Archives/Special Collections, University of Illinois at Springfield

in the bark way without making it look like it was to(^ political. Say, "I'd heen ;I friend of
his," and so forth and so forth.
And then I was lucky enough to meet a fellow I J ~ the name of Joe Herkenkamp up there.
He'd been a politician who got in some difficulties and he xvasn't popular with his party
either. I don't know, they tell me Joe went over there and he spent a lot of money and
kind of goofed off a lot when he was young. But anyway he was a real good fri~nll of
mine. Him and a fellow by the name of Logan ran the Moose Lo~lge. They were head of
the Moose. So, we developed a friendship, and practically I used their olfice for a
headquarters. In fact they even sent letters one timr aritten on the Moose's
letterheads. Said, "Dear Brother" - maybe that's the reason I joined the Moose probably
about that time.
Q: I see. (chuckles)
A: 1 think maybe that's where I reall>- eventually joined, was at Quinry. It said. "L)var
Brother Moose," that I was a member or something on that order, and write out ;I Iettcr
and that would help. Why they were so ansious for mc to he elected, I don't know. But
they used to go nut on Saturday nights after they clr~sed up their lodge and they'd go oul
and tark up signs around all these churches. They knew they'd be tore (io\r-n the nexl
day . . .
Q: Oh, is that right? (churkles)
A: . . . but at least they'd he there for one day. And he being an old-time j~oliririan, he
was like this Charlie Hagen, he knew all the angles. He had a sense of feeling also like
this Hagen. 1 remember ants time he kneu of a big family that - a lo1 of votcrs in it. And
he said, "Now they don't like me, but you go in and don't tell them l'm with you at :111.
I'll stay out here in the car," he said, "hut you . . ." He tol(l rile what to tell them. .And
sure enough, I got their support.
Q: I'll be darned.
A: And one time rroing into some restaurant in there, and he says, "You go on in thrre,
and I'll stay out." He says, "Recause I'll tio you more harm than good." It takes s smart
man to know that, to knouf where he can be helpful and where he won't be helpful. Most
people bar.re in. 1 also learned that you take some fellow who you think is influisntial, ran
do you more harm than good. One time I took - in fact he was a busincss associate of
mine and substantial from a finanrial angle in the locality. And I took him with me one
day to go out and campaign. And finall? had one fellow who called me bark to say, "Could
you come back some time when he's not with you?" See, he didn't want . . .
Q: I'll be darned
A: . . . to discuss anything as long as he was with me
Q: And did you find that they wanted to tiiscuss things prctt) much''
A: Well, there were some things. But really that wasn't important. But to them these
little things were important. Everybody has something that is real important. If you could
just listen, that's the secret. Just to let them talk, whatever they've got to discuss. It takes
a Iot of time.
Q: How did you handle that? Did you have a pitch that you would - you'd go in and say,
"How do you do, sir?" and then start talking? Was th~re any particular thing you'd say'?
A: Yes I'd just walk on in and I'd just say I'm from - see, it's kind of a novelty iinynay
to be from Calhoun County or Brussels because most people never heard of it. And it was
Carl Wittmond Memoir -- Archives/Special Collections, University of Illinois at Springfield