Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-05-03
Some Of the Strong Fea-
lures Of the Senate.
Senator A|drlch Of Rhode Is.
land The Central Figure.
Others Of strsag Personality and
o. Great Influence.

great central figure is Senator Aldrich
of Rhode Island in his scat in the sec
ond row from the rear. Against him
most of the attacks upon the bill arc
directed, for he has the great construc-
tive mind which has wrought out its
general plan. Whether one agrees or
disaGrees with him, Senator Aldrich is
fascinating for his ability and strong
personality. He is born master OF
men and has developed his natural
abilities for that kind of effort by al
most % years of service in the Senate.
Before that he had been four years a
member of the National House from
Rhode Island. So we'll preserved is he,
that no one looking down from the ga
leries upon his muscular form would
judge him 68 years old.
Hardly anybody knew till the other
day that he had been a soldier in the
Union army during the Civil War. He
happened to mention it himself in the
course Of a little tiff of debate. Al
though a man of towering Importance
in public life, he writes his biograph?
in the Congressional Record in eight
brief lines. His very rich colleague,
George Peabody Wetmore. whose voice
Is never nedTu Tic CouI &c VI koo'o|
proceedings, tells his official life story
in twice that number of lines. 1t was
natural that Senator Adrich should
have lie. out the secret of his army SER
vice. for first and last there has been
a lot of talk about the North and the
South, in connection with the tariff dis
cussion. Senator Daniel, the actor-like
old Confederate from Virginia. had had
something to say about the service Vi
ex-Confederates in the Senate in maxi
ing tariff bills.
Senator .Aldrich is constantly on his
feet, for the fire of questions pours in
upon him every hour. If a senator
wants to know anything he asks Mr..
Aldrich and if Mr.. Aldrich does not
happen to have the answer on the tip
Of his tongue. he dives into one of malt
dozen big volumes that he has at his
elbow. OF perhaps he whispers to the
clerk of his committee Mr.. shelton. 4
slender, studious looking young man.
sitting by his side. and a telephone
message is sent to the Senate Office
building to look it up.
A half dozen experts are generally
in the Senate. seated on the settees Of
red leather upholstery against the
wall. They are in town to help pre-
pare the bill and furnish inquirers
with Information. There are dozen
of them. including cxRepresentativc
Marion DeVries of California. who
was in the House as a Democrat be-
fore he was made chairman of the
board of general appraisers In New
York, and Major Herbert NJ. Lord.
paymastcr In the army, who was with
the late Representative Dinglcy as
clerk of the ways and means commit
tee.
senator Dolliver of Iowa. who often
rises up behind Senator Aldrich and
pours out an eloquent succession OF
words. is another prominent parsonage
in this daily tariff picture. He has
succeeded to a sort of leadership Of
Western insurrectionists. in that he Is
the most powerful of any of the coterie
in vocing the protests against raising
duties He Is the Son of Methodist
preacher of the Old school and one of
the most forceful speakers in the Re-
publican party. He was within an
ace Of the nomination for Vice Prcsi-
dent on the ticket with Mckinley 3t
philadelphia in 1900 and those who like
to speculate upon what might have
been are fond of recurring to the pos
sibilities III the case OF this Iowa sen
ator. had ne been nominated. Senator
Dolliver has n big following in the
West. although it is not as large or as
enthusiastic as the following which his
junior colleague. Senator Cummins,
has
The litter has demonstrated to the
Senate his ability as a speaker and
as a matter of fact. no other state in
the Union has two senators who art
taking so conspicuous 4 part oratori-
cally IN the tariff making as has Iowa.
In times gone by the late Senator AL
lisor OF Iowa was on" OF the great
tariff builders. as he was one OF the
most expert men in the Senate at see
iry the loopholes in a measure and in
arranging differences between men,
who tier Democrats or Republicans
But Senator Allison. while an effective
speaker. did not participate often ir
debate.
Still another figure should not be over
looked. He is the short and stocky Nor
wegan senator-knute Nelson of Mime
sofa They often call him ''Uncle
Krute." because he has been in public
life long time and has an honest. frank
way about him which often endears a
congressman to the public. He sits away
off to the right of Senator Aldrich and
has a blunt habit of breaking right into
the discussion at critical points and ask
ing embarrassing questions. He is low
tariff man. and. perhaps. the most effec
tive champion of that phase of tariff re-
vision. But it is nothing especially sig
rihcant that he is now working at cross
purposes with the majority of his party
on tariff. He was member of the House
of Representatives 20 years ago and was
lifting UP his voice then against protec-
ticn. He served in Democratic Congress.
cs and once voted for the Mills tariff bill
"a Democratic measure. Minnesota Is
not yet great manufacturing state
neither is Iowa. Its products are largely
agricultural and its manufactures arr
such as secure raw materials from tn,
farm. The Minnesotans and Iowans arr
very insistent upon high duties for wheat
but they want the lowest possible dutie!
on wooden and cotton goods.