Evening star., 1931-12-13
Capital Sidelights
BY WILL r. KENNEDY.

4
Republicans and the Democrats in tn,
House, the rival leaders forensicall,
square off at one acknowledgement
| ative Henry T. Rainey, Democrat
Amherst, 1883, and Representativ,
Bertrand II. Smell, Republican, Am.
herst, 1894. On the opening day o.
Congress former Senator and Speake,
| Frederick H. Gillett, Amherst 1874, an,
Representative Allen T. Treadway. an.
| other Amherst alumnus, applauded tn,
elevation of their fellow alumni
SO, Amherst's most illustrious son
| Calvin Coolidge, in retiring from off1cia
| executive life in Washington has left
| national legislative affairs in good Am.
| herst alumni hands with Associate jus
tice Harlan F. Stone, Amherst, 1894
helping to keep the judiciary end of tn,
Government functioning
Lessons OF attack and defense learned
/ IN the boxing rings of college athletic,
| VIII serve House Leader Rainey in goot
stead during the politically pugilistiC
session JUST started antecedent to the
| Dig national election next wear. Tht
veteran Illinois legislator. who tosse,
| his silvery locks in the heat of party
| conflict on the floor OF the House, i.
almost as proud to this day OF hi.
| achievements as college athlete as
| OF any other mileposts in his career
not excepting his recent run and
friendly contest for House leader.
Only three members now serving with
Rainey were in the House when he
came in as rookie"-Representa
Gilbert N. Haugen, Republican, Iowa
Representative Happy Jack" Garner
| now Speaker, and Representative Ed
ward w. Pou of North Carolina, chair
man of the Committee on Rules.
Tall and vigorous, with heavy-built
| athletic frame, and generous growth
OF wavy white hair, Representative
Rainey gives credit to his athletic
training during college days for both
physical and mental yigor stin unim-
paired, despite his II years of age Ex-
ercises begun in those youthful years
almost half a century ago-consti-
tute the daily routine of the Tlinoisan
and TO them he attributes his remark
able record Of never having had day
Of sickness
He is product of the early pioneer
days, his grandfather having moved
from Kentucky to Illinois In 1904,
fought Indians and established the first
homestead in Greene County. Although
the original home farm long since has
been converted into town sites, Carroll
ton has remained his home and he has
been elected to Congress IA times from
that district.
He came out of the West to Amherst
about the same time the Garfield boys
did because he hoped to broaden his
views Of life and his knowledge of his
fellow men through intimate association
in a small Eastern college. Among his
close associates were Sandy" Noyes,
financial writer for the New York Times
and Judge Arthur Rugg, Chief Justice
OF the Supreme Court Of Massachusetts.
He proudly boasts that his class at Am
herst produced three college presidents
At college Rainey was popular with
his fellows and was familiarly known
as Pete" He did the l00-yard dash
In 10A seconds, was champion heavy
weight boxer and played on the foot
ball and base ball teams.
All his life he has been farmer at
heart as we'll as a legislator. He owns
and operates q 500-acre farm, one OF
the best In Illinois, and show place
which he has turned over to the use
of the public-with wading pools fol
children and swimming pools 200 yards
long into which they graduate, with
dressing rooms on one end for boys and
on the other end for girls.
He has an artificial lake stocked with
fish where the public is free to 81
fishing. He has club house In the
woods which Boy Scouts and Cir
Scouts and other out-of-door clubs are
free to use.
He operates a dairy and hog farm
with a herd of pure-bred Holstein-
Friesian cattle which he claims is 'tht
best In the country" He ships foui
carloads of Hampshire hogs annually
He is the only farmer he knows Of who
also raises deer. He sold carload oi
deer last year-the largest shipment
ever made In the United States.
The United States flag flies from q
fiagpole 80 feet high in front of his
farm home 1t Is sign that either
he or his wife is at home and expect.
their friends to take dinner with them
The house mas "a rooms and is stocked
with antique furniture, which Is a fac
OF Mrs Rainey. They claim the larg-
est collection of Currier and Ives prints
in the United States. There are many
Dieces of furniture in the Rainey home
that are historic, including a chair and
desk used by Jefferson Davis when he
was in the United States Senate
There are several pieces of furniture
from the home Of Gen. Francis Marion
the swamp fox" of the Revolution
and at least one we'll authenticated
piece that was in the Washington
family.
Minority Leader Bert" Smell, who
assumed his party's leadership on his
sixty-frst birthday, went to Amherst
College after working as lumberjack
His father was foreman Of lumber
camp in the Adirondacks, and he Gied
when Bert was 90 years of age. And
Bert went back to the lumber camp
after graduating from college. He was
a bookkeeper in pulp mill at $40 a
month. He bought forest stands and
logs that had been cut, and knows the
business all the way from the dense
forests to newsprint. He rode the
drive down the river in the Spring
freshet and helped to break up the
log jam.
among his intimates as Babe" He
proved to be an all-around- good fellow
and took part in all college activities.
He was captain OF his freshman base
ball team and started in to play foot
ball, but was driven off by bad knee.
He was elected assistant manager Of
the athletic association and later presi-
dent OF the association and manager
OF the track team. He was also man
ager OF senior dramatics in his last
year. He was active In all organiZa-
tions and helped to do things.
Alfred e. Stearns. principal Of
AndoVer Academy, sat next to Smell in
college class rooms and they main
tanned the closest possible friendship.
Luther Smith, famous lawyer in St
Louis, who is member of the George
Rogers Clark Memorial Association,
was also one of Representative SHELLS
college pals.
He was in college at the same time
with former President Coolidge and a
year ahead Of him-Snell was "a and
Coolidge e5.
The new Republican leaders special
recreation Is hunting and fishing He
Is considered an excellent hunter.
He Is proud of the fact that he has
mace MS own way since his freshman
year IN college and has always worked
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