The Waterbury Democrat., 1946-08-29

EDITORS NOTE:-While Drew Pearson is on brief vacation, his column will be written by several distinguished guest oolumnists-today's by Paul A. Porter, administrator of the Office of Price Administration
 WASHINGTON, Aug 29-I want to use this space to write about of the goeatest living Americans. He is not now candidate for office so what say do him harm. I am the administrator of temporary agency that has only one year to go so cannot justly be charged with attempting to curry his favor. And the further fact that no words of mine could add to his stature diminish the luster of his distinguished career leaves me the justification that he is a fellow Kentuckian and my Senator and want to say what think about him.
 It is my firm belief that when historians are able to apprase effectively the developments of this those with perception will conclude that Senator Alben w. Barkley of Kentucky much more than any single individual preserved the functions and n tegrity of representative government during period of great change. As majority leader of the United States Senate his has been of the most difficult of all postwar assignments. Our system does not surround the office of majority leader with the ap paratus of protection and staff work which properly serve the White House Cabinet positions loWly price administrator.
 The majority leader is directly exposed to all the pressures of his constituency, and in addi tion must bear the burdens that flow from the vast and complex welter of legislative problems that his responsibility requires he master. Moreover, he firing line legislative debate day in and day out and has the duty of guiding through the shoals and qucksands of controversy program which is composed of many issues, great and small.
 
 promptly thousand judgments. It calls for sound concept of strategy and great personal leadership. These qualifications possessed by my Senator to an unexcelled degree.
 The 18th Congress did not accomplish all that everyone hoped expected. Much of President Tru- mans program not enacted into law There compromises and adjustments that, depending upon ones point of view unsatisfactory. Certainly satisfied with the ultimate decision on price control But of these defciences relate to story issues which perhaps not too important measured by time
 On the basic challenge of the day, the 18th Congress in my judgment did measure up It for- sealed hope, any doubts that the United States will not fully discharge its world obligations in this atomic age. Further it gave to the world ringing for free people while other systems fumbling and struggling for stability. For these fundamental achievements Senator Barkey, in my view, had major responsibility.
 It is well known that Senator Barkley's hero is Woodrow Wilson. These two figures have much in common in their philosophy of government and con- cept of public responsibility. The kind of enduring liberalism espoused by Wilson and championed and made effective by Barkley in this generation is the course where lies the greatest hope for America. h. deed the New Deal of Roosevelt of which Senator Barkley of the principal legislative architects Was suspect in the Senator's view merely timely evolution of Wilsonian ideals.
 I came across singular parallelism recently in rereading Wilson's "Calendar of Great Americans" :" In writing of illustrous predecessor of Senator Barkley's, Wilson said:
 Tn Henry Clay have an American of most authentic pattern. There of his gener- ation who represented of America than he did The singular, almost irresistible attraction he had