Seward daily gateway., 1925-06-19

He was an early advocate of woman
 suffrage, labor legislation and taxa
 tion of the wealthy classes. Later
 he advocated recall of judges and jul dicial decisions, and came out in ia vor of nationalizing the railways.
 Included in the long list of meas ures against which he fought stub
 bornly were the Aldrich-Vreeland currency act, the Commerce Court act, and the Payne4Aldrich tariff measure. He made a speech lasting four days advocating the unseating of Senator Lorimer of Illinois, and was prominent in the Ballinger-Pin- chot conservation fight as critic of President Taft and supporter of MT. Pinchot.
 Opposing American intervention in the World War, Senator LaFol- lette urged a peace conference of neutrals. He took leading part in l the spectacular filibuster against the armed ship bill, asked for by Presi- dent Wilson, and encompassed it's defeat early in 1917 He was among the famous twelve wilful men" nam ed by President Wilson as obstruc- 1 tionists.
 After voting against the Ameri- can war declaration, Senator LaF'ol- lette also opposed the selective draft act, but supported the enormous war appropriations and other bills. He sponsored many free speech pro- posals, fought ratification of the Treaty of Versailles, and in many long speeches after the war urged amnesty for those convicted under the espionage act
 i During 1917 the Senate received mass of petitions demanding Sena- tor LaFollette's expulsion, principally because of a speech at St. Paul to a Non-Partisan League convention. The Minnesota public safety com mission was among those demanding his unseating, and the Wisconsi legislature passed resolutions of cen sure. It was during this political period that MT. LaFollette was hung in effigy and denounced by resolu- tions of civic and other organiza- tions turnout the country. An inves- tigation of the St. Paul speech, bas- ed on the war and Americas part in it, finally was made by the Sen ate privileges and elections commit tee. Senator La Toilette submitted copies of the speech and other evi- dence, and charged that he had been misquoted, charge admitted by some of the reporters, and the Senate in quiry was dropped in February, 1918.
 Always a champion of labor, the La Toilette seamens law, designed to safeguard the interests of Amer ican seamen, probably is the most inn portant measure bearing his name. Labor formed the nucleus of the sup port to his independent candidacy for the Presidency.
 La Toilette had many important committee assignments in the Sen ate. For years he was veteran member of the finance and inter- state commerce committees, and as chairman of the manufacturers com mittee he conducted an extensive investigation into gasoline prices. He was author of the resolution under which the Senate inquiry into the leasig of Teapot Dome and other na- val oil reserves was undertaken.
 Senator La Toilette took a promi- nent part in the framing of tariff and tax legislation, fighting the Ford ney-McCumber tariff measure of the Harding administration and opposing many of the changes proposed in the internal tax law during the Sixty-Sev- enth congress and the first session of the Sixty-Eighth congress. He also was active in opposing President Harding's shipping bill
 Ill health handicapped LaFollette somewhat after his reelection to the Senate in 1922 Tn the summer and fall of 1923, during tour of Europe, he contracted a severe cold After his return to the United States he suffered an attack of grippe. He was unable to attend the opening of the Sixty-Eighth congress but