Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-04-23
CHANGES IN THE SENATE
New Members Need Not Now Serve Two
Years Probation.
Mr.. Wolcott Was the First to Trample
ON the Customs of That Com
sentative Body.


and heaving of the breath must Vermont
Edmunds read of McLaurin's making a
speech in the Senate. But a few short weeks
q Senator, yet he ventures to speaki
1t was not thus in Edmunds' time, and 1t
must be sad satisfaction to the venerable
sage that he is not there to see the ancient
traditions thus disregarded and set aside.
There has been a wonderful change in the
Senate in the past five or six years. 1t was
just coming on when Edmunds retired, and
1t was generally known among his assoc
ciates that 1t was this that finally settled
his determination to resign his seat.
The Senate is now referred to as old
fogyish. as dull and behind the times. But,
bless 1t, these things can be taken only by
comparison. AS bad as the Senate now Is
its progress since the beginning Of the
Fifty-frst Congress has been phenomenal
Younger men and new ideas have begun
to influence things there since then. Be
fore this came about what man would have
thought of presuming TO address the Senate
before he had served two years in that
body? Such an action as that OF McLau-
rin's-a speech made so soon after the Sen
ator had settled into his Seat-would have
been received with stony stare and the
atmosphere would have got so cold after
his first word that he would have shriveled
up and frozen in a corner. 1t would have
been no palliation that 1t was not much OF
a speech anyhow-only little one; he
would have been frowned down. and only
years of silence sackcloth and ashes would
have restored him to grace, When the elo-
Quent Blackburn Of Kentucky, after talk
ing his way through the House and draw
ing tears by his orations over the graves of
confederate dead. was lifted up into the
Senate. he for two years put a bride upon
his tongue and spoke not, though he as
much as any man on earth then loved to
talk. Older men than he, and far more
famous. each In their turn Of elevation to
the Senate, sat silent as novitiates during
the solemn months OF their probation. All
of them, take the whole list of those now
revered-all Of them have been thus on pro-
ba ton, and then, in their turn. have up
held the rigid custom.
An Unknown Man Has q show.
And now the Senate has sunk to that
point where a man unknown may come
among the decorous sages and be as much
at home as If 1t were only the House Of
Representatives, some other body close
to the people Edmunds may well be thank
full that he is no longer there. and it is well
for Hoar, and Hawley. and Morrill,. and
Harris, and Morgan that they are SO far
superior to the depressing influences as to
defer to them. or. like Harris. stand firmly
in defiance.
This is not the first breach of senatorial
etiquette; there has been a steady and
growing violation of it during these several
years, but this goes unnoticed-not even a
only that but such young men as Dubois
on the republican side, and Faulkner, on
the democratic side, are recognized as able
leaders. and such men of comparative
Lodge Dixon. Wolcott, Gray, Hansbrough
and Smith are counted OF commanding
influence Aldrich has charge of the re-
publican end of the tariff fight, and Dubois
is one of the republican steering committee
whose advice is never disregarded and Is
most often followed as against that of older
men of vastly longer service. Faulkner &C.
cupies a similar position on the democratic
side of the chamber.
After this why may not the Senate hope
In time to shake off some of its dignity and
elaboration and become a progressive legis-
lative body?
WolcOtt Took the Initiative.
Wolcott was the first to trample upon
the sacred etiquette of the Senate. He came
into that body In 80. with reverence for no.
body, and has not acquired any since 1t
was he who first shocked Edmunds and
gave him the warning of the approaching
change. which took from the Senate all
| attraction to the Vermont sage. He broke
into the ring al the first sign of a fight and
elbowed his way about in a manner most
shocking TO the senatorial notions of de-
corum. The cold atmosphere had no effect
Upon him. When some Of the old men had
| sufficiently got their breath they began to
ask what manner Of man he was and to
show some interest to know IL any more of
that breezy sort were to be expected The
| story was told of Wolcott then that in a
court of justice, in the Mortified presence
of the judge, he had once kicked into all
Its several parts (and some more than the
originaD very elaborate model and had
then asked the witness, who was swearing
that he knew all about it in all particulars
to put II together again. He had thus
brought confusion upon the witness and de-
stroyed the case for the other side This
was pointer as to his character which the
| old-time Senators appreciated later on.
In the olden times, when Edmunds and
Thurman We're in the Senate together as
political opponents and personal chums
their power was absolute. Not then would
any man of tender years and less than two
terms have dared defy the shadowy tradi-
tons. 1t is now held up as an example of
the dignity and veneration of those days,
that when the two were on the same COM
mittee, one as leader of the majority and
the other as head Of the minority they
never discussed the measures before them
with any other of the members of the COM
| mittee, but conferred one with the other
and announced the decision, without taking
the rest into consideration at all. An inter-
ference on the part of any other member of
the committee would have been regarded
by the whole Senate as most astonishing
presumption. BY comparison with ITSELF
| the Senate has become wonderfully pro-