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The Green Bag
Uniontown Academy in Uniontown, Penn., and adds, "He was a well-edu cated man; his writings show that. His printed arguments before our courts show that. His widely interesting pub lic lectures, for which men paid a fee of a dollar to hear, show that." But Mark Twain does not incline to this theory. He knew Dean when young Clemens was a resident of Keokuk in 1857 and on to the early 'sixties. Dean was then a familiar character on the streets. Twain claims that Dean se cured his education by reading in the Keokuk gutters, moving when a pass ing wagon compelled him to crawl away and then returning to the filth, regard less of nothing but his book. Twain avers his wonderful memory retained all that he read and that all his learning was self-acquired in this manner. It was about this time in his career that Dean was described by Mark Twain in his "Life on the Mississippi" as follows:— "His clothes differed in no respect from a wharf rat's, except they were raggeder, more ill-assorted and inhar monious, and therefore more extrava gantly picturesque, and several layers dirtier." Clemens tells the story of how Dean's fame as an orator began. It was in 1860 when a famous lecturer was billed to speak at the Keokuk opera-house on the slavery question. The hour arrived for the speech and the house was com pletely packed, with a waiting audience. But the distinguished speaker did not arrive. The distracted manager waited until the auditors began to howl for their man and then in a frenzy he rushed out upon the street. Seated in the gutter in front of the opera-house was Henry Clay Dean, perusing a dirty, well-thumbed book. There was a few minutes' conversation, then a clutch at the arm, a pull, and a minute later a
figure emerged from the wings of the theatre and walked out upon the stage. Mark Twain tells the rest in this man ner:— "It was the scarecrow Dean, in foxy shoes, down at the heels, socks of odd colors, also down, damaged trousers, relics of antiquity, and a world too short, exposing some inches of naked ankle, an unbuttoned vest, also too short, and exposing a zone of soiled and wrinkled linen between it and the waist band; shirt bosom open, long black handkerchief wound round and round the neck like a bandage; bobtailed blue coat, reaching down to the small of the back, with sleeves which left four inches of forearm unprotected; small stiffbrimmed soldier's cap, hung on the corner of the bump of—whichever bump it was. This figure moved gravely out upon the stage and with sedate and measured step down to the front, where it paused and dreamily inspected the house, saying no word." Dean's appearance was the signal for a terrific shout and laugh from the angry audience, waiting for the distin guished speaker. Dean stood unmoved while the spectators rocked in a par oxysm of amusement. Then, Mark Twain continues :— "And now the stranger stepped back one pace, took off his soldier cap, tossed it into the wing and began to speak with deliberation, nobody listening, every body laughing and whispering. The speaker talked on unembarassed and presently delivered a shot which went home, and silence and attention resulted. He followed it quick and fast with other telling things, warmed to his work and began to pour his words out instead of dripping them; grew hotter and hotter and fell to discharging lightnings and thunder, and now the house began to break out into applause, to which the
