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About The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 14, 1904)
36 THE. SUNDAY OREGONIAN, PORTLAND, AUGUST JU, 190 "Uncle Joe" -Cannon Talks of , -National Affairs Speaker of the House Is an Optimist on 'AmericaHis " Struggles in Youth. Speaker Cannon "The future of this conn try Is the fatnro of the world's civilization. This la the great breeding ground for the best of the human race." "13 j- the close of this century ire Americans will dominate this conti nent and this hemisphere." "ffe must have a strong Army and Navy, not to wage war, but insure peace." "'We have become a world power and must accept the responsibilities of a world power." "I believe the standard of official morality grows higher every year." -A ANVILLE, 111., Aug. 8. (Special Correspondence of The Sunday Oregonian.) Sit down "with me on the big: porch of Speaker Cannon's big: house here in Danville and have a heart-to-heart talk with one of the really big- men of the country! That wind which fans our checks like a sea breeze jcomes from the corn-laden Illinois prairies, rustling the forest trees at our side with its song of pros perity and peace. We are away from the factions of politics, away from the strife of legislation, away from the struggling: of everyday statesmanship; we are away from the big: cities, away out in God's country, where one can look at himself and the world. It is under such conditions that I have had a visit with Joe Cannon, the results of which are embodied in the conversa tion which follows: The first part of our talk was of a personal nature. I had asked the Speaker as to his- boyhood, and he re plied that he could remember as far back as when he was 4 years old, now 64 years ago. "It was then," said he, "that we emi grated from North Carolina to Indiana. "We came over the mountains in canvas-covered wagons, sleeping in tents. We crossed the little Dan River. It was as big to me then as the Mississ ippi is now. I can still see the great forests, the wild flowers by the road side and the squirrels darting from tree to tree." His Quaker Ancestors. "Then your parents were Southern ers, Mr. Speaker?" , "They were born in North Carolina, but they were Quakers of the old stock that went from Massachusetts South and emigrated thence to different parts of the West. They were natural pio neers, always moving from place to place. My father and mother, lived In Guilford County, North Carolina. Father taught school then in a little red schoolhouse, of which I have a pic ture. He afterward studied medicine and practiced it. There were about 20 families in the caravan which went to Indiana and settled at our little town on the Wabash. It was there I got my first schooling and there I lived until I was 15, when father was drowned and I had to go to work. "I clerked in a country store for five years, after which I -went Into an office and studied law. It took me some time to get a start as a lawyer, but I finally succeeded, and was doing well when I was first elected to Congress, about 32 years ago. With the exception ot one term, I have been In Congress ever since." The Delights of Youth. "Then your boyhood was not an easy ane, Mr. Speaker?" "Perhaps not, in comparison with ! that of the city boys oV today: but it was like that of the other boys of the community and I thoroughly enjoyed It There is nothing like the pleasures of youth and its glorious dreams of the future. As we grow older we are con tent with the present. I have not built an air castle for 30 years, although I enjoy life still. "And yet the pleasures of my youth might be considered hardships now. In those days every boy rose at daybreak to make the fire. You crept from the warm sheets out on the cold floor to dress. It might be that your boots had frozen over night, and how you did have to pull getting them on. Then, If you had been thoughtful and had carried in the wood before bedtime it was not hard to kindle it and to put the kettle on the crane; but if not, you had to go out and split the wood in the snow. After the fire was built came the milking, and you took two pails and went out to the barn. One pail held the milk and the other served for the strippings. You had to watch that the old muley cow did not kick you and it might be that she would flirt her "bedraggled tail into your still half sleepy eyes. After milking, you came in and had breakfast, and how It did taste! 