Evening star., 1937-08-08
Capital Sidelights
BY WILL P. KENNEDY.

Who was Patrick Tracy? Senator
Henry Cabot Lodge, jr, tells you in an
erudite article inserted in the Congress
sional Record that he was the founder
of long line of able Massachusetts men
with whom I am happy to be able to
claim connection" Former Representa-
tive Joseph F. O'Connell of Boston sug-
gested that this belated tribute to q
penniless Irish lad who became a Revo-
lutionary figure and left among his de-
scendants great judges statesmen. SOL
diers, clergymen, merchants, captains of
industry, lawyers and physicians who
have themselves made history. To name
only trinity-Justice Oliver Wendell
Holmes, Henry Lee Higinson and James
Jackson Storrow. His son Nathaniel was
IAN intimate Of Jefferson who voyaged
with him in Tracy ship to Europe
learning much with which to tone the
ideas of John Adams and John Jay; who
entertained Washington and other great
men,
The old-fashioned art OF beautiful
Spencerian handwriting is not entirely
lost-this was emphasized to many men,
bers Of Congress last week when there
was displayed to them a beautifully
executed document which had been
transmitted to Speaker Bankhead by the
Mayor and city government Of Lynn,
Mass. 1t was a tribute to the memory
OF the late Representative William P.
Connery, jr.-done as labor Of love.
The handwriting was like copper plate
in its perfection and uniformity-now
almost lost art. And a significant fact,
which few who read the document ap-
preciated, was that the first signature
was that Of the Mayor of Lynn, who was
Connerys opponent in his last political
contest.
The years and months and weeks bring
interesting experiences and a broader
knowledge of life in its fullness to men,
bers of Congress. Take the veteran
Washington news correspondent who ten
years ago thought his life was pretty
we'll rounded out-Representative Louis
Ludlow OF Indiana. Two months ago he
did what he never expected to do-went
flying. AS chairman of the Appropria-
tions Subcommittee in charge OF postal
affairs of sponsoring the legislation that
established transatlantic airmail and
passenger service, he was prevailed upon
to make the flight inaugurating the first
leg of the transatlantic route-New
York to Bermuda There were twenty
eight passengers. including the veteran,
r. Walton Moore, for whom new ofilce
was created in the State Department,
and Senator William G. McAdoo, repre-
senting the Senate.
When he returned to Washington after
flight of nearly k6O0 miles at an aver
age altitude of $500 feet-more than
mile and half above the surface of the
sea-he was amazed to find he had lost
only one working day from his congress
sional duties-the trip out took five
hours. ten minutes running time and
back six hours, ten minutes. Then Rep
resentative Ludlow wrote an Alladin's
tale about his trip-780 miles across the
sea. above the clouds to land on little
speck of land in midocean. And now he
sometimes wonders If he was wise to
write 1t, for his office is kept busy an
swering requests for copies Of his Ana
masis- -Katabasis."
Louis still has flare for writing with
human interest appeal.
watching Washington" has become
rather necessary for the people scattered
throughout the entire length and
breadth of the land. This was en-
phasized by Senator Reynolds OF North
Carolina. a noted wanderluster and writer
of what he observes. He emphasizes the
vital need for national planning for the
future, pointing out that in the legis-
lative field today attempts are being
made to control forces that could not
be foreseen, which has resulted in new
conceptions of the responsibility Of gov
ernment AS examples, he sites six major
industries with large capital and en-
ploying hundreds Of thousands of per-
sons, built on inventions that have come
since the turn of the century-the tele-
phone, automobile, airplane, motion pic
lures, rayon and radio. It is impossible
to calculate the social influences Of these
upon the people, he argues. So the her
culean task before Congress is to en-
deavor to meet new conditions-while
the millions of people affected In all
affairs of daily life-"Watch Washing