Evening star., 1954-12-20
Many Ex-RepresentotiVes in New Senate
By Robert K. Welsh
A LII THROUGH the House.

A LII THROUGH the House con-
n gressional. not Clement Moore
on the eve of the 84th Congress o great
clatter could arise over the SO mem
bers Of the new Senate who are for
mer Representatives. as is Vice Presi-
dent Nixon himself.
This high proportion Of the 96-seat
Senate may be an time record for any
session. Statistical sharks and skeptics
are free to dig deeper into the archives
since the first Congress convened in
1889. But the "Old House Week" re-
union in the 1855 senatorial chamber
will be the biggest in the memory Of
current Capitol trend-watchers.
It surely will fail to satisfy everyone,
especially those at the south end Of the
building. Those House veterans who
regard their legislative branch as being
closer to the people show mixed emo
tions Of disappointment and pride.
They sorrow to see any unusually able
and hard-working Representative leave
the family atmosphere of the House
for the supposedly brighter lights Of
the CLUB" at the other end. They
regard it less as promotion and more
as a means cf supplying talent to their
sister service.
Accordingly. they do not turn any
pictures to the House wall following
such departures. They always have
been ready to welcome prodigal sons
back from the Senate. as has hap
pened on several occasions. They still
tell how Henry Clay proved he would
rather be right by moving out of the
Senate and going to the House where
he became Speaker. Clay, at that.
could hardly have been wrong because
he shuttled back and forth several
times between House and Senate.
There, however, is another way of
looking at it. Close as the House may
be to the people, Representatives with
a hankering for eventual Senate suites
are stirred by an impressive precedent
in the success, if not progress, Of so
many former House members who have
made the trek. This is conceded even
by Representatives who want to remain
in the House because of personal pre-
ference, safe districts, or really pro-
found love and understanding Of the
House.
In the opinion OF many a far-looking
candidate, the House is closer to-well.
it's closer to the Senate. But smile when
you say to Speaker Martin or Speaker
Rayburn that the House is stepping
stone" or that the Senate is the upper
body" Better still, don't say it at all.
From a head-counting standpoint
and political viewpoint. the House has
provided more Presidents than has the
Senate. Presidents Madison. Jackson,
William Henry Harrison. Tyler. Polk,
Fillmore, Pierce. Buchanan. Lincoln,
johnson, Hayes, Garfield and McKin-
ley had been in the House. and six OF
them went subsequently to the Senate
before living in the White House. -Four
other former Senators reached the
White House, and dozens tried to. The
House has its own long list of losing
nominees for the presidency. including
Clay, James G. Blaine, William Jen-
nings Bryan and John w. Davis.
But, to return to the returning Sen
ate. The new Senators Curtis and Hrus-
ka of Nebraska, Bender Of Ohio, Cot
ton of New Hampshire, and Martin Of
Iowa, all Republicans, come over di-
rectly from the House. and Senator
Case of New Jersey previously was
there.
OF the SO former Representatives who
will be in the Senate as compared with
20 this year, 81 are Democrats and Is
Republicans. Their House careers date
as far back as 1912 for Senator Hay
den, Democrat, of Arizona. and to 1918
for Senator Barkley, Democrat, of Ken
lucky.
Democratic Senators Hill and Spark
man Of Alabama, Mcclellan and Full
bright Of Arkansas, Clements and
Barkley of Kentucky. Chavez and An
derson of New Mexico, Kefauver and
Gore of Tennessee, and Magnuson and
Jackson of Washington, put in years
of often prominent work in the House.
In most instances, those House years
were fairly recent.
Other Senate Democrats with past
House experience include Senators
Smathers Of Florida. Kennedy Of Mas
sachusetts. Mansfield Of Montana,
Monroney of Oklahoma. Robertson of
Virginia. Nicely of West Virginia. Hen
nings of Missouri and, last but hardly
least, Senate Majority Leader johnson
Of Texas, and Senator Hayden Of Ari-
zona. who has served in Congress longer
than any other present member.
On the Republican side, the House
alumni delegation numbers Senators
Smith of Maine, Dirksen Of Illinois,
Dworshak Of Idaho, Carlson Of Kansas.
Beall Of Maryland. Potter Of Michigan,
Case and Mundt Of South Dakota, and
Barrett Of wyoming, as well as the six
elected to the Senate for the first time
last November.
In passing. it should be noted that
Senator Nicely went from the Senate
to the House and again to the Senate.
The late Representative Wadsworth.
Republican. Of New York, put In several
years of distinguished service in the
House after he had been q Senator.
The most famous apostle of the back
to the House" idea was John Quincy