17 YEARS IN THE COUNCIL.
Pendergast Enters Upon His 17th
Year in Lower House Monday.
When James Pendergast yesterday took the oath of office as alderman in the lower house from the First ward, it marked the beginning of a continuous term of service in a like capacity of seventeen years.
"Long time to be an alderman and never get in jail," observed the rotund alderman from the First as he applied his signature to the oath.
"And if I live for seventeen years more in the First," continued the alderman, "I suppose I will be still in service. It makes no difference whether the Metropolitan, the election commissioners, the police of all the other powers are against me. I have the confidence and respect of my constituency and it is by the cards that I can be alderman from the First for life. It pays to be square, and the man who coined the phrase that 'honesty is the best policy' must have had me in mind. Honesty in everything, and be true blue with your friends at all times is my platform.
"I've sweat blood for my political friends for twenty-five years, and I'll keep on sweating blood for them for twenty-five years longer if they continue on the square. A fellow for whom I sweat blood for a whole two weeks came into my place day after election, and invited me to have something.
" 'No siree,' I said to him. 'Don't want anything to do with you. If you have a dollar to spend you'll confer a favor on me by going somewhere else to spend it. I can get along better with out you than you can without me. Before election you was knocking a friend of mine on the ticket. I sent five different men after you to come and talk it over with me. You didn't come, so it's all off between you and me.' That's the way I treat all people with whom I have been on the square, but are not on the square with me."
Others who took the oaths of office yesterday were Michael Cunningham, lower house alderman from the Sixth ward; Darius A. Brown, lower house alderman from the Fifth; Edgar P. Madorie, lower house alderman from the Eleventh; E. E. Morris, lower house alderman from the Tenth; Dr. J. E. Logan, upper house alderman; Harry G. Kyle, police judge, and Cliff Langsdale, city attorney.
