Omaha daily bee., 1903-05-10
SENATOR OF The OLD SCHOOL
A Man Whose Entrance Into Public Life
Was Worthy Of His Exit.
wElL-EARNED TRIBUTE TO SENATOR VEST
How lie Discovered and Prevented
the Leasing of Yellowstone Park
His Successful Plea for
Free Coal.

Half a dozen New Workers. we're seated
one evening in the fall OF 1851 around a
table in the dining room Of the best
a pretty poor best-hotel at Fargo. then
a frontier village Of Dakota territory. re-
lates David Graham Phillips in the satur-
day Evening Post. They were opening
wine" in celebration Of something Of which
they talked loudly, jubilantly-and with
careless tongues. The rest OF the dining
room soon gathered that the gayety was
the result Of an inspection tour from which
they had Just returned. They had been
promised the lease of a vast and rich part
Of the public domain. Before they saw 1t
they knew 1t was a good thing" Now they
know that Il was G prize enormously
greater thar anyone had dreamed, the po-
tentiality of a huge fortune for each OF
them.
Al a table In the corner sat a small,
stern looking man with iron gray hair and
military mustache-forehead and eyes and
Java notable exhibit OF strength Of in
tellect and character. The noisy New
Workers did not observe him, and he was
evidently trying not to observe them. He
strove to shu his ears against their vulgar
boasting, until
One OF them spoke two words. The
stern man, as small Of stature as a boy
or a Napoleon-started and stared at the
unobserving group in amazement. From
that time forth his show Of inattentlon
was 2retense.
The small, stern man was George Graham
Vest, a new senator in congress from Mis-
souri,. The two words that had set him
to listening we're yellowstone park"
Taking advantage Of the ignorance in
the settled parts Of the United States as
to the far west, this ring of New Workers
had persuaded a complaisant official OF the
Department OF the Interior to help them
obtain quietly from the government a
practically perpetual lease Of the nations
magnificent park-5,500 square miles OF in
valuable property. For a nominal sum the
Yellowstone park was to be turned over
to these few private persons and they were
to have q free hand in exploiting 1t for
their private benefit.
Senator Vest had come to Fargo to say
the last goodbye to a dying friend. 1t
was by mere chance that he was IN the
dining room-but the whole incident was a
chapter Of accidents.
Letting in the Light.
As soon as congress assembled Mr.. Vest
rose to make his first important appear
ance in the national arena. to render his
first important service to the nation. And
as every year adds to the value of the yell
lowstone park, so every year adds to the
value of hat initial public service.
He demanded the documents in relation
to ''the proposed lease Of Yellowstone
park" Those senators who knew we're in
CONSERVATION; those who did not know
were astounded, incredulous. But the reso-
luton was passed and 1t drew the docu-
ments from their hiding place in the In
terror department, and there followed a
stormy outburst of public indignation. The
ringsters wondered how the thing had
leaked out. One Of them, watching the
senatorial storm from the senate galleries,
saw the small. stern figure, recognized it
and FASTENED to tell his fellows what mis-
chief a few bottles OF champagne and a
little premature Growing in an out-of-the
way corner Of the wilderness had done them
and their schemes and their fortunes.
Senator Vests victory was easy, but mono
the less splendid. It showed the country
the character which has ever since been
conspicuous-alert, keen, courageous. skill
full, lncorruptible. BY going to the ring
sters he would have made a fortune. By
going for the ringsters he made another
kind Of fortune. And he has been indus
triously adding to 1t ever since.
Such was his hrst appearance and first
service. Now for his ast-the two admir-
ably and completely express a national
caree. Of nearly a quarter of a century.
Plea for Free Coal.
One bitterly cold day in the present win
ter-it was in January-the senate was in
animated, in almost hysterical session. Thu
leaderless and planless and helpless demo
cratic minority lounged listless and feeble
at the desks to the right-all except one
man. But some tremendous force was agi-
tating, vas terrorizing the republican ma
jority. 1t is an overwhelming. a united
majority. Yet dread. dismay. panic looked
from the eyes OF its leaders.
What had dismayed, what was dismay-
ing, these habitually calm and self-poised
leaders OF an immovable majority? What
had unnerved and a~ffrighted this assem-
bly, Of lions?
A mouse. apparently.
Among the minority, facing the unnerved
lions, stood, or rather was propped, a
mere mite OF a human being. His body
was so small and so shrunk that his head
was scarcely a foot and a half above
tne leNel OF MS uoSk. MS DlaCh CloIneh
hung in bags upon his wasted body and II
seemed to be able to stand only because IT
was wedged between the chair and desk.
A splendid brow adorned with scant
white hair; a skin of waxen pallor; eyes
deep hid in dark sockets and beneath lids
that seemed to have risen for the last time
a snow-white mustache shading a mouth
that seemed set in the rigor Of death. And
a few feet behind the propped figure stood
a watchful attendant, ready to catch II
should 1t become loosened from it's prop
pings.
Such was the astounding spectacle which
the galleries watched with amazement
The lions were gazing as II fascinated. and
their looks concentrated upon this strange
and corpse-like apparition Of insigniheance
Irresistible Logic.
Senator Vest demanded the repeal Of the
duty on coal. His speech was calm and
simple. a passionless arraying Of unan.
swerable facts-the monopoly, the tarin
licensed extOrtion, the suffering OF the
people. Aldrich replied-a nervous. agi.
tated evasion. The weird figure he was ad
dressing seemed to cast a spell over him
taking the Rlibness from HIS tongue. TN