'Snowballs then were as good as ap ples now and every bit as sweet. "When I worked in the country store I had to get up, make the fire, sweep out, eat breakfast and be ready for business by 6 o'clock in the morning, and I stayed in the store until 9 o'clqck at night. Was it hard? No! Other boys did the same, and we had our fun, too. Many a time we went out and danced till daybreak and got back ready to open up at the usual time. We may have yawned a little during the day, hut the elixir of youth remedied all before night." The Education of a Speaker. I here asked Mr. Cannon to tell me more about his education. He is a well-read man, and in his speeches uses excellent English, illustrating ljis points from history and literature, an cient and modern. Mr. Cannon said: "My education was confined to the country school, to home teaching about the big log fireplace, where father read to us at night, and to my own private study, while I was clerk ing I had more or less time, when bus! ness was slack, and after I began to read law I got a smattering of Latin." "what books did you have?" "Very few during my boyhood. There was a little public library in the saddler's shop in our town, and its books were passed around. We had Plutarch's Lives, Aesop's Fables, Jo- sephus History of the Jews, Rollins' Ancient History, Shakespeare and the Bible. I read all these again and again. I read Shakespeare before I was 15. and every year from 9 until 15 I had to read the Bible through from end to end." "Can you quote much from the Bible?" "I never could quote anything," said the Speaker, but the Bible has fur nished me more illustrations for my speeches than any other book. It is full of grand pictures, and it has para bles and examples illustrating every phase of human life and action. "What parts of the Bible have helped you most? I asked. "I can hardly say. They are all good. The Old Testament and the' New are full of great thoughts and strik ing images. Take David and his Psalms, the Proverbs of Solomon and Solomon's Songs. There is nothing like them anywhere. Ecclesiastes is a great philosophical poem, and all Job is po etry. fThlnk of the story of Exodus and the wandering of the chosen peo pie through the wilderness for 40 years, and that only two of all their host over saw the promised land. And then the sermon on the mount and the life of Paul. The Bible is a treasury house. It has had great influence upon me all my life." "What books stand next to the Bible In your estimation?" "Shakespeare has, I suppose, the sec ond place, but I study Shakespeare still and And it ever fresh and ever new. Plutarch's Lives I know almost by .heart, and their characters are very real to me. From Rollins I got much of my knowledge of the Greeks and Romans, and from Shakespeare human nature." College Educations for Congressmen. I here asked the Speaker as t.o what he thought qf the benefits of a college education. He replied: "I have regretted that I "was not able to go to college. The lack of such an education made it so that I have -had to do my life work with dull tools. faculties and the man who possesses It5! works more surely and safely. I have for years been on the appropriation committee of the House of Represent atives and have signed conference re ports appropriating more than $1,000,- 000,000. I have had my say as to the contents of those reports, but I would nof. have attempted the writing of one for a fortune. Why? Because the re ports are written in a hurry and the misplacing of a single comma might have cost the Nation millions of dol lars and brought me everlasting dis grace." Schools That Make Men. 'But schools like yours have their ad vantages over the colleges, Mr. Speaker," said L "It Is such schools that make men." "That may be true," .was the reply. "There are greater disadvantages than havlnir to work one's way through life. Such work brings out the man and har dens his character. Those who are doing things In the world today are largely men schooled as I was. They come from the mWrllA -w-ilks of life. Thev have had to fight their way upward and through fight ing they grew. I learned, mucn in mat ronntrv store. It taueht me exactitude. Industry and the value of the nickel. Only the fewest people ever learn that 20 nickels make a dollar. In that store the accounts had to be exact I remember we sold a calico dress for a dollar and it then took just eight yards to make a dress. We measured it off with the yard suck Just eight yards, not a quarter of an inch more, not a quarter of an inch less. Eight pounds of coffee were sold for a dollar and I learned to measure out just eight pounds. I think we put the paper on the srnles first Another common article we sold was tobacco, which cost 40 cents a plug, but which was usually sold in 5 cent cuts. I learned to cut a plug In eighths and to put the other seven-eights awav in a class Jar for future customers. All this taught me to be exact" Cannon's First Five Hundred Dollars. "It must have taught you to be econom ical as well?" "Economical!" exclaimed Mr. Cannon! "Ye gods! how economical I was then! A nickel looked bigger than a double gold eagle does now, and I am not extravagant today, t wanted to study law and get ahead and I saved every cent How closely I saved you may know when I tell you that for five years I received $1000 in wages, an average of ?4 a week, and I saved just half of that The result was that I had $500 when I stopped clerking. I lived upon that while I studied law. "That saving taught me the uses and value of money," continued Mr. Cannon: 'It gave me habits which enabled me to pay the debts incurred in the dull season of my law study and early practice. It caused me to Invest my surplus thereafter, with the result that wherf I went to Con gress I had what was then considered a good income outside my salary. 