Sunday Bee
i HE
A Psper for the Hem
THE OMAHA DEC
Cest t':. West
nalf-tg:;e sectioii
PACES 1 TO e
OMAHA, SUNDAY 'MOUSING, MARCH 31, 1007.
SINGLE COPY FIVE CENTS.
VOL. XXXVI-NO. 41.
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Omaha
5
EDWIN HANEY SOLDIER BOY AND TRAVELER'S GUIDE
Career pt a Man Whose Face is Known to More' People Throughout the World Than That of Any Other Omaha Citizen, and Who Has Met Great Men of All Countries ' ,
A
w HE PHOTOGRAPH accompanying thlg article la tiat of a
iman whose face is familiar probably to more people in
Omaha than that of any other man not In public office.
( It is the face of a pioneer of Omaha and of the Union
Pacific railway who for nearly forty years has taken care
of passenger traffic at Omaha, part of this time as baggage master
and in late years as superintendent of the Union station.
Edwin Haney has a personal acquaintance with more of the
great men of this country and of the world probably than any other
man in Omaha. Even in early life he was thrown Into the company
of men who were to occupy more than an ordinary position In the
public eye and In later years the peculiar nature of his employment '
brought him Into contact with many of the world's great. He wafc
always mere than a baggage master or station superintendent. He
was a sortNof reception committee of one and did the honors for the
railroad and city when any great personage stopped at Omaha. He
has always had a penchant for making friends and the power of
making himself companionable to the great as wojl as sociable with
the small, which characteristics have given him a wide acquaintance
with the leader's and a much wider friendship with the ordinary,
traveling public.
His parents were pioneers of Wisconsin and hewed a home
for themselves there out of the primeval wilderness. His oldest
brother was the first white child born In Sauk county of that state.
Edwin was born in Dane 'county, Wisconsin, July 27, 1847. He la,
v- therefore, not quite 60 years old. But he has kept up the traditions
Jjnff the family and has been a pioneer of the west, ranking In length
aeck'f residence with men much older than himself. Wisconsin soon .
, became too thickly settled for the, taste of his parents and when
the boy was only 11 years old they went to Kansas, which was then
"Bleeding Kansas," struggling between freedom and slavery. The
entire trip irom Wisconsin to Kansas tniy was maae Dy ooai oown
) the Mississippi river and up the Missouri. Kansas City was then
only a small settlement. There they took a stage drawn by three
pair of mules, driven by Mexicans In broad-brimmed, high-crowned
sombreros and fantastically clad In buckskin suits. The road over
which they traveled to Fort Scott, their destination, was 100 feet
wide. It was the famous Santa Fe trail. The mules were kept going
by the yelling Mexicans at a good pace. Sometimes they passed great
freight trains consisting of immense wagons of five 'tons' burden
drawn by oxen driven by Mexicans. It was all a wonderful experi
ence for a boy Just arriving at an age when he knew what was going
on about him and it made an Impression on young Haney which he
has never forgotten.
Watched the Jayhawkers Drill
But it was only the beginning of strange things. Those were
history-making days In Kansas, the days of the "Jayhawkers" and
of the slave men. Mr. Haney frequently saw the former drilling.
They were simple men and some even said they were crazy, but
they were terribly in earnest in their effort to drive slavery out of
the budding commonwealth. They dressed in uniforms of bed tick-
Ing made by their wives into trousers and blouses. They were
armed with primitive rifles and shotguns and made a brave showing
when on drill before the admiring townspeople in Fort Scott. Young
Haney later made the acquaintance of Jim Lane, one of the leaders
of the Jayhawkers. He remember the shooting of a slave holder
In Fort Scott whjls he was there. The Jayhawkers marched into
the town in pursuit of this man, who had repeatedly refused to re-
leaie his slaves or leave the etate. He was cornered in a house.
His head appeared at a window where he was indiscreet enough to
chow it and at the same Instant a bullet had found its mark there.
He shared the fate of many other men who persisted in defying the
Jayhawkers and who migrated from "slave states, bringing their
slaves with them.
Within a year of their settling in Kansas the parents of young
HaneT died and the boy, only 12 years old, was left alone. He suc
ceeded in returning to Madison, Wis., where he spent several years.
