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Show I Swan Interviews McKinley By O. A. Kenned Swan Swanson wanted letter vvrlt-ten vvrlt-ten to the Hon. Secretary of the In-terlor. In-terlor. It was in regard to grafting lands. I suggested that a man With I sheep on a thousand hills would do well to cultivate the local land iffi-i lals and that the honorable land I n.mmipsloner would probabh be the ; i . - 1 arbiter of his case. . ' Xothlng doing, ' said Swan I lng a number twelve shoe to ni dock "i never waste time on clerks and uiuler-strappers If you want to get I lick action go right to the main gUV, nn man it the top, and let htm call In the little fellers, if he wants to." I suggested that a secretin v of the H interior was of necessity a very busy. "Not loo busy to act on an impor-j tknt case like mine. Anyhow, what makes him busy" Why, lell.rs like me If I don t help keep him busy, feme other geezer will, so there you are Besides, these big fellers like to, have you bring your troubles to them. Thev like Are you sure of that"' I asked. I 1 ' "Of course, I've talked with lota of: them, senators, governors and presidents, presi-dents, and they are all Just human be-j ings like the rest of us, and they like to bo treated like human iicii.K-, i. plied putting the other number twelve shoe beside the first upon my LLB desk. Vou see." he went on, a man be- I g,ns to rise In the world. s.i an a poll- tlclan. He is elected a member of the H iwgislature. People see him coming H ii i ,i thev step back and km out of his way anil say: That's Brown stats H senator from this county . and after a H while he is elected to congress and people whisper as he K'"-- bj and saj There goes Brown, member of con- H And thev are afraid to talk to him j H because he is such a big man and H when thev do talk to him because he H a such a big man they are afraid to H tell him the truth for fear he may not H like It. and they don t like to take up H so much Of his valuable time and they H rush away before he has got through H with all he has got to say. H 'So the higher up he goe.. the more; they step back and leave aim alone H and the more he feels that he would lke to tulk to just common folks like """ be used to when he wasn't no proini- H nent It must b,. awful lonesome to be president of the l nlted 8tatea." H "Did you pay you had talked with B tome presidents'"' I asked. HBhj "Sure! I shook hands with Teddy, H a couple of times ami with old Gen.; H l.issus Grant once when I was a boy.1 fl and I had a long talk with McKinley H time." H I was skeptical. Swan had been H Known to prevaricate Ht rare Intervals, H so I said 'When did you ever talk H with McKinley"' H ' "Oh. let's SSC, mused Swan, "It was H during the Spanish war. or right away. H koon after (hnt 1 had to 'ni- H tago with sheep and stopped over In ' H imaha during a big doin'a th y have inem every year and McKinley was H there to make a speech. The reception commutes met liim H at the depot and there was a long, H string of carrlagea with the tops let down, you know, and the mounted po- 1 B lice and militia and brass hands. Mc Kinley w aa in a carriage seated beside a governor, or something, and oppo-site oppo-site to htm Aaa a mayor and a set. ret H service man and there was mounted 1 H militia all around the carriage H "And every body h ered aim hr.ts and flags and McKinley kept lifl- lng his hat and bowing right and left and smiling, and wh a thev got right H opposite to where I was fl something on ahead happened to bloi the street so the carnage J was in was stopped right th' i ( H "Weill the crowil from behind tsh- H cd us people nut Into the middle Of the street and 1 was In the front row and. the first thing 1 know I was right i against the bind wheel of McKlnlej s carriage and not more than a foot from him. H "He was u small man and when he H was seated in the carriage 1 could look , right Into his yes. and he turned hla head and looked at me and 1 loi I at him and he looked so frlendlj l couldn't resist the. temptation and 1 Just reached out m hand and slapped him on the back and I -says, 'Hello, I Billy, old boy. how are you? H "Well, sir, you never see a tickleder ! man than little Mac. He just laughed all over his face and he grabbed hold I bt my hand and Just shook and shook' and shook You can tell if a man I means it when he shakes hands and he H says How do you do, sir! I am glad1 to meet you, sir. What is your name?' j, and kept on shaking my hand. H "And you ought to have seen the J way them other tallows In the carriage H looked at me when I slapped the presl- I dent Of the United Stales on the bark If looks could kiir You'd ha i thought H I had broke a light In a i house. B "The secret service man Jumped' straight up. and the governor trie fl IbOO me away, and a couple of mount- J cd militia spurred their horses Into the! H crowd and forced tnem back, but 1 i H stepped between the wheels and thej j couldn't get between me and the pics-; 1 Anyhow. 