May 2, 1995 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD— SENATE S6001 

Sheldon received his bachelor’s and a 

master’s degrees from Auburn University. He also graduated from the Stonier Graduate School of Banking at Rutgers University in New Jersey. His thesis was selected for placement in the libraries of the American Bankers Association and the Harvard business 

school. 

In addition to being an outstanding 

manager and banker, Sheldon Morgan 

has served his community through a 

wide variety of civic and professional 

organizations, including his service as 

president of the advisory board of the 

Providence Hospital School of Nursing; 

the Mobile Azalea Trail Festival; the 

Mobile Kiwanis Club; Senior Citizens 

Service; and the Industrial Developers 

Association of Alabama, which he 

founded. He has also served as a member of the Junior Chamber of Commerce, the American Cancer Society; 

and the Mobile Economic Development 

Council. 

I congratulate Sheldon for his illustrious career and for his many contributions to his community and state. 

I wish him all the best for a happy, 

healthy, and long retirement. 

f 

IN TRIBUTE TO SENATOR JOHN C. 

STENNIS 

Mr. HATFIELD. Mr. President, I join 

with my colleagues today in remembering a man who embodied the U.S. 

Senate perhaps better than anyone, 

Senator John C. Stennis. Known as a 

Senator’s Senator and the conscience 

of the institution, his presence for 41 

years in the Senate was formidable, yet 

comforting and reassuring. 

While his departure represents the 

passing of an era and is cause for our 

grief, it is also certainly cause to rejoice, for our friend is no doubt experiencing the rewards of a faithful heart 

and humble service. The legacy he 

leaves is one defined by his strength, 

integrity, and compassion. 

Growing up in rural Mississippi, John 

Cornelius Stennis learned the lessons 

that would last him a lifetime. Such 

lessons molded a man whose southern 

courtesy would become a mark of dignity and distinction. After receiving a 

law degree from the University of Virginia in 1927, young John Stennis spent 

19 full years serving first as a State 

representative, then district prosecuting attorney and finally a circuit 

judge before being elected to the U.S. 

Senate in 1947. 

Much in the same manner Senator 

Stennis took so many of us under his 

wing, upon his arrival in the Senate, it 

was Senator Richard B. Russell who 

mentored the like-minded Mississippian. Soon, Senator Stennis’ sharp 

mind and unmatched work ethic earned 

him seats on the powerful Armed Services and Appropriations Committees. 

As chairman of the new Armed Services Preparedness Subcommittee, Senator Stennis became a watchdog for 

the Department of Defense and the 

armed services. His fair investigations 

and scrutiny of these organizations 

quickly secured him a reputation 

which would never be tarnished: He 

was analytical, critical, and he held 

unwavering convictions. 

The impact John Stennis had over 

his 41 years in the U.S. Senate surpasses description. Early in his Senate 

career he courageously spoke against 

McCarthyism. While assuring America 

would have the strongest and most capable military on the planet, he demanded accountability for each defense 

dollar spent. While always standing by 

his commitment to a strong military, 

he also began to see the growing danger of our Federal deficit and supported 

necessary defense budget cutbacks. A 

consummate professional, Chairman 

Stennis commented more than once 

that his work was his play. Indeed, the 

joy with which he carried out our Nation’s business was contagious—our 

Senator’s Senator was humorous and 

likeable, a role model to Members on 

both sides of the aisle. 

The trials Senator Stennis experienced during his sunset years in the 

U.S. Senate are almost unthinkable. 

He was shot twice by a burglar in 1973, 

but he returned to the work of the Senate; he lost his wife of 50 years in 1983, 

but he returned to the work of the Senate; and he lost a leg to cancer in 1984, 

but again he returned to the work of 

the Senate. Through all this, Senator 

Stennis remained a commanding presence. As the distinguished senior Senator from Virginia once put it, Senator 

Stennis ‘‘ . . . had a great spiritual 

reservoir that came to his rescue and 

served as a solid, strong, foundation for 

him.’’ Well, the spiritual reservoir 

overflowed and served as a solid and 

strong foundation for the rest of us as 

well. 

To more than one Senator, John C. 

Stennis was more than a colleague, 

even more than a mentor. Indeed, I am 

not the only Senator still in this body 

who would call Senator Stennis a father figure—a figure worthy of our respect and deserving of our love. As long 

as he was in the Senate, I was his student—especially on the Appropriations 

Committee. Even when serving as 

chairman it was his counsel and leadership, his spirit and presence which 

guided me through the many hours of 

committee sessions and floor deliberations. To Senator John C. Stennis I 

owe a debt of gratitude that is both 

professional and personal. Seeing his 

patient and humble years presiding as 

chairman and as President pro tempore 

brought me peace of mind as I struggled through the difficult periods of my 

own service. And what would Senator 

Stennis’ response to this tribute be? 

Well, about 7 years ago, upon his retirement, he remarked that he ‘‘* * * 

was just trying to do what looked like 

to be the duty and keep it up the best 

he could.’’ He certainly did, and much, 

much more. 

In the Book of Ezekiel, the third 

chapter, God declares the Prophet to be 

a watchman over the house of Israel. 

Ezekiel is commanded to warn the rebellious Israelities of God’s impending 

judgment. Well, for the past several 

decades, John Cornelius Stennis has 

been our watchman. He has always 

cared for, and often admonished, a dignified yet sometimes unruly body of 

U.S. Senators. He has and will continue 

to represent the history of this body, 

to represent the integrity of this body 

and to represent the stature of this 

body. For his years of service, leadership, and friendship, I am eternally 

grateful. 

f 

TRIBUTE TO JEFFERY ALLEN 

BREAUX 

Mr. BREAUX. Mr. President, today I 

would like to honor Jeffery Allen 

Breaux. Jeff was a native of my hometown of Crowley, LA, and he passed 

away on April 15, 1995. It is with extreme sorrow that I pay tribute to him 

on behalf of his parents, Mr. and Mrs. 

Larry J. Broussard, Sr. 

f 

THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF 

EARTH DAY 

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, more 

than a hundred years ago, Sitting Bull, 

chief of the Lakota Sioux Indians, implored Americans: ‘‘Let us put our 

minds together and see what life we 

can make for our children.’’

I thought of that plea again on Saturday, April 22, the 25th anniversary of 

Earth Day. 

Much has changed since the first 

Earth Day. 

More and more, Americans recognize 

that conserving our natural resources 

and safeguarding a clean environment 

is in everyone’s best interests. It is, as 

Theodore Roosevelt said, the patriotic 

duty of every American. 

Congress has attempted to fulfill 

that responsibility by passing laws 

such as the Clean Air Act, Clean Water 

Act, Safe Drinking Water Act, and the 

Federal Land Policy Management Act. 

As a result of these and other protections, the water Americans drink and 

the air we breathe is cleaner than it 

was 25 years ago. 

We also understand much more about 

how the delicate Earth system works 

and about the effects of human actions 

on the environment. For example, 

earth scientists have come to recognize 

that the Earth’s climate is changing 

because of human actions that alter 

the composition of the atmosphere. Geologists tell us that global climate 

change could increase the frequency of 

droughts and floods. 

We now appreciate that these events 

can have direct socioeconomic consequences for individuals and communities. 

We need to build on this knowledge 

and our successes, not undo them. 

Clearly, we cannot and will not tolerate laws and rules that frustrate 

businesses and justify redtape. We 

must be willing to heed the lessons of 

the last 25 years and adjust our environmental 

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