The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1884-04-01
Written for the FLoRIpIAN.l Z
Brief Sketches of Dis1En% 4ath hTa
Statesmen Of To-day Wa.
j. +. FITZGERAI.D
Hon D W. Voorhees,. United l4.r<s Se'pIto
from Indiana


OF regret; that She had not the honof e giving
him birth He was born in Butler soanayt OHIO.
September 26lh, 1897.
After graduating AT The Indiana AsbsFi Lnis
versily in ls49, he studied law, and ~ Is kdni,s
ted to practice in 1851
lie was appointed Unei States. ns.r5t At
torney for Indiana in 1853, and w;,s essC4esl tc
the Thiry-sevcnih, Thirty-eighth, Fhsriy- -hE,ih
lin which his sea, was successfully aoa,Ssc,ll,
Forty first, and Forty second Cmsy,es "a Jrs
was appointed as Democrat, to iii f'lc the va
cancv in the United States Senate. c.u'et Ey:,he
death of Hon Oliver p Norton TIpahEifan
and took his seat on Nov. 18th, 1879, beSnx sub
seqnealy elected by tie Legis.a,ar{ liz y
expired term, and for The full term eEsuIpE
We do not often lind such rare IQmsiRa:nn
of all the qualities essential in gs';ti lN,fi Al
leader in Hon. ID. w Voorhees, i}ost, s,.l.-
reliant, Indifferent applause or celi.urs sn: I'm
every political issue he is found to- Aaad pti,u i.
decided ground; TO present an undiuatt.s ifa nj
To his opponents lie is always rtN1y .,,.Alc,H
any question: any peril ami his aO,il,nn ul< 4,
unhcstatingly and witha iearlessl.rsf, Gsttfmi'
nation that challenges the admiration ot eFcrN
| one, he hazards his hole fame upon :. l.
Powerful in both his intellectual ,slt Paykc /;
organism, and with mind pecu]iaYl* u7aptsl
to the d>ccrnmeni of truth he is ns'ii, o aj,niH
! the great Doctor Brow nson, who has wed hiutl
self To- The truth and who gives il are sutDrEprn;
missing suppor; who has mo patience, with rt' r.
| and excludes even the Scinblance 1T ststb1id :"
who scornS hnpciiy de- pise. trickety. aa. shat
miserable and fIlacious heresy tliat!e Sefvthing
is fair in politics >.
A man OF high moral courage his llbera i5ini
open always 10 conviction, he DOES o. hesitate
one moment to avow mistake C1 cenk,s> a
| change of opinion. his lofty and untanlablP spirit
refusing absolutely To be bound IT t,'ilGresa ia
any way. He is mtn " no corntandS On $
confidence, his maStc: key 10 the public hcata he
ing the entire absence of All cquivDciijont, t,f dis
guse in his conduct; his pcrect c.Ialri ,'at All
| occasions inducing an unlimited fnt}; m lASAir
| cerity of purpose
Senator VOORHEES, is man vi the I,nGpte; hi
| great, warm heart is open 10 All nts one srars
being treated otherwise than in HE II ~, knd
and courteous manner when they apectl Il him
| in any way, yet his heart r,n> avaw with
his head nor is the brOnZ" statue uDns lhc 30me
of the Capitol less invulnerable rh;an il hi, z'ern
and uncomproml>ng adherence 10 Driuciph1 an !
loyal devotion to the interests OF lis Stnte;S J
His oratory is a happy blending of le:b TIE
Demosthenian and Cceronian styles !uiSctu,
Gus, and devoid as it is OF all artifce sa hui
liken il To the rushing of a mighty tsefcn;
sweeping away with resistcss force and cr;ergy
every obstacle that would impede its on;isard
| course Clear and logical in his iSrguaicn4, he
addresses himself to both mind and heafai and
| with an ttrneSlneSs, a Vehemence 1h;st Is :%rlk
ing and convincing And although he is a fin
shed scholar, and as ex-senator Cionk ling once
said upon the floor OF the Senate, zone al EASto
RIGS acknowledged masters as v0u !lsfriIswiih
bated breath TO one of his f.rvd bursts tlS en-
quence you feel nui'ivcly that it is brit ll.ssim~
pie out pouring of great, and uohl, and s.Btest
heart The gracts of pratory are nYtuYai tsiftgm ;
| not single word or gesture appears staahaa |
| Senator OOrhrcS is not only wise an: upi9ght
| statesman but patriot in the fullest seI:sa Of
the word, loving his whole country a,rl 5rying
| its best interests always AT heart. =
Possibly can adduce no better pnnf Df his
n'ire devotion to the country at larg,, as well
as his rigorous love of justice. than by GnH ihg A.
