Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-08-25
Our New Envoy to France

ed at the unbusinesslike methods of the
State In handling Its institutions There
was no coordination. Each institution
was little kingdom Of its own. ana
under such conditions waste and ex-
travaganee were inevitable.
Edge decided to put an end TO this,
but ne was anxious that it should be
done properly. He needed preliminary
Investigation. and he looked around for
the best man in the State to do the JOB.
In Englewood he found a prominent
New York banker member Of the house
of Morgan, named Dwight w. Morrow.
Although he had once gone to school
with Calvin Coolidge. and was later to
play national politics on grand scale,
Dwight Morrow at that time was an I'M
known in Jersey politics.
Nc Longer a Reproach.
Gov. Edge asked Morrow to take the
institutions survey as public service.
and, of course, he consented. But it
was to be no superficial study, He spent
! IS months at it, visited every institution
in the State and he embodied his recon-
mendatiens In two fat volumes. Edge
had influence enough to get these rec
concentrations enacted into law, and
today New Jerseys institutions are nc
longer reproach to the State.
New Jersey today are two raarvels OF
modern engineering. which might also
be called monuments to the service OF
Gov. Walter e. Edge. For many years
there had been agitation for bridge
across the Delaware between Camden
and Philadelphia. 1t was not necessary
to argue the need Of such bridge, but
1t took more than argument to get an
authorization through the Legislature at
Trenton, where North Jersey and South
Jersey additionally met and glared at
each other across an imaginary line
North Jersey always voted against the
bridge. Some cynics say that the rail-
roads. controlling the ferry privileges on
the river, had more to do with 1t than
sectional jealousy. In any event, the
bridge project languished.
Across the State on the Hudson River
another project was meantime taking
shape. 1t called for a vehicular tunnel
under the river, connecting Jersey City
with Manhattan Island. South Jersey
disgruntled over the bridge. was waiting
for q chance to spike the interstate
tunnel.
Gov. Edge saw chance to please
both sides and to get something done
Under his direction the two projects
were linked together in legislative act
and for once North Jersey and South
Jersey voted together. The bridge anc
tunnel took many years in building, bu
as United States Senator the Governor
who had done so much to bring then
into being took a prominent part In thu
dedication Of each.
Chosen for Senate.
Edges administration as governor hat
been so successful that when vacanc!
| IA IL
1918 he was almost the unaniH6u
choice of New Jersey Republicans. II
,, the primary held that Fall he receives
nearly three times as many votes al
both opponents combined. He went OF
, to win an easy victory In the election
, which followed.
, In the Senate he has had a varied ex
perience. Perhaps he Is not bette
known to the country as whole becaus
; he refused to specialize. Banking ant
, currency, interoceanie canals. foreign
relations and finance have been nj
, major committee assignments ana n
has wen a reputation for faithfulness a
committee meetings and for sound com
mon sense when any measures iron
these committees were under debate OF
the floor.
/ From the very beginning OF his service
! on interoceanic canals he has been al
| advocate of q second canal across tn
/ isthmus, using the route through Mica
| raeua which the United States con
; sidered very seriously before plung1n
; into the undertaking at Panama. Las
Winter Edge steered through the Sen
ate, in spite Of Progressive and Demo
cratic jeers, a resolution calling for
preliminary survey Of the nicaragua
} route.
He has visited Nicaragua several time
to fan1iliarize himself with every detail
of the proposed canal, and from NJ
study OF political conditions IN that un
happy republic he became firm cham
pion of the Coolidge policies there ant
,, of the negotiations which ended In tn
Stimson agreement of 1927. In the len