The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-12-02
SENATE NO PLUT0CRATs' CLUB.
Hardly a Rich Man in the Senate
Owes His Place to His Money.

Owes His Place to His Money.
L. A. Coolidge in Ainslee's.
A congress man is usually a man who
worked his own way up in the world, and
this is as true of the senate as of the
house. The idea that the senate is a mil
Honaires' club is fictitious. There ara
several senators who are millionaires
and several others who are independently
rich. That is, they have an income out
side their salaries upon which they might
live-luclNily for them as the sena tor or
representa- tive who doesn't spend every
cent of his salary and something more,
while in office is very rare indeed. The
talk about milIionaires in the senate Is
merely guesswork 1t must be in the
nature of things, for millionaire is a
very vague and ill-defined creature. The
lists which are sometimes published Civ.
ing names of senators with seven OF
eight figures attached, preceded by thu
dollar mark, are always imaginary.
There is hardly a rich man in the senate
who owes his place to his money. Com
mon repute would probably put the fol-
lowing in any list of senatorial million
aires: Ald"ich DepeW, ElkinS. Fair
banks. Foraker, ]. P. Jones, Kean, Lodge,
Mcmillan, Proctor, Scott Shoup, Stewart
| Turner, Wetmore and Wolcott. Common
repute is mistaken in about Is per cent
of this number. But even supposing that
in the list who would not have held in
1Uential positions in the senate even had
they been poor men. Aldrich is one OF
the shrewest political managers in the
! United States. He controls the politics
of his state by sheer ability, and most Of
the money he has made has been due TO
fortunate investment since he became
a senator. Depew is an orator of Won
derful gifts, and a lawyer whose services
to his party have been so great that the
marvel is he was not made u senator
before. Ell1ins has had a national repu-
tation as an astute political manager for
the last twenty-five years. Fairbanks Is
the acknowledged leader of his party In
his state. Foraker was a distinguished
governor of Ohio, a man Of national
reputation as an orator and party
leader before he was chosen to the
senate, and what money he has made
was earned in the practice OF his pro-
fession after he left the governors chair.
Hale married his money after he came
to congress When he was elected TO
the house he was a green country boy,
with hair that needed cutting and trous-
sers that did not He made his reputa-
tfon-he is one of the abIest men in either
branch of congress. Blaine took him up
and introduced him to society, and his
fortune was made. 1t is not his money
that keeps him in the senate. 1t IS too
late now for anybody to question rama
political ability. He may know now to
mt money to good use in politics, but
he has shown sufficient executive capac-
ity to prove that, if necessary, ne could
get along without it Lodge Is the leauer
of his party in Massa chusetts, an orator.
a scholar and a writer as well as pollt-
icaI success. Mcmillan is the best poilI-
ical organizer in Michigan. Proctor was
a gallant officer in the civil war, mas
been governor of his state, and secretary
of war. Turner of Washington, is ac-
counted one of the most brilliant men
in the far West Besides he is Popu~
list. Wolcott, of Colorado, is a Drllllant
orator and a fine lawyer He would
shine anywhere, even though he mad no
money at all. ,.,,
or wrongly. are sometimes classed among
the rnilli0naires, there is another group
oF senators who are ''Well-tO-do 49,
how xell-to-do it would be hard to say,
hlIt any one of them could lose his 20
Iitical office without missing the saiarJ.
Allison. Chandler, COckrell, HaW-
low FToar Lindsay. McEnery, Penrose.
Perkins. the two Platts, Quarles simon
Spooner. Teller, ThurstOn, Turley Wei
Iirgton. Sewali and Warren are in this
group. Doubtless there are others. Va ST
Of these men have been successful IN la"
or in business, and the fact that Trey
are not dependent on politics for nv
ing Is simply a tribute to their chosen
careers. The talk about the senate be
ing a millionaires club is midsummer
Stiffness. To be a senator is to nave
the most delightful political position
which can fall to the lot of an American
public man. But those who have won
it have earned it by strenuous endeaVor
as the elimination of creditable pohu al
careers They have not bought their
seats.
1T has become a popular cry that mem.
bers of the senate ought to be chosen
by popular vote, the plea being that the
use Of money in state legislatures mas
become a scandal resulting in the ch9lce
oF men who could not look for favor
at the hands of the people AS a matter
OF fact, there are few senators who at
some stage in their careers have not met
with emphatic popular endorsement. "
the members of the present senate twelve
have been governors Of states; twenty
six have been members Of the house Of
representatives; thirty-two have held
other elective offices. For instance,
Ross, of Vermont, was chief justice Of
his state; Chandler was speaker Of the
New Hampshire house Of representa-
tives: Simon was president of the Ore
gon state senate. There are only thir-
teen who never held any elective office,
and only two or three of these are in
the so-called millionaire class. Among
those who are lacking in popular endorse
ment are Butler, Of North Carolina, the
chairman of the Populist national COM
mittee; Cockrell, Of Missouri, the Demo
cratic watchdog Of the treasury; Bev-
eridge, of Indiana, who starting as
poor boy is a senator at thirty seven;
Baker. of Kansas, whom no one would
charge with using undue influence on the
legislature; Pettus, of Alabama, the
soul of integrity, and although one Of
the latest of senators to be elected, one
Of the most jealous of ancient senatorial
rights; Kyle, OF South Dakota. another
Populist, and TurIey, of Tennessee;
Jalaferrc. of Florida, and Chiffon, Ct
Texas"