In the same block with him lived two men who were to occupy seats
in the United States senate. The two were John M. Thurston and
"the Vilas boy," who was to become Senator Vilas of Wisconsin."
Haney and these two spent many a day playing together on tho
streets and playgrounds of Madison and many a boyish escapade
they shared together.
Had Mr. Haney been consulted by his parents in regard to the
time of his birth and had he known that the civil war was to break
out in 1860 he would have insisted strongly on being born at least
eighteen years before the conflict was to begin. As it was, he had
barely reached the age of 14 when war waa declared. In vain he
applied for a place with the gayly marching boys in blue, if only
as drummer boy. It was no use. His youth was too apparent. He
chafed under the restraint for two years and then at the age of 16,
enlisted in Company A, 139th Illinois volunteers. But when the
company was inspected by the army officer he was again disap
pointed and barred because of his youth. Two years later, in 1864,
he finally succeeded in enlisting in Company D, Thirty-ninth Mis
souri volunteers. He was only 17 years old then, but "called it
Xf." Most of the service he saw was in the guerilla warfare of Mis
souri, where It was no breach of ethics or a violation of the rules of
Young Haney's
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visit to Omaha. He was entertained by Governor' Saunders at his
bome, which stood where the city hall now stands. General Custer
was among those present at this reception. -He was about to go
west, where he made his last stand against the Indians, which has
made him famous all over the world, vhen Kalakaua. ex-klng of
the Hawaiian Islands, visited Omaha, Mr. Haney became one of his
warm friends. Mr. Haney was second officer in the commandory
of the Knights Templar at that time, and at the banquet tendered
to the ex-king, sat next to him. The deposed king was very dark
of skin, but spoke English perfectly and had all the manners of ths
Anglo-Saxon. He met Grand Duke Alexia of Russia when that titled
gentleman passed through the city and showed him about the rail
road yards. Dom Pedro, emperor of Brazil, was another member of
royalty whom he met.
Li Hung Chang's Inquiry
i
II , I
EDWIN HANEY.
I juAxYrir to shoot an enemy at any time from ambush
i , " ' company waa sent out on expeditions against these bushwhackers,
'ho were accustomed to hold up trains, take out the union soldiers,
he man-ted Miss Inez Porter, daughter of Judge John Porter. They
have one son, Dr. W. P. Haney of Cananea, Sonora, Mex. He was
brought up in Omaha, graduated from the high school and the Ne
brask State university and received his medical education in Crelgh
ton college, Rush Medical college, Chicago, and the United States
Marine hospital, San Francisco. Mr. and Mrs. Haney lived in the
vicinity of Eighteenth and FarnaSn streets for many years. Mrs.
Haney lived there before her marriage. After that Mr. Haney built
a home on the southwest corner of Eighteenth and Farnam streets,
where they lived twenty-eight years. They now reside at The Far
nam, only a few rods from their old home.
Knew Train and Greeley
Mr. Haney's strategic location for meeting all the great person
ages who came into the city helped him In the indulgence of a natu
ral taste for making friends and he formed the acquaintance and
friendship of many of the great men of the early days. He knew
the builders and controllers of the Union -Pacific road. He had an
Intimate acquaintance with that eccentric genius whose career gilds
the early history of Omaha, George Francis Train. Mr. Haney says,
he was the most charmingly Interesting talker he ever knew. There
was something about his conversation that seemed to chain the
bearer and to hold him spellbound as long as the magic stream of
words came from the Hps of the great Train. And yet he was child
ishly simple in his affections and his likes and dislikes. Train's
campaign for the presidency Is a matter of history. He used to place
the letters, "N. P. A.," after his name and explained to inquirers that
the letters meant "Next President of America." It was during this
campaign that Mr. Haney was on the train one day with the candi
date. They were discussing the candidacy of John I. Redlck for
congress when Train suddenly turned to Haney and asked:
"Will I be elected president?"
"I said, 'yes,' " says Mr. Haney, "because I knew if I didn't
express my firm conviction that he would be elected he would 'roast'
me unmercifully. And he could do it, too."
Mr. Haney met Horace Greeley, editor of the New York Tri
bune, and unsuccessful candidate for the presidency on the occasion
of that great man's visit to the west. He did not find him as ec
centric and carelessly dressed as he had pictured. He wore a grey
suit and his famous big white hat and carried a baggy umbrella. In
conversation at the depot when asked what he thought about the
west, he said: "Well, from what I've seen I'm glad I advised the
young man as I did." And Just a flicker of a smile played ahout
the grim lips of the old political and newspaper warhorse. He re
ferred to his terse and famous advice, "Young man, go west."
