The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1921-04-06
SENATE: BETTER
THAN DECADE /: c !. AGO Al 0
PROBABLY A. MORE PATRIOTIC
AND ADLER BODY THAN IN
THE OLDER DAYS.
STOCK TICKER NOT WATCHED
Lobbyist Still Around, but His Former
Braxen Methods Have Been Aban-
doned - Many Senators Promoted
From Lower House. ~ i... + q.
a., EpWARp Is. CLARK.

WaShingtOn.-There are many new
faces today In the United States sen.
ate, and also greatly increased ma.
1ority Of Republican faces, but it is
the same old United States senate that
it has been for ten years. ss ss5
Just what does one mean by this?
Well. the senate is composed of aver
age patriotic American citizens, Of q
little more than average ability in
most cases, and in some cases of a
good deal more than average ability.
The senate always has been this way,
but in Qne sense tho United States
senate has changed. >,i'' s'.s.$. ~.
The question has been asked occa-
slonally If the direct election of the
sefatOrs has changed the senate body
materially. The same type Of Amer
ican is there today that was there in
the old days. although 1t is probable
that some men are in the upper house
today who would not he there If the
legislatures still had the right of selec-
ton. There were cases In the elder
day where rich men seemed to find
their way into the senate of the Uni
ted States when in some instances
poor men had no chance. The reason
may not be hard to guess. z
There was a time In the history OF
the senate when the members left the
floor frequently to 80 out and look at
the tape running out Of the stock
ticker. Hourly some of the senators
were watching the markets. Why?
Again the reason may be guessed. 1t
might be said, however, that 1t is not
intended to intimate that many of the
senator's were trying to get rich out
OF the stock market through advance
information which they had OF the
way which legislation affecting the
public utilities was likely to jump.
IS Ticker and Bar Both Gone.
After a good many years In Wash
ington one may write that he thinks
those old-day ways have gone and
probably gone forever. The stock ticker
no longer ticks in the corridor OF con-
gress. It went the way of the old
bar over which many a glass was
handed out containing something miich
stronger that cold ten. The lobbyist
still frequents the halls of congress,
but his methods have undergone a
reformation. He does not buttonhole
sena tors as they are about to enter
upon the floor, nor, as was actually
the case In some instances in the past,
beckon the obedient senator TO trot
from the. floor to the hall to consult
with the lobbyist on pending legisla-
ton.
It might be asked If even in the old
days such a thing as that last set
down was possible. It was possible,
and not only possible but 1t was not
of infrequent occurrence. When the
railroad rate bill was under discus
sion In the senate, the bill which f1nal-
~ became law, railroad lobbyist
made his morning and afternoon head
quarters in the reception room just
across the hall from the private en-
trance to the senate chamber. Per-
sonally I saw one of the leaders OF
thes senate. who largely was charged
with the duty Of putting the bill
through, leave his seat several times
to seek the lobbyist in the secluded
corner there to confer with him.
Those days are gone and with them
have gone from the senate seemingly
the particular type of man who In
dulged in that Kind Of practice.
Many From Lower House. /.
A great many men are promoted
from the house Of representatives to
the senate. IN fact, II Is probable that
the ma j0rity OF the senators have
served at one time or another in the
lower house. The average of ability
in the two chambers seems to be
about the same, although perhaps 1t
Is trifie higher In the senate than
1t Is In the house because Of the fact
that the men whose ability shone most
conspicuously were those promoted.
There are men Of commanding abil-
ity in the United States senate, and
some few other men Of what might be
called commanding cunning. Shrewd-
ness and cunning occasionally pass