1 was talking to McKlnh H and he was talking to n I Bays to H him, 'Billy, you are giving ue a rat-H rat-H tllng good administration and the peo-i H pie right back of you.' H " 'I am vury glad to hear that.' he H Suva, 'very glad Indeed,' and the gov -Hi einoi or mayor tried to cut in with Hl remark but Mac only saga !yes'! HHHHh lo him and then he asked me my name HHVHfl i.nd where I was from and I tobl him 1 was dwaa tiwanson from Utah. I le aakd my business and 1 told him sheep' and then he asked whj 1 kind I preferred and just ther, HHVHb carriage started to move mid I had to jump to get out of the way of the wheel, but McKinley shook hands and I bid me goodbye " HH Say, Swan,'' I said, do you mean to tell me that really happened?" HjHjHjHjj "Cross my heart " replied Swan j I've got eh Omaha paper that tells about It with my picture in. And that ain't all. The procession moved up i about fifty feet and then something H stopped It aaln After a minute or I (wo I see McKinley turning asound in I his seat and looking back and, being tail f r than the most of people, he saw in" and he motioned for me to comt So I steppod out into the street and I t alked right up to the president's car- ! Mage On account of the militiamen I had lo come up on the other side from whers the president sat. "That secret service man, he Just glared, and so did the governor and j mayor, or whatever they was. but llt-j llt-j He Mac leaned over and he says. 'You 1 d'dn t finish telling me what kind of sheep you consider the most proflt- aide. Mr. Swanson.' J "1 told him 1 preferred Hamboull- 1 lets, but most flockmasters out our Jl way waji strong for Southdowns. Then j He ask What do you figure It costs HHHHHJ you a pound for your wool''' told 3 Kim ten i o twelve cents." j ' Then.' he says. 'Mr. Swanron. a what In your opinion would be tL ef- 2 f i t on the Industry to repeal the tariff HHjjHHJ H Billy says, It would sure knock 1 11 seven ways for breakfast HjHjHjHH " Do think so?' he says jVjVHH "'I know it.' told him, 1 have jHjHjfAV been raising wool since I was jVjVjVjfJ boy and it can't be did for than. HHHHH rents a H 'I am very glad to get those fig ures,' he says, 'I shall have occasion lo use them I am -very glad always to got to talk to a man who knows ' "Then the carriage started again and he shook hands again and so did the governor and the mayor, but that secret service man you bet your life he n cr shook hands " "Now Swan. " 1 said, "look me in the eye. Is this all true?" 'Every blasted word," he declared. ' It was in the papers. 1 toll you. W hen Mac's carriage drove off. I felt some one pulling my coat and here was a little fellow with a note book and a pencil In his hands ' 'What's your name, please?" he says 'What In blazes Is that any busl-m-ss of yours'." I says " 'You were talking to the president, presi-dent, he says What the devil is that to you"' I says I've a right to talk to him! 'Where are you from"' he savst That's none of your business, either,' I told him. And then I BSS that he was writing down In his note book every blamed thing I had said. "I looked around and, there was three other fellows writing in notebooks note-books an fast as they ..ould, and a big crowd gatheilng all around and a policeman po-liceman trying to scatter thorn. Then 1 knowed they was reporters and I wouldn't talk lo them any more, and they stood around me with their note-hooka looking me over and writing writ-ing away like a bunch of Judges around a prize steer at a stock show. ' And next a photographer man .came up the street and he set up his, machine on three legs and he says to, me: 'Are you the man that slapped 'McKinley on the bac"' "And before I OOUld say any thing, I 'one of the reporters says: 'Yes, ho is, get him. Bill,' and then the reporters I stopped out of the way and pushed , the crowd hack and the man snapped j Ills machine and iays; Thank you,' and away he went with It. "Well, sir, do you know, next morn-Lng morn-Lng the papers had a lot of stuff about ithat, with my picture and my name correct and that I was a sheep man from L'tah and that 1 was 0 Mormon and had two wives. But that's what comes of talking to reporters "I stayed In omaha two days to see the sights, and wherever 1 went 1 could hoar people whispering to each olhor. That Swan Swanson, the biK Sheepman from l'tah. that slappc J M Klnley on the bad. 1 'Ilats l didn't think any more of lapping McKinley on the back than 1 would you. and I'll bet he didn't mind il any more than you would; I'll bet it made him feel young again liut them fuss) shirts that was in the carriage with him they nearly died 'Vou see when a man gets to be a real big gun, all the little big gun gather around him and they want vou to stand back, and If you have anything any-thing lo say, say It to them first, and that niakeq It all the harder for the bif,- gun to keep In touch with the common people 'Say, are you going to write that letter for nie or not?" |