The morning call., 1893-10-13
MORGAN OF ALABAMA.

The late David Davis, in his lifetime
United States Senator from Illinois, once
observed of Senator Morgan of Alabama
that he might have become great orator
il he had acquired the art of sitting down.
The Alabamian has a copious flow Of elo
ouence, but the trouble with him is that
his faucet is out of order. and that he rarely
stops the flow when he has said what he
had to say. Other orators of his tyne are
floating through the world to the sffiiction
of audiences. People listen to them with
pleasure for quarter or half an hour. bat
when the length of the sermon is counted
by hours patience makes way for exasper-
alton. Since Senator Morgan returned
from Europe he has been moro verbose
than ever. 1t took him the best part of a
day to explain his views on the silver ques-
ton; when he ended he would probably
have been grateful to any one who had
informed him what those views really
were.
1t seems that the war not only abolished
slavery but overthrow the intellect of lead
ing Southerners as well. In the old slavery
days planters had ample leisure to study
political problems, and devoted so much
attention TO the subject that they turned
out well-equipped statesmen. During the
decade that preceded the war the pre-
dominance Of intellect in the Senate was
on the side of the South. The North had
a few bright men. But they were out
numbered and outmatehed by their South
ern colleagues. Itwas impossible to listen
to the debates without coming to the con-
clusion that, handicapped though they
mar hx-h hox inn, An 6afa nto
ern Senators were as a rule better fitted to
conduct the business Of the country than
Senators from the North.
Within the past twenty years a change
has come over the body. The North now
leads the Senate in intellect and in num-
bers. Before the war Virginia, South
Carolina, Georgia. Alabama. Mississippi
AMI Louisiana sent to the Senate men
whose wisdom and eloquence-their party
doctrines apart-commandei respect and
admiration; now those States rarely fur
nish peer to the Senators from MasSa-
chusetts or Iowa or Ohio. When death
overtakes Morgan and Pugh of Alabama.
CoQuitt and Gordon of Georgia. Gibson
and White of Louisiana, Walthall of Mis-
sissippi, Butler and Irby OF South Caro-
lima, Daniel and Hunton Of Virginia, it
will not take the biographer long to COM
plete their claims to fame. OF all the
Southern States the only ones which ad-
here to the ancient practice of sending
their best men to the Senate are Texas.
Kentucky and West Virginia. and the two
last are almost Northern States. The con-
sequence has been transfer of leadership
from South to North-a substitution of
German Of Maryland, VOORHEES, of Indiana
and Vest of Missouri for Hunter of Vir
ginis. Davis Of Mississippi and Benjamin
of Louisiana as leaders of the Democratic
party.
And the transfer is not confined to the
Senate. but extends to the whole country.
For quarter OF a century the Democratic
party, whose chief strength lies in the
South, has searched the Southern States
in vain for possible Presidential stand
ard.bearer. 1t has never been able to find
a man whom it ventured to risk In Its
despair 1t has at times firted with such
meek sticks as BayarG anG Lamar; but it
never dared put either of them in the
field. At the present moment there is not a
single Southern man whom prudent Dem
ocrat would entrust with the leader
ship of the party. Cons idering that the
South ruled this country for seventy years,
the fact is curious.