The Washington herald., 1909-11-02
SENATOR ALDRICH.
lie Believes I'm the Divine Right OF
the Dollar TO Rule.

aAc DoAAhE 10 hule.
From the American Magazine.
The divine right OF the dollar 10 rule IS
/ the political creed Of Senator Nelson VII
I marth Aldrich. OF Rhode Island. dictator
Of the United States Senate. Senator
/ Aldrich IS tory, but no tool. he Is no
messenger boy for Wall street. but the
l Washington embodiment OF the Wall
street spirit He IS Just as sincere about
/ the divine right Of the dollar 20 rule as
was Louis XIV over absolutlsm. The
French King made a prosperity issue OF
the divine right Of kings. Touch the
dollar, such IS the Aldrich attitude, and
| you have Roosevelt panic.
The man, at slNty-eight. shows a strong
/ face. rudy with health. above a big
frame, we'll padded with muscle. He
moves with the nervous snap OF active
middle age. Working over the tarin in
/ the stoke-hole heat OF q Washington sum-
mer. Aldrich wore out his colleagues.
from the youngest Republican lnsurgent
+ 10 the reCOrd-hOIdinE, OnE-dlstanCe orator
/ on the Democratic side. When his
I Limousine stalled in the mud OF a coun-
/ try road last spring, the Senator swung
a shovel Ike Turk and laughed Ike a
! boy.
The Senate boss Will bully q fellow
Senator. a Cabinet officer. or even a
President. but he IS always courteous 20
a Senate page. One OF his colleagues
may hesitate 10 question him. but the
youngest reporter never does He talks
at all times with amazing frankness.
stormy and domineerlug on the floor. read
. frg
y with every appearance OF intense an
ger. Aldrich does not make public busi-
ness a personal matter. as does Speaker
/ Cannon. on HIS feet he is ready 10 Joke
or gossip with the rebels. Declining al
/ formal functions. Aldrich keenlv enjoys
the society Of his friends He IS an enter
tanning talker. and he has the advantage
OF every ruler who unbends. that his IN
bending I'm this wise cannot but fatter
the most sophisticated. The personality
/ OF Aldrich IS another Of his assets.
The operation OF the Darwinian law
made him Senate dictator. he came 10
the Senate twenty-eight years ago.
grounded IN the game through experience
in a city council. a state legislature. and
the House OF Representatives. Were
he merely mediocre the Senate system
and its traditions Of seniority would make
him an influential figure now. The sys-
TEN is los rolling buttressed by party
regularity. The veteran Senators. who
are mostly New England Senators. con-
troll the committee assignments. When IL
comes 20 legislation, a tariff bin. for in
stance. the control gives them the in!tia-
tive and direction OF H. They decide on
what New England must have. and they
count the number Of votes they need,
added 70 their own, 10 form a majority
OF the Republican majority Those votes
are secured by giving enough Senators
what they want out Of TIE bill Republi-
can Senators left out in the cold must ,
along or be guilty OF party disloyalty.
Aldrich Is the greatest expert at this sys-
TEN that Congress has seen.
His present danger, and the systems
danger lies IN the example Of rebellion
set last spring by Beverage. OF Indiana,
and the Mississippi Valley Senator's.
They bolted the Aldrlch tariff. II such
rebellion is not only 10 go unpublished
but even to prosper, the Aldrich control
and the old Senate system VIII totter
Last spring the absence OF effective
Democratic opposition Offset, 20 a large
degree, the Republican detection. Aldrich
himself has never furnished a more IN
teTesting study than now. when, al the
height OF his power, that power is so
seriously threatened. Stand or fall he
will not compromise. He was never so
arbitrary as last spring