few extracts from of his speeches inTthe
| Senate -
During The 'hird session Of thG Fnrte 9th
| Congress- a clause OF the DtfcienYv aqpsta,ri-,
ation bill gave rise 10 quite an Interesting and
animated debate. during which alTsiod Fas
made to one of he Revised Statutes ipf the United
States providing for the use of troops s. the
polls, when Senator VOORHEES, said, : VI Tr&ei-
dent--a few days ago there was all ey'r*ofai-
nary vote cast hy this Oolv. ~
distinct proposition to prohibit the use o 6,dops
at elections was voted down by majoilts OF
| this body There st,' rse4Ily
one hundred sections of IT,, r vis.d St4tiej of
| the United States" on the subject of aicciifns,
| every one of which clothes the Federal ;cvFyn-
ment with supervising authority over thts Ias,-
| ple not merely supervising authority, h't .hqai-
storial authority; nearly one hundred Of tie Re
ylsed Statutes, and the army standing by fosn-
| force them II anybody her,s nr
| elsewhere expects me to vole one dolll;, IT She
smallest possible traction ot a dollar to upteoa
law that works such an outrage rs This he Is sn-
| tlrcly mistaken in my action a senator. |
woull not tax the people whom i.va Sne
honor TO represent ior such purpose atfiss To
save my own life X 1t j. the &C1si
| law ever put upon the statute book o. !; See
country. 1t is The herald of advancing Hp-
| tism. 1t sounds the kne Of free COVE. uA(1rt
Free institutions cannot live undri the iASh
and shadow of such legislation. =
Before the peoples money shall be t,ken f,tf SIle
support OF the government let them be .4sAlE.d
OF free elections and fair trials by jury. s)ns tGat
| issue | stand. Sir, what ..aa .be
more important than the questions on vhihH ]
am addressing the Senate? Are there aAy:in
the whole range OF human affairs th,t liz. ctoser
to the foundation OF liberty? Free r.hctidns
and impartial trial by jury Secure ihesc aaa
all Is sale; without them the govern t.len II: E,t
mt for free men, but rather for race O. sl,tvfs.
| am not to be deferred by the argument lFsal
this is an aggressive policy. | am not 10 b.. 3a-
tered by the plea of conservatism. Justice .aAd
right are never timid \ A, In
American citizen, claiming to know 30 Esa
graphical sectiOn loving one section as .y.P Sas
another; believing in the people of one .:es;:iSu
as much us another do not interd ID etae
money to execute such provisions of saw @s
lnese III anything could breathe purer naa ST.
otism, or evince truer of justice ths.p tas4
then admit that | at least have ve,y iIlnr.,ss
erly estimated both =
1t may not be amisS to state here that not ,S,sn
among the high-bred noble men gracng the ,ls,s,r
Ot the Senate from her own sunny States f.a~ lie
South truer friend, or one who has fouthl ;har
battles there more bravely than the Senator from
Indiana. During the same debate from %hichH
have quoted he said: Whatever the meiits tsr
dement's OF the late unhappy and b,oct% coz
troversy which was submitted to the tlreastinl AZ
bltrament OF arms, no man preends tirat pariit].
patton in it stains individual personal eDarAd-
ter; nobody preends that it DESTROYS the main
hood, the American fibre that is in ihc S,sathe4a
people. 1t is monslrous. Il il az
aDonlnaton. | have no hesitation in Aslyiftss )
what perhaps ii is not at all necessary to.,me Is
say, that the history of mankind does no, t:utjs,,
an instance where people, overrun hy vit.toti;
Gus armies, shattered and broken as i ey we're:
have borne themselves so WELL with such da:ni,ys
such Integrity OF purpose, and such powers of Re
cuperation as the people of the Southern Sta,es
Loaded down with the worst legislation |, ever
knew invaded by hordes and packs If hungry;
adventures like jackals following in the ws.ke Of
armies, they have not lost their dignity as e.mc;rl
lean citizens" =
Nothing is exclusive aud intoler:nt as;
and it has never been my fortune To maer : man
whose life and actions go further tow .ds xstsn- :
fishing this axiom than Hon. D. W. Voo,a,e,s
OF his legal career it is not fitting THAI s;in,la
speak in sketch like this but where the. nI.it !.
nary lawyer is found often in the walks of Ha.lic
life, a man who combines such rare abtiaas ,s = !
DOlitiCAl leader with euch r,ra {