Mr. Haney formed the acquaintance of Bayard Taylor on his
LI Hung Chang, the great Chinese statesman and former am
bassador to the United States, stepped oft of a train one day and
met Mr. Haney. The statesman was on his way to China and stopped
here only a half hour.
"If Li Hung Chang accomplished as much every day as he did
during that half hour I think he had Roosevelt beaten a mile fot
the strenuous life championship," says Mr. Haney. "The first thing
he asked me was how he could get Edward Rosewater. He and Mr.
Rosewater were great friends. I said I would telephone for him,
which I did. While we were waiting for Mr. Rosewater. Mr. Chang
led me a merry chase all over the establishment asking questions
faster than a child. He had me explain the block system in the
yards; he wanted to know our system for taking care of passengers
and how they were let in. and out of the gates; he examined the
baggage room, going behind the counter and looking at the checks;
he looked into the checking room, the news stand, the dining room
and lunch counter. In fifteen minutes I believe he had found out
more about that station than anyone else ever knew and all the
time he was Joking and laughing. -He was the Jolllest Chinaman
I ever saw. Finally Mr. Rosewater came. Mr. Chang greeted him
warmly, after the Chinese custom, and they sat and talked until
the train pulled out."
P. T. Barnum, the great showman, was another of Mr. Haney's
friends. He met him on the train. Barnum was returning from the
west with what he said were "two of the greatest curiosities, sir,
that have ever been exhibited before the great American public.'
The speech of the famous showman even when he was in conver
sation with friends partook somewhat of the bombastic style com
mon to the spielers who stand outside the sideshow. Barnum was
a Jolly fellow, however, and when Mr. Haney asked in a whisper
whether they were as great curiosities as the famous sacred white
elephant of Siam, the great showman winked solemnly, smiled and
said, "Every tilt as great and even more genuine." ,
i
Some Others That Ho Knew
The names of other men, great or near-great, with whom MA
Haney had had ah acquaintance or frlenshlp are many. Among
them are General Sherman, whom he met la Missouri and later in
Nebraska also; President Hayes, President Harrison, President
Cleveland, Whitelaw Reid, many United States senators, cabinet
members, governors and men from all walks of public life. He
knows today many of the great "captains of industry," particularly,
those who have "Iron-railed the continent," the great railroad build
ers, the Goulds, D. O. Mills, Mr. Harrlman, Frederick A. Ames.
"They are all fine men when you know them," he says. "They;
are not the grasping, greedy fellows, without heart or soul, that
some of the yellow journals represent them to be. D. O. Mills la
as nice and pleasant an old gentleman as I ever met. Jay Gourd
used to be rather dignified, but his son, George, is not afraid to
talk to anybody and he does it, too. He has, moreover, a memory;
that is remarkable. I was standing talking to a group of men la
the station at St. Louis one day when George happened along. lie
clapped me on the back, called me by name and shook hands with
me. He hadn't seen me for seven years and probably hadn't talked
to me an hour in his whole life, but there in that crowded station
he recognized my face instantly."
Mr. Haney has never sought any political office. He has been
Bomewhat active In politics as a delegate or committee man at vari
ous times. He has been Immersed in his work and devoted to it
He is a man of much modesty and accustomed to belittle his own
accomplishments. He is a man who takes tht greatest and most
cosmopolitan Interest in what goes on In the world. For years he
was a regular subscriber for daily papers from London, New York,
Chicago, San Francisco and Omaha. He read them, too, and there
were few great questions on which he did not have a thorough knowl
edge. He is a veteran Mason, a member of the following Masonla
orders: Covert lodge No. , Ancient Free and Accepted Masons;;
Omaha chapter, Royal Arch Masons; Mount Calvary commandery No.
1, Knights Templar, and Divan of Tangier temple, Ancient Arabia
Order of the Mystic Shrine. In three of these lodges he has held
the next to the highest position. He was commander of the Knights
Templar at the time the cornerstone of the exposition was laid and
took an important part in that ceremony.
