OCR Text |
Show The Strong and Picturesque Characters Encountered En-countered at the National Capital. . , WALTEE WELLMAN'S DESCRIPTION He Writes of Ex-Senator Palmer, Geo. E, Davifi President Roberts and : ' Others. ' ' ' ' WAsnwmi Sept. S The World's fair at Chicago is bringing to the front some interesting men. No more attractive attract-ive and picturesque personality can be found anywhere than that of ex-Senator Palmer, president of the Columbian exposition. ex-position. What I like about the ex-senatorand I discover that others like in Lim the same thing is his strong Americanism. Amer-icanism. II is an American of the Americans. Ho -km in Washington a ftiw days ago, where he dined with the president and renewed his youth with all bis old friends. Somo one akcd him how ho had liked it .over in Spain, whence he returned a few months ngo, after resigning his post as minister to JIadrid. "Oh," replied this thorough American, "Europe is in a comatose condition, I cannot jmagine why au American should want to live in Europe. It is a country that is asleop. When I returned I began to look for land two or three days before it was due. I was so eager to see America Amer-ica again that it seemed tome I could not wait. When off Hundy Hook we first saw land I was tempted to throw myself in the water, swim ashore and Vmry'ny body in the soil of America. But of course I resisted the temptation. Wiien I left this country to go to Spain I promised the president I would be gone nt least a year. Between my departure nnd my return there wero jiint a year :uid three d:iys, and I have been regret- for Mr. Davis is a remarkable leader and organizer of men, a matchless business executive, master of himself and others. It is intersting to watch the strong men who come np into prominence through politics and, finally tinti? of that, become money makers. Col. Davis will turn to money getting if hobo not mado director general of tho World's fair. Ex-Senator Flatt has paid more attention to business than to politics for several years. Mr. Clarksou is likely to go into some largo business enterprises as soon as he can get out of office. The railroads of the country swallow up a large part of tho best business talent we have. It is surprising how rapidly somo of our brainy young .nen develop in the railroad field. Ten or twelve years ago I was out on the frontier of Nebraska, and riding one day in the caboose of a freight train I asked somo questions of the conductor, who seemed to be a bright young man. Three years ago I again visited Nebraska, and found that young man, Holcomb by name, the general manager of all the Burlington lines in Nebraska, with probably 1,000 miles of road under his control. A few months ago a boyish looking man appeared before the house committee commit-tee on railways to give evidence in the matter of the proposed law mpiiring railway companies to equip their freight cars with automatic couplings. He was introduced to the committee as Mr. Brown, of Burlington, and as he began to talk a member of the committee whispered whis-pered to one of his colleagues: "Don't believe wo shall get much information out of that yoiuig fellow. He's a brake-man, brake-man, isn't he?" But in a few minutes it was seen that the young man not only knew what, he was talking about, but that he had a singularly clear and direct manner of saying what he had to say. A little later and he had the close attention atten-tion of every man in the room, for it was apparent that he was a master of the science of railroading in all its branches. For an hour he talked and answered questions, and gave the committee a keener insight into the wonderful development devel-opment the mechanics of railway have experienced than any of them had ever had before. "You seem to know your trade pretty well," remarked Congressman Hill, of Illinois, after the final hearing was over; "have we not met before?"' "I think we have." repliod Mr. Brown: ting those throe flays ever since. Hero in Washington we hear some talk about fho election of a director general gen-eral for the World's fair. An impression impres-sion prevails in some quarters that that great office may be given to Col. Oeorgo il. Davis, of Chicago, who is another of the interesting men often seen in Washington. Wash-ington. It was he who with marvelous "it was thirteen years ago, in your town of Joliet. There had been an accident on the gravel train on which I was working, work-ing, and you came np and asked me some questions." "You were then working on a gravel train?" "Yes, sir." "And what are you doing now?" Mr. Brown uiodently handed the congressman con-gressman his card. It read: "Superintendent "Superin-tendent of C, B. and Q. lines in Iowa." Hince that day thin young man, who went through all the stages of railroading, railroad-ing, and who can make a coupling, run a locomotive, build a bridge or manage 10,fK)0 employes, has been promoted to control of the Kanaas City lines of tho , great Burlington syateni. Down at Cajie May a -week or two ago I met President Roberts, of the Pennsylvania Penn-sylvania railroad. Here was a man who had started out twenty or thirty years ago as a track hand and who had come up through the mechanical and tho executive ex-ecutive branches of tho business to bo tho president of tho greatest railway in the world. His salaries for he has several sev-eral as president of the throe or fourcor-jiorntions fourcor-jiorntions which are in the Pennsylvania system aggregate $100,000 a year. Mr. Koberts allows the effect of his early training in the strong love which he has for the details of railroading. Where one would think his conversation would be of the large phases of the business, of the finances, of the building of new lines, he speaks most of new inventions, now methods of ' bookkoeping, o the rate sheets, and of the countless details of the work. "Possibly he pays too much attention to details," said ono gentleman. "No," replied another, who knew the president well, "he does not. It waa close attention to details that made him what he is. To this day