The Butler weekly times., 1897-01-07
THE MISSOURI SENATORS.
Who They Have Been and How
They Were Elected.

The General Assembly Of Mis-
souri will meet January 6, and
shortly thereafter will be required
to elect a United States senator to
succeed George G.. Vest.
That Sen. Vest will succeed him
self is admitted at the outset, since
the legislature is democratic, and at
this writing there has appeared no
opposition to him in the ranks of
his own party.
But even the incident OF Senator
Vests re election for fourth term
is interesting, because of the fact
that only once in the history of Mis-
souri, has one man been elected five
times, and that man was altogether
unpopular among the people OF bis
own state. Senator Cockrell Is in
the midst of his fourth term, and
will not probably be a candidate
again, and, while he looks older than
Vest. he is really younger.
The first legislature of Missouri
met in st. Louis in 1920, and unani
mously elected David Barton as
United States senator. He is alleg
ed to have been brilliant in speech
and action, and did the state faith
full service for many years. When
1t came to the election of his col
league, the trouble began. Thomas
Il. Benton was the chief candidate,
but he was new to the people of this
state and came here under adverse
circumstances. Benton was mem
Der OF the Tennessee legislature,
and there had been q duel in that
state between his brother Jesse Ben
ton, aud Amos Carol, in which Gen
ersl Andrew Jackson took the part
of Carroll. He came to this state
filed with hatred of Jackson, and,
being naturally quarrelsome a yet
brave man, while Missouri was
then, as now, a worshiper of Jack
aon, he lost no time in getting him
self into trouble. The FIST thing
he did was to fight q duel with
young Charles Lucas, then United
Mates attorney, and son of the first
chief justice of the territery, in
which affair Lucas was killed under
circumstances which put all the
Lucas influence against Benton
After Barton's election the baIlotine
began for the election of a second
senator, with Judge John B. G
Lucas as his chief opponent. Ben
ton would have been defeated had
not Barton intimated that he pre-
ferred the Tennesseean. Even then
Benton received only one vote over
that of Judge Lucas, and yet he re
mained in the senate thirty years.
Barton and Benton did not take
their seats until after the admission
of the state in 1921, and Barton,
who was elected for the short term,
was promptly elected in 1924, and
Benton unanimously re elected in
1926.
1t is curious circumstance. in
this connection, that, while Senator
Barton was the pride of the state.
and really responsible for Benton's
long career in the senate, nobody re.
members what Barton said or did
that entitled him to the emineuce
which he occupied.
In 1929 there were new candidates
in the field, Barton having retired.
Among them were Alexander Buck.
ner, of Cape Girar deau, John Miller
and William H. Ashley. The two
last named had beer prominent in
the organization of the state govern
ment, and had held both the offices
of State Auditor and Secretary of
State. There was long struggle.
but Buckner was finally elected, the
vote standing as follows: Buckner
"a, Miller q, Ashley 2. 1t should
be stated, however, that Ashley was
not really candidate, aud that
those who voted for him did so. |
either out of admiration for the man
or else out Of dislike for the actual /
candidates.
IlalS22 Thomas Fl. Benton was
>G reelected, the vote being.