'Could you not live upon your salary while in Congress?" was asked.' I have not done so," was the reply. "I have lived well, although not extrava gantly. My expenses have been about twice as much as the amount received from the Government. Nevertheless those Investments made In the days of my law practice, owing to the rise In farm lands and other things, have made it so that I could now leave off public life and be comfortably off. I don't mean that I would be a rich man in the present sense of the word, but I would have enough for all my needs." The Prime of Life at Sixty-Eight. "You are too young a man, Mr. Speaker, to think of retiring. You seem to be In your prime." If a man Is as old as he feels," said Mr. Cannon, "I am still In my prime. I am 68, but I have never felt better, phys ically or mentally. I work more easily and can handle men better than In the past How long this will last I do not know:, but there are many men in public The Responsibility of the Train Dispatcher What Duties Arc Required of the Man "Who Must Keep Traffic Moving;. THE position of train dispatcher is certainly the most responsible one connected with the transportation department. It Is Indispensable that they be first-class telegraph operators; must be thoroughly posted on the rules and regulations governing the movements of trains, and must have a clear head and, what is most essential, to know how to retain their coolness under the most try ing circumstances. He should be consid erate of the feelings of those who, for th8 time being, are placed under his orders. While strictly maintaining discipline, he should be affable to all other employes with whom he may come in contact. He should not scold trainmen, englnemen or Operators for apparent shortcomings. There is a trainmaster or assistant su perintendent who will do all the "glnnlng up" which may be necessary. The grumpy dispatcher will never meet with that measure of success which attends the efforts of the affable, cheery fellow, pro vided that the ability of the one approxi mates that of the other. But here are a few of the bits of knowledge he must have at his fingers' ends, and not only must he know but he must know how to apply his knowledge to the best advan tage. He must be familiar with and have in his mind's eye at all times when on duty, the topography and conditions obtaining upon the particular division of the road with which he may be connected. He should know every grade, curve, bridge, Water tank, junction, sidetrack and sta tion on his division; know to a nicety how many cars each siding will hold; the ca pacity of every engine and capability of every engineer and conductor for "getting "over the road." Weather conditions are also controlling factors which govern his judgment in handling trains. An engine, the hauling capacity of which, under fa vorable conditions, may be 5000 tons, might not be able to handle 1000 tons, or even less, during a snow storm. There are from two to 50 wires strung along the right of way of all railways, a cer tain number of which are assigned to the railway company for their own use, the remainder being for the use of the tele graph company which owns those wires and which has been granted a right of way along the railway, but In case of storm or accident. If only one wire re mains In working order, "that one must be turned over to the train dispatcher. On life older than I who arc still doing good work. Senators Frye and Proctor are 73; Cullom, the chairman of the foreign re lations committee of the Senate, Is 74, while Allison and Hoar are each 75. All these men are more efficient than they have ever been. The length of a man's working life is largely a matter of Indi vidual constitution. Some are older at 30 than others are at 60. If the Lord should give me threescore or even four score years of working life I shall be glad. I should like to remain upon this earth as long as I can be useful to my self and my fellows, and no longer. When I begin to fall I want to retire. I don't want to cumber the ground." Uncle Sam and .His Hemisphere. The conversation here turned to public questions, and I asked Speaker Cannon his opinion as to