Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1911-03-22
WEDNESDAY MARCH %, 1911.

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Unique Tribute to Eugene Hale.
The Washington Post of March IA
printed the following letter to Mr..
Hale written by E. v. Murphy, who
has been connected with the United
States Senate as official reporter OF
debates for more than fifty years:
Dear Senator: You will not, l trust,
gard me as presumptuous; you certainly will
not regard me as self-seeking, now that you
have retired from legislative life and have no
favors to bestow, when 1 express to you the
profound regret feel at your departure from
the Senate-a regret which is shared by all
my associates, than whom none has better
opportunities for judging Of the value of the
services of the members of the exalted body
which they serve, and of which you have been
so long distinguished ornament.
During the more than Fifty years of my con-
1ection in an humble capacity with the Sem
ate can recall no one who has rendered more
disinterested, more able, more valuable and
more patriotic service than yourself. Look
ing back over this extended period and rum
ming my minds eye over the long list of illus
trious names of those who have added to the
lustre. the power and the prestige of the SEN
ate, can recall no one who has more worthily
discharged the duties of that high Office
while in many respects you have excelled
them all.
scores of times, when it seemed impossible
to avert an extraordinary session of Congress
by reason Of the congestion of business and
the apparent impossibility of securing the
- 81 -
tial to the maintenance Of the government,
under your superb and mastery management
have seen order brought out of chaos and
those great bills saved from defeat. / say to
you now what have said probably thousands
OF times TO others, that q great parliament
tary general you stand pre-eminent.
Had your wise counsel been needed, the
Spanish war, with its sacrifice of many prec-
ious lives and untold millions of treasure
would have been averted. to say nothing of
the long train Of evils that have followed in
its path and which will remain to vex us in
definitely during the years of the future.
You have never courted public or private
favor; you have been indifferent to praise or
TO blame. Your own enlightened conscience
has been the chart which has guided you in
public life. As a senator you have been the
noblest Roman of them all.
Your contemporaries have failed to do you
Justice; but when the history of the times
in which you have participated in public af-
fairs comes to be written, il you do not occupy
a most conspicuous and most honorable
place then history will be sham and a lie.
with grateful acknowledgements for the
kindly consideration and appreciation you
have ways and SO substantially manifested
for the services of my associates and myself,
they and are most deeply grateful. Be as
sured, Senator Hale, you will never retire so
far from the scene OF your memorable legisla-
tive service that our best wishes for your
health, happiness, and welfare will not follow
and abide with you.
~ have the honor to be, with unfeigned ad-
,niration and profound respect,
e. ". MURPHY
Washington, March 10, 1911"
4 In its editorial columns of the same
issue the Post refers to this letter. OF
the writer it says: she has seen great
men come and go from the days be-
fore the Civil war to the present. No
man in the United States is so we'll
qualified to make an accurate esti-
mate of the value of a senator's
services"
OF the letter it adds: ''Mr. Hale
may well prize this expression of ad-
miration from such a source. 1t is
not only genuine in sentiment, hut it
10 an accurate statement of fact.
After passing c!amor has been silenced
and the statements of interested
critics have been proved to be false,
history will place Eugene Hale in the
front rank of the country's legislators.
He has kept dignified silence in the
face Of detraction, quietly and thor
ough'y performing his duties, and he
retires to private life with the respect
and admiration OF those who are best
acquainted with the Importance and
nigh character OF his services"
Senator Lindley M. Staples, of