Evening star., 1926-11-23

Partisanship and personality are
words that spring to mind as
almost synonymous with the name Of
Uncle Joe" Cannon, and by far the
greatest and most abiding of these Is
personality. judging from the affec-
tionate appreciations voiced by the
press throughout the land since the
death Of the once autOcratic Speaker
Of the House.
"Uncle Joe and Uncle Sam were
close relatives. The latter bows in
grief over the passing Of the former.
And vet" says the Ann Arbor Times
News in a striking word picture OF
Uncle Joe" and his passing, through
the tears, shines a smile, and some
how or other 1t seems that there
ought to be a homely joke or two,
and also a stogy elevated at an angle
of As degrees, as part Of the sincere
tribute. Because, in spirit at least,
Uncle Joe went away with smile,
f1inging a bit of funny philosophy
over his shoulder to mingle with the
blue smoke Of a cigar. He seemed
to disappear I'm that blue haze, and
vet it is likely that he will be seen
at times, dimly, Of course, moving
about behind it in his carefree easy
way"
"'Joe' Cannon was a personality.
and personality Is powerful In poll
tics and government" is the way the
Rockford Morning Star epitomizes Mr..
Cannon's rise to power and influence
in the halls Of Congress. There are
not many men Of marked individual
ity, especially among men who seek
for q congressional career" declares
the Topeka Daily Capital, and, con-
tinuing, it says, ''The public. there
fore, makes the most Of such men
when It finds them, and made the
most of Uncle joe Cannon"
X X
Next to Uncle Sam himself. no
figure was more familiar in picture
or cartoon than that of the rangy
member from Illinois," observes the
Lowell Evening Leader, recalling the
days when Joseph Cannon was at the
zenith of his career. 1.-THE Cannon
cigar was as we'll known in the news
papers as the Roosevelt big stick" is
the way the South Bend Tribune ex-
presses the same thought, as 1t asserts
that Joseph Cannon had personality
plus" while the Kansas City Journal.
recording "some Of the things which
East. West, North and South would
mention with reference to Mr.. Can
non," lists them as This black cigar,
untitled; his slouch hat, his wittlclsms
of speech, his directness of comment,
his biting sarcasm, his lengthy public
service"
AS to how far back that service
began the Decatur Review records,
with Lincoln at the head OF his
ticket, Uncle joe was elected to his
first office, that of prosecuting at
torney in 1867; while the Champaign
News. Gazette says: From Lincoln to
Coolidge-that tells the story OF
Joseph G. Cannon. who for 48 years
served in the legislative halls of the
United States. Personal contact with
II Presidents was part of that rec
ord" concludes the Gazette
"Many men are now grandfatherS
who were born after Joe Cannon first
went to Congress, away back in 1878,
notes the Bloomington Daily Panta-
graph.
Sincerity and freedom from malice
are emphasized as two of his strong
traits Of character. "1is character
was based upon plain honesty. He
was true to his convictions and stood
by them on all occasions. He curried
no favor, used no honeyed words.
made no useless gestures. but moved
SLralGnL tOWdEu his ooJCStirCt 40 .'i0
appraisal of the Lexington Leader.
HE never deserted friend, nor what
he believed to be right" says the
Quincy HeraldWhig, and, the Fort
Worth ord-Telegram sets down to
his credit the fact that "he never made
an attempt to elevate himself by
character destruction. He \stood for
organization and not disruption" the
Texas paper continues: while he out
lived his era, while there were many
that disagreed with and condemned
hta politaoG mathedab all must admit