the future of the United States. He re"plied: "The future of this country Is the future of the world's civilization. This Is the great breeding ground for the best of the human race. It is the source of that ele ment which does things, controls things, creates things. We have 80,000,000 people now. Within another 100 years we shall have" 300,000,000, and will have spread be yond our borders on the north and south. the train wire the dispatcher holds un limited and unquestionad sway. His or ders must be promptly and correctly obeyed. All surface roads have a time table which shows In the middle col umn all stations and sidings and the distance between one and the other. On one side of the middle column, a col umn for each, is shown each train go ing In a certain direction, and on the other side is shown each train go ing in the opposite direction. Each train is numbered (the odd numbers move In one direction and the even in the oppo site), and the time of arriving at, or leav ing each station is given for each train. Trains are usually divided into two or more classes, as: First class, pas senger trains; second class, mixed, or accommodation trains, and third, freight trains. If it should be neces sary to run trains other than as pro vided for In the time-card, they are made a section of a regular train, or as an "extra" or "special," and have no rights whatever, except what may be conferred by special order of the train dispatcher, and must keep en tirely out of the way of all trains which appear on the time-card. When trains are on time and no extras on the road, the lot of the dispatcher is rather an easy one, but when trains are late and extras or specials are run ning, then he has troubles of his own. He must see to it that passenger trains arc not delayed by reason of waiting for freight or other trains. He must also remember that stock, tea, silk and other fast trains are not unnecessarily delayed through his orders. Sometimes solid trains of tea, silk or other Ori ental commodities aro sent out from Pacific terminals In solid trains, and the word Is given out that they "must be rushed through." The dispatcher who is unfortunate enough to seriously delay one of these trains must appear on "the carpet" be fore "the old man" and show him. What comes nearest to breaking his heart is to have a washout or a snow blockade on his division. Then it Is as unsafe to bother him as to beard the savage Hon in his lair. The superintendent must be Informed as to any and every change in the situation; he must keep in touch with master mechanic and roundhouse foremen, advising them when possible In advance as to possi ble needs for motive power. In unset tled weather he must call up every , hour, or instruct operators to report , CONGRESSMAN JOSEPH CANNON, SPEAKER. OF THE By the close of this century we. Americans will dominate this continent and this hemisphere. We will have passed beyond Mexico, Central America and the Isthmus of Panama, and will have ' Inclosed all So.uth America In the grasp of our in fluence. "By this I do not mean that we will un dertake the political government of the South American republics. I do riot mean that we will hold them as we now hold our colonies, nor even as Cuba, which is to some extent a dependency of ours. But I do mean that American' capital and Americans will have so settled them selves In our sister continent that the day of revolutions and nonprogress will have passed away. In the Munroe Doctrine we have established the fact that no European power shall ever acquire any new territory in South America. That doctrine will always prevail. There may be European immigration, but those Euro peans who go t(j South America must be come South Americans, and this, with the great overflow of our people to that country, means that they will become a part of the world dominated by our Ideas and the spirit of our civilization," "How about Canada, Mr. Speaker?" "Canada is already almost a part of the United States. It may remain still tied to England in a nominal way, but as time hourly as to the state of the weather, and he must arrange his. plans ac cordingly. It Is the dispatcher who takes the trick from midnight until 8 A. M., however, who has the greatest responsibility of all, for the reason that he Is entirely alone and has not the advantage of the dispatcher who works from 8 A.M. until 4 P. M., or he who fills in from that timo until midnight in having,the advice and assistance of the chief dispatcher, trainmaster or superintendent. He is placed entirely upon his own resources and must exercise his own gray matter until, If the situation is serious enough to warrant It, one of those officers appears In answer to his summons. The chief dispatcher generally arranges the pro gramme for the night before he leaves for his home. This