William Jennings Bryan: A Concise But Complete Story of His Life and ServicesNewbranch, Harvey Ellsworth
History
William Jennings Bryan: A Concise But Complete Story of His Life and Services
Newbranch, Harvey Ellsworth
Bryan, William Jennings, 1860-1925
pillow and slept until a tap on the shoulder awoke him, and he rushed
out to make another speech, generally differing in form from any made
that day or any previous day, though the substance of all was, of
course, largely the same. Once, as the train was screaming along between
stations Mr. Bryan called the writer to his state-room, where he lay at
rest. He raised his head from the pillow as I entered, and started to
speak. What words of suggestion or advice were on his tongue I shall
never know, for, in the middle of his first sentence the tired head fell
back, the lustrous eyes were closed, and his heavy breathing alone told
that life remained in the man’s worn and exhausted frame as he lay there
fast asleep.
Late in the afternoon of that same day Mr. Bryan’s dinner was brought
him on the train, and he ate—as he slept—between stations. His traveling
companions, it may be observed, had eaten hearty meals at a town long
passed, dining in leisure while Mr. Bryan, standing with bared head on a
wind-swept platform, with a scorching sun beating down upon him,
addressed five thousand or more wildly cheering people. As he sat in his
little compartment, hastily munching his food, there were with him Mr.
Joseph A. Altsheler, of the New York _World_, and the writer,
representing the Omaha _World-Herald_. One of us chanced to mention some
interruption made at the last meeting, where a shrewd Republican
partisan had raised a point which Mr. Bryan’s ready repartee had
quickly, if not efficiently, disposed of. As soon as the matter was
mentioned Mr. Bryan turned from the tray on which were his fried
chicken, cold slaw, and coffee. And there, his eyes glowing like lakes
of molten metal, his expressive features all in play, in the voice of
one who addressed a multitude, he took up that Republican’s sophism and
analyzed it for the benefit of us twain. Such was the concentrated and
awful intensity of the man that it thrilled me to the core, and, under
that burning gaze and vibrant, moving voice, in such an unusual
entourage, I trembled with an emotion I could not name.
It was near midnight of that day when the train reached Benkelman, in
far western Nebraska, where the last speech was to be delivered. The
warm day had been succeeded by a night that was almost bitter cold, and,
as we alighted from the train, tired, sleepy, and hungry, the cold,
fierce wind from the mountains swooped down on us, and pierced us
through and through. At that late hour, and in that semi-arid, scantily
populated country, there were patiently waiting, wrapped in their great
coats, nearly fifteen hundred people, most of whom had driven from
twenty to one hundred miles “to hear Bryan speak.”
In the course of that day Mr. Bryan had already spoken sixteen times. To
do this he had risen before five o’clock in the morning and had traveled
over two hundred miles. At Benkelman, it was agreed, he should speak not
longer than fifteen minutes, and go to bed.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account