The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1877-12-20
SENSITIVE SENATOR'S.
"Reminiscences of n Reporter of the Debates
In the United states Senate.

"Reminiscences OIL n Reporter OIL the DeDHtcs
In the United States Senate.
"Mack has the following in the st.
Louis Globe Democrat While on the
subiectof Senators, am tempted to give
few recollections of the reporters gal
lery during several sessions when 1 was
employed as reporter of the Senatorial
debates for the New York Associated
Press. If it be true that no man is
hero to his valet, it is more true that,
with few exceptions, no Senator is
statesman to his reporter. The man
who sits in the gallery to make notes for
printing soon learns the large per cent
of human weakness that is in the COM
position of the great men assembled
below. Before I had been very long in
my position received a summons from
Mr.. Stewart, of Nevada, then newborn
Senator. He wanted fame, and his
grievance was that had cut him short
in the report of big debate. There
had been warm time on the reconstruc-
ton policy. Ben Wade had launched
out fearfully against Andy johnson, and
Reverdy Johnsun, of Maryland had
come to the defense. The New York
papers arrived with full reports of these
two speeches and only mention Of the
other orators, among whom was Mr..
Stewart, who had been cut off with
paragraph. was ushered into the
presence of the great man from Nevada.
"Why didn't you report my speech =
said he. 1 replied that L had selected
the two representative men of the de-
bate-Wade and Johnson-and cut all
the others down. "But," said l, very
modestly, "You are not as well known
as Mr.. Wade or Mr.. johnson they
speak for their parties. and what they
say is of national significance {; you only
speak for YOURSELF" "The deuce you
say 70 said Mr.. Stewart. 81 speak to
the Republicans of Nevada, and my
speech is as important as any body
else's. The result of the interview was
that, Mr.. Stewart insisting that I had
wronged him, 1 agreed to send his
speech by mail to the New York Herald.
In response there came note saying it
would cost 81, $50 to print it as an adver-
tisement, and that they did not care
about printing it as news. Mr.. Stewart
never bothered me after that. There
were constant complaints to the effect
that 1 was always emitting important
debate, which the Senate desired to
have printed, and that 1 was always
making room for personal "spats, "
which the Senate desired to suppress.
To remedy that it was proposed that
the Senate should furnish its own Asso-
ciated Press report, prepared by a man
of its own choice, to be paid by the
Senate. I appealed to Mr.. Hudson,
then managing editor of the Herald,
and to John Russell Young, then man
aging editor of the Tribune, explained
the matter, and telling them that if they
would SO order I would omit all the per-
sonalities of debate, and contine reports
to the more dig"iied points, Their
reply fully indorsed my selection the
people, they said, were more interested
in the personalities than in the points.
AS to the Senate's proposal to furnish
its own expurgated report, there was
not paper in New York which would
agree to print it, except at the usual
advertising rate. One day there was a
personal spat between Fessenden and
Sumner at the close of long debate.
omitted the debate and put in the
spat. Next day two of the New Yorl
papers had editorials on "plantatior
manners in the Senate" The position
of Senate reporter for the New Yorl
papers became very unpleasant from
that time forward and 1 soon after gave
it up.