Is always done when practicable. On hilly or mountainous roads, what are known as helping en gines are stationed at points where they can be used to greatest advantage In as sisting trains over heavy grades, and an accident or even considerable delay to one train alter the programme has been ar ranged for the night might result in the disarrangement of the plans for the entire night and, exactly as in chess, the situ ation must again be carefully studied out and other plans formulated, which may also In turn be destroyed by adverse clr cumstances.Jbut he must bear In mind the essentials of getting all trains over the road with the least possible delay consist ent with safety and with the least pos sible expense. A good dispatcher will more than earn his monthly salary in a single night by a careful disposition of his helpers. When regular trains become late, as Is also the case when extras or specials are running, the dispatcher changes the established "meeting points" of regular trains and Sakes other and arbitrary meeting points, arranges for opposing trains, as well as those running In the same direction to use a certain portion of the time of the be lated train or trains, as for Instance: No. 3, a passenger train becomes one bour and 15 or 20 minutes late, and there are other trains which cannot move without en croaching upon the time of that train, the dispatcher first puts out orders to No. 3, and to all trains which it is nec essary to help by a time order, which will be somethlngvlike the following: Train No. 3 will run 55 minutes from Jlmtownto Janesvllle (generally a stretch of 40 or 50 miles, thus allowing No. 3 some margin for making up time), This jorder is signed .1 ' s-i ''P. . . - v HOUSE. goes on it will become American in sym pathy and more and more American in population and industry. Canada is one of the growing countries of this time. I look for an enormous emigration there from the United .States. It Is a land of vast undeveloped resources, which are to be opened up by our people." "I suppose that the future of the United States will be confined to this continent?" said I. "Yes, to a great extent," said Mr. Can non, "but we are now a world Nation and we are reaching out in "every direction and across every sea. The earth is old, but it is hardly touched as far as modern development Is concerned. There are vast areas of new country in South Amer ica; Africa is still an unknown continent, and so is almost the whole of Northern Asia. The world is said to have 1,500,000.000 people. There is room upon it for double that number, and many parts of it will support ten which now support one." "Then you do not believe in the Mal thusian theory?" "No, it will be a long time before wars or pestilence will be needed to restrict the world's population." "I suppose you look upon the United States, as pretty well filled now?" "Not at all. We have only SO.000,000 and by Intensive cultivation we could sup by the dispatcher in the name of the su perintendent, trainmaster or other officer named-in the rules and regulations. This order is first repeated by the operator at the station at which it has been sent for train No. 3. The repetition of this order by the operator is an acknowledg ment by the operator that he will hold No. 3 until he has delivered that order to the conductor of that train who will sign his name If he understands the order. The operator will then transmit to the dis patcher, the signature of the conductor, and the order will then be completed or "O. K'd." The other trains involved are not necessarily held up awaiting the sig nature of the conductor of No. 3, but as soon as the first operator has repeated the order concerning No. 3 the dispatcher will at once start any other train against the time deducted from No. 3. The -manifold system of train orders is now uni formly used by nearly every railway sys tem In this country. The principle thereof is that when it becomes necessary to issue an order concerning more than one train, that order shall be transmitted simulta neously to each and every train Involved. This practically eliminates every element of risk as far as the dispatcher is con cerned. The signal "os." Is used by operators to attract the attention of the dispatcher to the fact that he is about to report on the wire the arrival or departure of a train at or from his station. This report the dis patcher enters upon what is known as a train sheet which Is made up at midnight daily and which is framed In principle just like a timecard. This shows to the man on duty the position (referring to telegraph stations! of every moving train or'engine upon the division, and enables him to Issue his orders understanding. Work Without Hope. Sampcl Taylor Coleridge. All Nature seems at work. Slugs leave their lair The bees are stirring