lie has a fondness fond-ness for going out on the line, watching the tracks, noting tho condition of cars, awitches, buildings, and for taking a look in tho offices to soe how the boys do their work. Tho great financier gives his attention to stocks and bonds. The great railroader knows his road as the fond proprietor of a villa knows his front yard." Another railroad man whom I met at Capo May is George Boyd, tho assistant passenger agent of the Poniisylvaniii. Probably if a vote of tho traveling public pub-lic could be taken on tho most popular railroad man in the country Mr. Boyd would win the prize. Unlike most men who have wide popularity, he is remarkably remark-ably efficient. It was Mr. Boyd who planned that greatest of railway journeys, jour-neys, the tour of the Pan-American congress. con-gress. To his ingenui ty , energy and tact many of the improvements in modern railroadiug which have tended to make travel more comfortable than staying at homo aro due. Not many years ago for he is still young Mr. Boyd began railroading as a clerk in a freight office at Indiunapolis at a salary of $:io a month. Some time probably he will be president of tho Pennsylvania. Another interesting man whom I often see in Washington is Col. A. L. Conger, of Akron, O. Ho is a tvpe of the ideal business men and men of affairs who in this country usually onme from the farm. He is also a type of tho politician of tho sort spoken of by Piatt and CJarkson in thertr recent articles politicians who learn and teach lessons of life in working work-ing for others and not for themselves. Col. Conger was a poor boy on a farm. He has forced his way to the front till now he ife not only a millionaire, but one of the potent men of a great political party. Walter Wkllmas. skill and energy so managed Chicago s campaign for the fair that Chicago won without much difficulty. Now that ex-Scuator T. C. Piatt and First Assistant Assist-ant Postmaster General Clarksou are writing articles to show tho great value of political training in building up small men, I am tempted to cite this Col. Davis as a type of tho successful American who makes politics his profession. For years Mr. Davis has been in Chicago what was known as a political boss. His party par-ty was in the supremacy, and ho was dominant in his party. To illustrate the notions of my friends Piatt and Clark-son Clark-son that a political boss may be a citizen citi-zen of high character with great influence in-fluence for good government, I quote a conversation with Col. Duvis. I had asked him how ho had managed so long to main tain himself. . "It was not an easy thing to do," he replied. "The only way in which any man can succeed in that profession or trade, as in other walks of life, is to struggle always for the best. Being a political boss is like commanding an army in the field. One must win bat- , ties, bring results, in order to keep the pnblio satisfied. That is, he must Viva good government. To maintain discipline disci-pline and harmony in the ranks one must be a tyrant. I often laugh as I think of the experiences I have had. For instance, a man came to'me with a proposition that he be nominated for a certain high nflic.0 in thecity. Ho wanted ' my help. 'Very wf'll,' said I. 'Before j making any promises 1 must ask you some questions.' And then I catechised htm. I asked him where he was born, what his parents were, what ha did as a boy, us a youth, about his education, his lovo affairs, his marriage, his business busi-ness experiences, his habits, his experience expe-rience iu politic, his religion and so on. In short, I asked him to bare his whole, life's history to me. Several times his pride revolted, and rising from his chair declared ho had not come to be cross questioned, to have his private life inquired in-quired iuto. 'Very well,' I remarked, 'then you cannot be nominated. I am only doing what the public will do when you are a candidate. If you do not care to be thus scrutinized, to be thns searched with an electrio light, stuy out of politics. poli-tics. And I charge you, as you valne ywur reputation and success, to answer me truthfully.' "To shorten iny story," continued Col. Davis, "the gentleman satudied me on all poiutH. I could not find a flaw iu liia record. Ho seemed impregnable. It was humiliating to him to be thus questioned, and it was not ploasnut for me, but it had to be done. It was one of the mien of my political work never to permit a man to be nominated for office, if I could prevent it, who was lacking in any way, who was unfit, who waa likely to prove a load to carry instead in-stead of a source of strength. A civil service examination was as nothing compared com-pared to the scrutiny to which my men were subjected. All this shows you the power, tlio responsibility of a political po-litical loader. He must be a tyrant in order to be successful, and all his efforts, ail his precaution tend toward better government and better bet-ter citizenship. Man learn that they t must have led blameless lives, that they must have character and capacity before be-fore they can aspire to oDice through the help of one whom the world calls 'a boss.' They learn, moreover, that they must be true to themselves and to each other. Bad faith, treachery, light regard re-gard for one's word quickly destroy a man in politics. Such was the case with ruy friend of whom I have boon speaking. speak-ing. I had him nominated for office and elected. He served a term and was a good officer. We put him up a second time, and then a discovery wax made. Tho electric search light of public scrutiny scru-tiny developed that he had lied to me in that first interview. He had covered up the wet point, au'd now that it was laid bare defeat was the punishment." This glimpse of the life of a political boss may be of service to-some of ns who have been in the habit of Bruspecting, despising political leaders, and Ctd. Davis is himself witness of the truth of the theory advanced by Piatt and Clark-eon Clark-eon that active work in politics tends to btuM-BP etaraoter and add to capacity, j |