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tie them to trees and riddle their bodies with bullets or go up to a
house and shoot the owner as he sat with his family.
His Meeting With Grant
After being mustered out of the service, the young man re
turned to Illinois, and there met the great general whose name was
ringing throughout the world, Ulysses S. Grant. It was in Qulncy, at
the home of Colonel I. N. Morris.
"I found him a very quiet and unassuming gentleman," says
Mr. Haney. "General Prentiss, with whom Grant had had a mis
understanding at Cape Girardeau, was ' there, but all trouble had
been fixed up. At the home of Colonel Morris 'I happened to alt
next to Grant on the porch. The talk was about the war, as nearly
all talk was at that time when men got together. Grant talked about
tt, but only answered questions. He had little to say except what
conld be 'pumped out' of him."
Mr. Haney went back to Missouri in 1866 and entered the serv
ice of the Hannibal & St Joseph railroad. He was stationed first
in Hannibal and there made the acquaintance of Mark Twain.
"He used to loaf around town there." says Mr. Haney. "H
had been in the newspaper business, and at that time was preparing
to go abroad on the trip from which he got his material for 'Inno
cents Abroad.' He used to elt at the store whittling a pine board
and he liked to Jolly with the 'natives.' He secureu much of his
material for his stories of the Mississippi rightthere around the
town. The cave which figuresjn the adventures of Tom Sawyer aud
Huckelberry Finn is near Hannibal ruid was well known to all of us.
There were half a hundred boys '( any one of whom might have
been the original of Tom or Hue
It was January 6, 1869, w-c. Haney arrived in Omaha.
He had been sent here by the Hannibal & St. Joseph railway to take
charge of the through-checking system, which bad just been In
augurated. His place of business was a portable iron shed which
the company had set up on Farnam street, between Ninth and Tenth
streets. The corner of Ninth and Farnam streets was the scene of
busiest railroad activities in those days, and it was a strenuous
struggle for business that was carried on between the representa
tives of the different roads. The through-checking system proved
a success from the start. andvMr. Haney continued in the service
until the road was consolidated with the Burlington system. By
that time the Union Pacific road was built and in 1871 Mr. Haney
took the pc ition of baggage master for that great system, a post
which he filled for many years.
Nearly three years after settling la Omaha, in November, 1871,
pain l oday as Seen Through Weidensall's Eyes
S
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M
Y TRIPS in Spain and Portugal were the
most expensive for the distance tra eled
and the worst accommodations, with but
one or two exceptions, - in my whole
world tour. I bought first-class tickets for my
Journey on land and sea, but scarcely got second
class accommodations. However, I wanted to
visit these nations. I visited them and I am more
than satisfied that I did. In my trip through
Spain I visited four places Madrid, Seville, Cadiz
and Gibraltar but spent time serving the Young
Men's Christian association in only one of them
Madrid. "
Madrid, Spain, is a large and active city of
612,600 inhabitants. I was very agreeably dis
appointed in it. I expected to see a city behind
the age a"d generally out of repair. On he other
hand, it is up-to-date and one of the most hand
some cities in Europe. Its public buildings are
large, well constructed and, finely located. Its
squares ' v parks are ornamental, useful and well
adapted v' the needs of the city. Its main streets
and avenues are broad and well taken care of;
they are in the front rank. The residence parts
of the city have many homelike buildings and
tempting places to the renter or the buyer. Its
chief central square is called "The Gate of the
Sun;" to it and from it almost all, if not all, the
cars In Its splendid street car service come and
depart From this square, one can go to any part
of the city on street cars. The Oriental square
Is a very beautiful one, with a large circle in it,
around which are stone statues of the queens of
Spain. This square is In front of the Royal pal
ace, which is a grand building. By going around
ths palace one enters the Armory square, or pa
rade ground; this square is before another mag
nificent front of the palace.
From this last square, and from the palace
itself, there is a marvelous view of the suburbs of
the city La that direction for miles. That palace
has one of the most ornamented exteriors of any
palace I have yet seen. Near it is the remarkable
Church of San FranclBcd El Grande, with its
splendid rotunda and exquisite dome, together
with the twelve apostles. The Bank of Spain
building on one of the main boulevards is an im
mense structure. How well it is provided with
money I did not learn. The Delprado museum
and art gallery is a handsome building full of
elegant paintings, some originals by Murlllo and
Velazquez, together with many other paintings
and statuary.