birds are on the wing And "Winter, slumbering In the open air, "Wears on his smiling face a dream of Spring "Wears on his smiling face a dream of Spring! And I, the while, thhe sole unbusy thing. Nor honey make, nor pair, nor build, nor zing. Yet well I ken the banks where amaranths blow. Have traced the fount whence streams of nectar flow. Bloom, O ye amaranths! bloom for whom ye may. For me ye bloom not! Glide, rich streams, away! "With lips unbrlghten'd, wreathless brow, 1 stroll: And would yon learn the spells that drowse my soul? "Work without Hope draws nectar in a sieve, And Hop. without an objent cannot live. port ten times that number. It is said that Texas alone would feed the United States. And then our mineral resources. The country hag not been scratched and we do not know what we have under the soil. We are already the greatest manufac turing Nation of the world, producing more than Germany. France and England, our three greatest competitors. We send only 3 per cent of what we make abroad, but that 3 per cent forms 29 per cent of our exports, and we are now the greatest ex nnrtinp Nation on earth. Indeed, we make one-fourth of all the factory goods made' by the world. "The basis-of our manufactures is our home-market," continued, the Speaker. "I want to see this protected in every pos sible way, for It is the foundation of our prosperity and of our enormous possibili ties. There Is no market like this. We Tiavp mnrp! wants than anv Other ueODle. nnd snpnri mnrn mnnev to satlsfv them. We consume three times as much per capita as the people of Europe. Our SO.COO.COO in that respect are equal -to any other 200,000,000. We are equal as con sumers to two-thirds of ail tne peopie oi Europe. This market we must keep to rturnAlirno anil the tnrlrr miisr Dfi SO ad justed that there will be no danger of losing It" Great Fortunes and Their Dangers. "I know we are rich, Mr. Speaker. But are we not growing too rich? Are you not alarmed at the growth of the great Ameri can fortunes?" "No. Most of our great fortunes have come from small beginnings. They are the result of the brains and Industry of the men who own them, and when their owners die they will soon disappear. I know many of the multi-millionaires of today. "Take Marshall Field. When I first saw him he was a boy clerking In a store. He Is worth many millions now. John Rocke feller, who started life poor, is said to be worth hundreds of millions, and the same Is true of Andrew Carnegie and others. When those men die they cannot earry a dollar away with them. Naked came they into the world and naked shall they de part from it That fact exists today as it did at the time of the Scriptures." Yes," said I, "but the fortunes still re main in the families." "Not long," replied Mr. Cannon. "It is an old saying that it Is just three gen erations from shirt sleeves to shirt sleeves. It is impossible to tie up fortunes so that they will remain long in the hands of one's descendants. You may remember the case of old Thulleson, who died about 200 years ago. That man was enormously rich for his day and he willed his fortune so that it should be kept intact and In vested and reinvested for generations, and at the end divided among his heirs. His will was contested again and again, but in vain. The result was that the English Parliament made a law that no man could dispose of his property for longer than the lives of his descendants in be ing and for 21 years thereafter. That law has been adopted by nearly every other country. It is a part of the laws of ev ery one of our states. Taxes for the Rich. 'Such things, however, are, after all, in the hands of the people," continued the Speaker. "It is they who make the laws regulating the accumulation and continu ance of wealth. In many of our states there are now Inheritance taxes graded according to the size of the estates of the deceased. There may be no tax at all on the first $20,000, 1 per cent on the second $20,000, 2 per cent on the third, 3 on the next, 4 on the next and 5 per cent on all of the estates above $100,000. The people can If they will increase the amount of taxes paid according to the bulk of the property owned by the Individual tax payer. I do not say' that they should do so, but they have the power, and If at any time great fortunes become danger , ous, some way will be found to reduce or distribute them. "Do not misunderstand me," said Mr. Cannon. "I do not deprecate great for tunes. So far I think they have been for the good of the people. It requires great capital to do great things, and the masses are enormously benefited by the enter prises of the rich. I am only saying that the people have the power, and that, after all, the future Is in their own hands." The Government and Its Expenses. "It seems to many, both rich and poor, Mr. Speaker, that