Bryan
Up to this time the westerner had
been lolling far back in his big leather
chair, with his feet anchored high
against a nicely polished marble pill
lar. what! Colonel House play n
practical joke-and on William
Bryan" he loudly demanded as he
brought his feet forward and his body
to an erect position Never! The
idea is preposterousi Why. House is
as quiet and dignified as one of those
mummy chaps who have been slum
bering meath pyramid tombstone
long since before that Cleopatra girl
canoed up and down the Nile on moon.
light nights, snuggled close to the one
man.
Il might believe your tale if it was
anyone but this quiet, sombre old
scout from Texas who has the demean-
or of Quaker deacon, and who
wears a plug hat, Prince Albert coat,
no smile and patent leather shoes,
and who has proved himself to De
such an able friend and assistant to
the president in deciding what, when,
how, where, why and who to do in the
way of cabinet making, league of ma
tioning, railroading, Samuel-G
ing, suffragetteing, prohibitioning, con-
crossing and various other odd jobs
that have been bcbbing up for several
years past.
However. / am curious and good
natured. and willing to be the goat
now and then and bite, so Mr.. Texan,
cut loose with your House-Bryan
yarn
well, you see it's like this" started
in the visitor as a reminiscent smile
lighted up ,his face, some fifteen or
sixteen years ago Bryan decided to
give his native state little vacation.
he'd been using it considerable so he
comes down to Austin, Texas, which
in addition TO bein' the state capital,
also used to be the permanent home OF
Col. House. There was some excite
ment when the news commenced to
spread that Bryan was goin' to spend
the winter in house right next door
to Col. House. Naturally they gets
neighborly and talks some across the
lividin' fence leastways Bryan talks.
mot wantin' to monopolize the en-
tertainin' of the honored orator and
presidential runner, House cOnfers
with Jim Hogg, a fried Of his'n ne,
had been instrumental in maxim gov
ernor a few years prior, and they rig
up the greatest huntin' trip ever stag
ed in Travis county. They impress
lively notify Bryan that they are plan.
min a wild animal huntin' trip for him,
which seemed to please that Nebras-
kan much.
There was an old panther chained
to post in the back yard of our most
popular saloon yes, we had lots OF
saloons them days. TO strangers,
she was always referred /
to as a wild Mexican wolf The crit
ter was well nigh blind, and only had
one upper and one lower tooth, Meth |
err OF. which hit, maxim bitin' an eatin'
difficult. In fact she had !
dined on nothin' but soft vittles for
years. The animal was kept because
she was amusin' to the tipplers who
preferred listenin to her style Of {
growlin' instead Of goin' home.
House and Hogg give niger boy
a dollar six bits to lead the wolf, under /
cover of early mor.in' darkness, to a !
strip Of woods right smart piece be
yond town mebbe six or eight miles,
an put her up in the forks OF whal- /
in big cottonwood tree.
Early that mornin' the huntin' par
ty paraded up Congress Avenoo. ev-i
erybody on hossDack or Rpleback.
House an Bryan a-leadin' the process
sion. Bryan straddlin his sorrel mus
tang as dignitied an straight as Ma
poleon Bonypart an John Pershing
combined. They was followed ! reck
on by fifty or hundred men and boys