The most charming thing in the city is the
four grandly laid out and ornamented boulevards
or Paseos Del Botanlce, Del Prado, De Re Cole
tas and de la Castellana, Joined as they are end
to end, forming one continuous avenue, miles in
lentgh, with a fine monument or other beautiful
work of art where every two boulevards or Paseos
meet. The center of the great boulevard, made
up of the four Just specified. Is crossed at right
angles by another charming boulevard, Calle de
Acala. At the cross section is an exceedingly
handsome work of art, "La Cibeles," in 6tone, a
woman in a chariot drawn by two lions and one
raised rock or hillock of ground. At all the other
Intersections are beautiful statues, nionumtiita or
other attractive works of art. I cannot continue
this farther.
The German evangelical folks have a splendid
college and college building, with a most desira
ble lot of ground in a choice location; this Is pre
sided over by Rev. Prof. George Fliedner. a de
voted and efficient Christian man. The Amer
ican Board o! Foreign Missions, represented by
Rev. Dr. William H. Gullck. has secured a very
desirable property and has erected a large and
fine young women's school building most con
veniently adapted to the work for which it was
built
Seville, a city of 146,200 inhabitants, in South
ern Spain, is a peculiar place worth visiting. It
Is a very old community and has much that gives
it a Moorish cast. Most of the streets are nar
row. Its residence houses are built with inner
courts or plazas, in many cases very beautiful.
The inner court is cut off from the outside en
trance by an iron wlckerwork or grating door,
some of them exceedingly handsome. Through
this iron door ons can see much of the court and
its ornamentation from the street and much bet
ter after one has entered the outside door. One
cannot pass these iron doors because they are
strong and well fastened. The Inside court la
ornamented with palms, other small trees or vines
and often with marble fountains, columns, statu
ary or paintings, etc., which show to great ad- '
vantage through the iron doors. At night the
courts are lighted up and add mnch charm to the
natural appearance. The main public" places in
Seville are the museum, well worth visiting; the
immense old cathedralanc" the Alcazar. The
museum has a large numbei of attractions, but
much like other places of the kind. The large
cathedral Is an immense structure, 700 yards In
circuit, with colossal columns and arches; It is
very dark inside. The marble front under the
organ Is a thing of beauty and the immense amber
stone background behind the main altar is possi
bly without a rival. At one end of the church is
a rather peculiar monument to Columbus. The
Campanile is like the old one in Venice which fell
down; it Is very high. One ascend it. not by
steps, but by an inclined plain or jvalk inside of
the outer walls snd about the squire tower from
the bottom to the top. The grade is so easy that
one could readily push a wheelbarrow before him.
When on the ton all of the city, with its publlo
squares, can be plainly seen far below and the
sui rounding country for miles. The chief attrac
tion of Seville Is without doubt the Alcazar; it
was erected first by the Moors 1,000 years ago.
A considerable portion of the present building
and garden is yet original, and accordingly much
is renovation. Emperor Charles V of Spain did
most of the renovation. The building and garden
are distinctly separate, but almost perfect for
what they are designed. It is certainly one ot
the most beautiful and exquisitely fashioned
buildings and gardens that I have seen In my
whole world trip. I will not attempt to describe
them; they were totally different from what I
had Been in other countries. In its best days the
Alcazar must have been a thing of exquisite
beauty and a place of luxurious ease.
Cadiz, a city of 70,000 people, is surrounded
on almost all sides by the ocean and the bay. It
is spoken of as a very beautiful city. I could
see but little of it during the two nights I lodged
there. As we rounded the city .from the south
west in the evening the setting sun shone brightly
upon the white buildings and made a glowing
picture. The reflections of the sun in the many
windows looked like blazing fires.
- Gibraltar bay, city and mountain are so con
nected that one can scarcely think of the one or
.describe it without the other. The bay is a large
and beautiful one, as it washes the shores of the
big mountain and affords it a mirror large enough
to reflect Its great proportions. The city is on
the shores of the bay and along the foothills of
the mountain. Like Niagara Falls, the mountain
did not at first look as large a It really waa, but
as the steamer approached closer and closer Its
vast propotlons stood out in bold relief.
Gibraltar is not so Important because It pro
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