our taxes are very heavy now. Are you not alarmed at the increasing expenditures of the Govern ment?" "No. We spent last year in round num bers something like $700,000,000, or o'ver $2, 000,000 for each working day of the year. The sum Is enormous, hut you must re member that this Is an enormous country, doing an enormous business. Our business Is growing much faster than our popula tion. According to the postal receipts it has increased 1700 per cent since I860 and It has doubled within the past ten years. We are also doing more In the work of human progress than any other nation on Mrs. Maybr ick First Sang 'The Holy Gty" This Famous Song; Was Composed by the Brother of Her Murdered Husband Jerusalem! Jerusalem! Hear the angels sing: Hosanna In the highest, Hosanna to the King. ST IS not difficult to imagine Mrs. Flor ence Maybrick, once sentenced to death for the murder of her husband and now released, after spending many years In an English prison, singing the refrain of Stephen Adam's popular sacred song. "The Holy City." says the New York Sun. But it is not generally known that hers was the voice which first gave utterance to the strains which were des tined to become as world famous as those of Sir Arthur Sullivan's "The Lost Chord," or "The Palms," by Faure. The song was the work of the younger brother of the man Mrs. Maybrick was convicted of poisoning. Its composer was her most relentless enemy and was main ly instrumental In securing her convic tion. Few English composers have more suc cessful songs to their credit than Stephen Adams. Few have made such a fortune out of royalties as he. It has been stated that "Nancy Lee' alone netted him a quarter of a million dollars. His "War rior Bold," "Mldshipmlte" and "Blue Al satian Mountains" were scarcely less suc cessful. He Is now extremely wealthy, a Justice of the Peace and a member of the "Vic toria Yacht Club, and he has served two terms as Mayor of Ryde, Isle of Wight In which capacity he has frequently en tertained the King of England. "Stephen Admas" is merely the name under which Michael Maybrick publishes his songs. Mr. Maybrick began his musical career as a baritone singer at local con certs around Liverpool. He Is the son of a well-to-do shipping agent of Liverpool. He and his brother were widely dis similar In tastes, character and physique. The elder was a weakling, feeble of mind and body, a hypochondriac, addicted to the use of drugs and with a mind fixed upon commercial enterprises. The younger Michael, was a magnificent speciment of humanity, tall, broad and athletic. Of artistic temperament, he quit the counting-house and studied music in Milan and Lelpslc. The elder remained at home, always ailing, always scheming to secure more wealth. Tiie' brothers had .only ana trait in earth, and, whether willingly or-not. as we ourselves are concerned, our sphere Is constantly widening. We have become a world power and we must accept the responsibilities of a world" power. We must have a- strong Army and Navy, not to wage war but to insure peace and to be ready for emergencies if they should come. I don't believe the people object to heavy expenditures if such expenditures are needed and the money Is properly han dled." "But Is it so handled, Mr. Speaker? Some people thing that a great part of it goes into theTiands of the officials." "That is not true," was the reply "There may be, and doubtless are, public officials here and there who forfeit their trust, but they are very few. The ma jority of the men In the service of the Government are earnest, honest and more economical as to Government expenses than they are of their own expenses. I be lieve that the standard of official morality Is higher every year. I have no sympathy with the idea that the country is going to . the devil. Our people are better, purer and stronger than in the past, and the trend of public and private life Is up ward." . The Campaign of 1904. The conversation here turned to the Presidential race, and I asked Mr. Can non If he though the Republicans would have a "walkover." "There are no 'walkovers' in our Presi dential contests," said the Speaker of the House of Representatives. "Parties are too evenly divided. Indeed, a change of 2 per cent in the vote will almost always throw the election to one party or the other. I think that the Republicans will win both the Presidency and the House of Representatives, but they will not do It on the walk. They will have to fisht steadily from now until the election. The Democrats have a permanent asset in the solid South, and this gives them the odds at the start" "Why would you not consent to be a candidate for the Vice-Presidential nomi nation, Mr. Cannon?" I asked. "Why should I wish to be?" replied the Speaker. "I am a member of the House of Representatives, and