The Alaska citizen., 1910-12-26
Champ Clark Is a Leader
Big of Body, Strong of Voice. Good Speech
 maker Who Has Been Underrated

popular on the Republican side as on the Democratic When he speaks the whole house of representatives forsakes the Benning race track and its other engagements and comes in to hear him. He never talks too much or too often.
 In his time there were only three Democrats of light and leading - himself. Williams and the lamented DeArmond. who gave up his life for his grandson in a fire in his Missouri home. Williams was a gadfy to the Republicans; De Ar mond was val of vitrol and Clark was a big, good-natured pugilist.
 In personal force he outweighed both of them, and all the Republi- can leaders. With all his good na- ture and his kindness there Is something daunting about Clark.
 Take, for instance. the St. Louis convention of 1904, when the East ern Democrats were forcing down the Western throat the abhorrent nomination of Judge Alton B. Park CT. and when the outvoted West vas tdhluS US una dlillIe ltNeHSt III yelling down the speakers. Williams was temporary chairman, and he wore his throat out trying to pro- cure some semblance of order.
 Champ Clark took the permanent chair and found the Jacobins in full control of the gallery. lusty and drunken with their first-day success. He waited until the first yell of the defiant mob had ended, and then before they could yell again he stepped to the front, and sent out a slow roar that rolled over that great auditorium like the overture to Wagner opera.
 If l hear any more of that" said Champ Clark, the last spectator in the galleries will be taken out by the police"
 The words were nothing Williams could have said them, and the crowd would have laughed and yelled again. There were as many as 10000 of them. all turbulent and bent on mischief. They looked at he grim eye, the scowling brow, he compressed mouth. and they stopped. There was no more dis order.
 What We need in the speaker is d man of personal force. uprlghtness, integrity and backbone like the rock of Gibraltar All these things we will have in Champ Clark; and heaven knows he will need them all if the Democratic majority is to be anything like the lunatic asylum which has been the Democratic min ority for so many years
 But it is no harm to have speaker who. in addition to these necessary requirements, is "a per suasive orator, one who can move the hearts of men" And Champ Clark is that. He is splendid speechmaker
 But the speaker does not speak. He guides the house through it's maze of legislation. He is its man. ager. He is the man made responsi- ble. not only for the houses leg islation, but for good deal of the senate's, since he is the man whom the house intrusts with the duty of dealing with the senate. He is the direct personal channel of communi- cation between the people and the president. How will Champ Clark fulfill all these great duties?
 His ability to fulfill them cannot be questioned by anyone who knows him. He is too big. too broad, too sagacious, too forceful, to be stag gered by any of them. The only question is whether the majority of the house will be composed of men who will let such leader lead them.
 Ever since Speaker Crisp turn ed the gavel over to Speaker Reed, the Democratic side has been con- posed of horde of foolish self-seek- CTS, who would not be led by Moses or Washington.
 The Democratic congressional representation is distinctly improved by last Tuesdays election, and pos sibly Clark may find better material 10 deal with than either he. Will Hams, Bailey or Richardson did as minority leaders.
 But one thing is sure The Dem ocrats could not possibly have made better choice out of their congress 'ional representation than Champ Clark. The leader is all right. Will he party be all right? That Is the one luestion on which depends Speaker Clark's place in history. Charles Willis Thompson in the New York Times.