The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1901-12-09
SENATOR ALDRICH.
A Long Study of Financial Questions
Gives Him Senate leadership.

Gives Him Senate leadership.
| l.. A. Coolidge. in Ainslcc's
! When Aldrch first came to Washing
ton as II member of the house he was
II wholesale grocer in Providence.
That was in 1879, and he had served
| his apprenticeship in politics as presi-
dent of the Providence common coun-
ell and speaker for one year of the
house of representatives of the Rhode
| Island general assembly His reputa-
| tion was that of II good business man
who had shown political aptitude and
he did very little in the house to in
crease it one way or the other He
was recognized as IL level-headed
member who would make II very sensi-
| BILE representative as representatives
go. 1t was a Democl attic house. with
| sam Randall as speaker. and they put
| Aldrirh at the foot of the committee
| on the District of Columbia. He was
reelected to the Forty-seventh con-
| Sr.ss but before he took his seat again
he had been chosen to The senate as
| the successor tn General Burnside: his
| Legislative experience has been ar-
uuired almost exclusively in the body
of which he is now the most influential
| member.
| The senate when Aldrich entered ii.
was evenly divided politically. and
David Davis was president pro tenn.
The leader of the Republican side was
| George f.. E.dm,rnds. of Vermont. IL
man almost the exact opposite of AL
'rich in everything that goes to make
| up Il Legislative leader. lidmunds was
Il great lawyer II keen debater. Il mas
Ter of incisive English with II mind
| like Il surgeons scalpel. OF politics
| in the ordinary sense he knew nothing.
| He could no more have railroaded IL
complicated tariff bill through the sen-
ate than he could have handled IL Tam
| many district in New York. He knew
nothing about managing men on COM
binins interests. And Yet. by sheer
| acuteness of intellect and mastery OF
| legislative problems Ednunds domin-
ated the senate for many years. His
leadership was unchallenged until
| there came a new order of things with
| the forcing of the tariff question to
| the front when Grover Cleveland sent
in his famous message. Edmunds was
! chairman of the committee on judi
ciary and the leading member of the
| committee on foreign relations--the
| TWO committees of the senate in which
| Aldrch would probably find himself
| least at home.
When Aldrich entered the senate the
| tariff question was beginning to assume
an important place in legislation. The
| tariff commission which framed the
| tariff of 1883 was at work and members
of congress We're talking about Scheu
| uleS and duties. Aldrich as II business
man representing an important manu-
| Featuring state was appointed to a
| place on the committee on finance, with
| which he has remained ever since. and
| OF which he is now chairman. He had
| already begun to study financial uues-
| lions, and before long ii was clear that
| the new senator was going to devote
| himself to that side of legislation, and
to that alone. |, probably never oc-
| CURED To him at that time that through
| that means he was destined To grow
into the position of leadership He was
| interested chiefly in looking out for the
| industries of his own state. and in
| order to do that effectively he found it
necessary to study closely all the con-
| ditionS which would affect them. There
are not many men in public life who
| are willing 10 give themselves up to
that kind of work. but Aldrich was not
only willing To do it-he was enam-
ored of the task He kept at ii until he
knew to nicely just how any one of
the industries in which he was espe-
cially interested would be affected by
| an Increase or reduction in duties lust
what proportion of profit rested in ud
ralorem or specific, just what relation
one industry bore to another Then hc