Evening star., 1931-11-22
Capital sidelights
BY WILL p. KENNEDY.


peettye SPEAKER OF the House, has long
rejoced In the opinion held by Texas,
prophetfc of his present em1nence-
that he is TOur leading Congressman.
This title was accorded to him by. Col.
Ike II. Pryor, formerly president OF the
American National Livestock Assocla-
ton, and one of the most prominent
cattlemep on the American Continent.
Testifying some years ago before the
Senate Agricultural Committee on the
Kenyon bill, Col Ike referred to Repre-
sentative Garner, whom we consider
our leading Congressman" The deS1g-
nation stuck. When friends began
using it, Representative Garner promptly
admitted that Col. Pryor was right,
adding "Col. Pryor is a gentleman OF
fine Judgment and discrimination"
MANY men In public life hold a grudge
against their parents for their middle
names and most of them hide the name
of which they are ashamed by using
only the initial Some few are proud
Of their middle, name-for example
Jack" Garner, the initial IN" stands
for Nance. Another Is Representa- tiVe
Frank L. Bowman of West Virginia.
who admires the old fsmily name
''Iiewellyn," ;" which he has borne proualy
for 53 years, so well that he has passed
it along to his son.
Some of the other members OF Cop
gress who carry similar boastful family
names are Senator George Higgins
Moses Of New Hampshire, Senator
Tasker I,oWndeS Oddie of Nevada, Sens-
tor Robert Beecher Howell Of Nebraska
Senator Burton Kendall Wheeler, borr
in Massachusetts and for more than
quarter of a century an honored adopt
ed son of Montana; Senator Smith
Wildman' Brookhart OF Iowa, Repre-
sentative William Perry Holiday. HI
nois; Representative William washing
ton Larsen, Georgia, Representative
Charles Hillyer Brand, Georgia. MRS
Pearl Peden Oldtield, Arkansas; Sena-
tor Henry Fountain Ashurst, Arizona
Representative @. Murray Turpm, rep
| resentatives Henry Winfield Wayson' y
Roland Kinzer, ]. Russell Leecn,, y
Banks Kurtz. j. Mitchell Chase and j
Howard Swick-an of Pennsylvania,
In the Presidents cabinet the M, n
Secretary Hyde's name Is Tor Mastlek
the "P'' in Secretary Lanont's name !;
for Peterson, the "I." in Secretary
| Stimson's name Is for Lewis, the u" II
Secretary Hurley's name Is for Jay, tht
ID" In Attorney General MitehelPs name
Is for Dewitt, Secretary Wilbur always
uses his full name-Ray LYMAN Wilbur
and the 'fN'' in Secretary Doak's nam;
y II 4 y
Much has been written in sae past few
days about the young man who offers
himself for House leader, Representative
John j. O'Connor, native OF Massa-
ehusetts, but now a national legislator
| from New York and the Tammany fold
The late lamented Speaker ChamI
Clark, who bad one of the best memories
in American history, some years age
reviewed for the writer some OF The
great men of the past who achieved
their eminence in relatively youthful
days. He recalled that there once was
young man elected. to the Congress
of the Unitsd States when he was %
! years old and too young to take his seat
under the provisions of the Constitution
That was John Young Brown OF Ken
tucky, elected to the Thirty-sixth Con-
gress, but couldn't take his seat until
| the second session. This same Brown
was again elected to the Fortieth Con-
gress, but his seat was declared vacant
on account of a disloyal act. He later
served in the Forty-third and Forty
fourth Congresses and as Governor o.
Kentucky.
Commenting upon the general furo1
of the day over this youths election
/
know that william Pitt was premier o1
England at "a and that Charles JaEaeS
Fox was the greatest debater in Parlia-
ment at about the same age, and he got
| In when he was 10. At the end of his
| life he said he had made a., speech
every night that he had been in Par
lament except two, and he regretted
he had not spoken on those two nights
ki% + X
Swinging back to his "Reminiscences
about young men In the United States
Congress, Champ Clark recalled thai
John Randolph Of Roanoke, "who wore
no beard and looked younger than he
| was" when asked by the clerk of the
House how old he was, replied, "You
had better 60 ask the people who sent
me here" It was this same John Ran
dolph who had "a harmless duel" with
Henry Clay on April 8, 1925.
Henry Clay was the only man 1r
| history who served in the United States
Senate before he was 80 years old. He
was appointed to fill the unexpired tern
Of John Adair, who resigned, and en-
tered upon his duties on November 19
| 1905, and was not 80 until the April Il
| following. "But he knew enough *
keep his mouth shut about his age anc
no one else thought of it," explained the
old Democratic war horse. Henry Clay
was later Secretary of State undel
John Quincy Adams and was defeated
twice for the presidency-by Andrew
Jackson in 1882 and by James K. Poll
in 1914.
Representative Willis C.. Hawley O.
Oregon, chairman of the Ways anC
Means Committee In the last Congress:
| and who on his return to the Capita
protests that he is very reluctant K
see new tax legislation put through
| because he believes it will delay the
eral prosperity, Is remembered for hav-
| ing called one Charles Dickens, the
| famous English noyeIst OF Q previou;
century, to testify in Congress regard
| ing the need for q Federal budget syS-
| tenn some years ago.
He quoted one of Dickens most pop
ular characters, David Copperheld, q:
! follows:
"Mr. Micawber eonjursd me to observe
that If q man had 20 pounds o yeal
/ for his income and spent 10 shilings
and sixpence he would be happy, bui
/ If he spent 90 pounds shilling III
would be miserable: after which hc
borrowed a shilling from me for porter
| and cheered up"
In our present emergency, however
Mr.. Hawley argues that the individual
| citizens condition is of prime con-
sideration ahead Of any urge to balance
! the Nations finances. BY restoring
| employment and the orderly flow o1
business, he argues, the normal surplus
| as of 1928 and 1929, will soon wipe
out whatever accumulated deficit may
arise in this temporary period Of eco
nomic stress.