in my opinion the weakest and least efficient member of that body has a more desirable place than has the Vice-President of the United States. "The Representative can do things; he can vote and have an effect on legisla tion. The Vice-President is merely a fig urehead, whose possibilities are all in the dread future of the death of the Presi dent. He Is the presiding officer of the Senate; but the Senate has so hedged Itself about with rules that the Vice-President has no power whatever. He has only the appointment of a rlvate secretary, a messenger and a page; that is all." Mr. Cannon and the Speakership. "How do you regard the Speakership?" "It Is a very Important office and one of' great power and influence. It rank3 next to the Presidency among the public offices, for the Speaker is the head of the House of Representatives, which is the chief originating, creating and working branch of our National Legislature." "Do you like the place?" "Yes. I feel honored by the confidence expressed by electing me to It" "But does It not worry you? The pres sure of public business must be enor- mous." "les, there is plenty to do." replied the Speaker, "but I have always been a busy man and I think I was more busy at the head of the appropriations committee than I am now as Speaker, -is to worry, I do not worry about anything. What Is the use of that? I do the thing that Is be fore me as well as I can, and then take up what comes next." The Presidential Bee. "I should like to ask you, Mr. Speaker. If you have any ambition to go higher. Would you not be glad to be President of the United States?" "Glad to be President of the United States!" said Mr. Cannon. "Of course, I should be glad to be President If the peo ple wanted me and thought me fit for the election. There is no American capable of filling that place who would not be glad to have It The President of our people ranks higher In my mind than any monarch who sit a throne, and as things go today he has more power than any ruler on earth. Any one would be glad to be President" "I do not mean by this that I am tor mented with such an ambition. I thank God that the Presidential bee has never hummed about my head. Its poisonous sting has never inoculated my veins and I hope it never will. I have known many politicians who have been so stung. Some are dead and some are living still. None, however, ever recovered. The blood of the man so attacked becomes contami nated, and he carries the attendant am bitions, anxieties and disappointments with him to his grave." (Copyright, 1004.) J-KAiMv. li. CARPENTER. common. They were both enthusiastic yachtsmen. Mrs. Maybrick was a good musician, had a great liking for music, an excellent voice and a love of convlvlalty. Thus she drow together to some extent the broth ers who had drifted apart. Her husband owned a line yacht, a feature of which was a music saloon. There many well-known singers and mu sicians were entertained. Michael May brick. who had just leaped into fame as the composer of "Nancy Lee," but a3 yet had not gathered in enough of the profits to indulge his passion for owning a yacht, was a frequent guest. It was on one of these musical even ings, while the yacht was anchored in the Mersey, that Michael Maybrick produced from his pocket a manuscript song which he said he had written that afternoon, while dreaming the time away in his cabin, and listening to the plash of the waters. He had caught the Inspiration of Weatherly's words, but the voice part only had been jotted down. The accom paniment had still to be filled in. Sitting at the piano, he vamped an in troduction and asked his sister-in-law, Mrs. Florence Maybrick, to sing "The Holy City" from the voice part. She was an excellent reader, and readily did this, he filling in an extemporized accompani ment Thus it was her voice which, for the first time, stirred the air with strains destined to become almost classic. It was some years after the trial of Mrs. Maybrick, and while she was shut off from the world, burled within prison walls, that "The Holy City" was pub lished and became popular. Publishers to whom it was submitted shook their heads and declared it too sombre in character and tone. "Bring us another 'Nancy Lee-, " they said, "and name your own price. Another waltz song with the swing of 'The Blue Alsatian Mountains' would be a sure win ner. This is very fine, but it Isn't in the Stephen Adams style, and the public would not stand for it." How erroneous was the judgment of those gentlemen has been proved by the popularity of the song. Before a year had passed they were clamoring for more of similar character "The Star of Bethle hem." "The Valley of the Sea," and "Children of the'Clty" followed: but none of them equaled the success atalned by the song which, was first sung by Mrs. MavhrlcJc ...