The Congress: The Golden Apple

The situation when the famed gentleman, Paris, who later alienated the affections of Menelaus’ wife, was made to choose among three ladies, Hera, Athene and Aphrodite, was last week reversed: Pennsylvania had her choice of three gentlemen. As the three ladies respectively made Paris an offering of power, of martial glory and of the fairest woman on earth, so the three gentlemen each made an offer. Mr. Pepper came offering the glory of supporting the Administration. Mr. Pinchot offered the fierce pleasure of fighting for bone-dry prohibition. Mr. Vare offered the most inspiring of beverages—beer and wine.

Pennsylvania walked before them—Senator, Governor and Representative—examining tentatively their gifts, and holding in her hands behind her back the award of the Republican nomination to the Senate. Then, laughingly, she tossed the golden apple to Mr. Vare. All in vain was it that Secretary Mellon had gone back to Pittsburgh, crying: “Pennsylvania never had a more faithful public official nor one who has more clearly earned renomination”—Mr. Pepper polled only 485,000 votes.

All in vain was it that Mr. Pinchot rallied’ the church forces to his side and called to his coal miner friends—they cast but 320,000 votes for him. Mr. Vare, secure in his control of the Philadelphia machine and failing to gain a majority in most of the rest of the state, yet gathered with the single cry of “Beer” about 90,000 votes more than Mr. Pepper, almost 255,000 votes more than Mr. Pinchot.

The Significance. Representative Vare is the boss of Philadelphia politics. Without his great majority in his own city he could not have won. As it was, he did not have a majority of the 1,400,000 votes cast. If Mr. Pinchot, the ardent Dry, had not decided to enter the field as a third, it is most unlikely that Vare would have won. So, fundamentally, it was the act of a Dry which nominated a Wet.

The Drys claim that it was because the Dry vote was split that Mr. Vare won. But their argument is not convincing. Undoubtedly many votes in the Pittsburgh region which the Mellon organization swung to Pepper, would on a pure Wet and Dry issue have been Wet. And it is even likely that Mr. Pinchot got some normally Wet votes among the miners. The factors which tend to emphasize the Wetness of Vare’s victory are that in Philadelphia 14 of the 15 silk-stocking wards, which ordinarily the local machine is sure to find opposing it, turned round and voted for Mr. Vare, and that in the whole state, despite the opposition of nearly every newspaper, despite the fact that the Philadelphia machine has little power outside its bailiwick, there were enough votes to give Vare a handsome plurality. It does not seem that Mr. Vare could possibly have been nominated if it had not been for his issue.

The Future. Normally a Republican nomination in Pennsylvania is as good as an election. This time there is, however, the possibility that Pinchot will bolt the Republican ticket either to run as an independent or to join forces with the Democrats who nominated William B. Wilson (Secretary of Labor under the President of the same surname). In any event it will take an heroic effort if a Republican nominee is to be beaten in Pennsylvania.

The Upshot in the Senate. The whole trouble in the Senate started when Senator Pat Harrison of Mississippi, aided by Senator Caraway, began one of his Republican-baiting speeches in his best style:

Mr. Harrison: “Mr. President, I do not know just what the latest returns are from the Keystone State.”

Mr. King: “The arch has crumbled.”

Mr. Harrison: “Yes; the arch has crumbled, for some two or three hours ago it was reported that Mr. Vare, against whom the administration inveighed and in a mad effort to defeat sent into Pennsylvania its strongest champions and friends, was leading for the nomination by some 107,000 votes. It was thought all along that he would carry Philadelphia, but it seems that he not only got all the votes in Philadelphia, the home of our good friend, the present incumbent, the senior Senator from Pennsylvania [Mr. Pepper], but it looks like he is carrying Pittsburgh, the home city of Andrew Mellon and Jim Davis and Davie Reed. . . .

“I dislike to mention the name ‘Newberry,’ because the election is so close at hand, and that name is such a nightmare to certain Senators over there who are coming up for re-election this year, especially my friend Cameron of Arizona; my friend Senator Cummins of Iowa; my genial friend Curtis of Kansas, the leader on the other side; Edge of New Jersey, although he pulled through last year; Ernst of Kentucky; Gooding from out in Idaho; Hale from Maine—he weathered the storm—”

Mr. Reed of Missouri: “Mr. President, what is this—a funeral oration?”

Mr. Harrison: “Yes; for the various Senators whose names I am now mentioning.”

Mr. Reed of Missouri: “The Senator’s voice is getting so pathetic that it almost brings tears to my eyes.”

Mr. Harrison: “My tender heart goes out to my brethren over there. I must commiserate with them. Then, Harreld from Oklahoma; Lenroot from Wisconsin; McKinley—but, alas, he is gone; Oddie—oh, if he could recall it now; Shortridge—oh, this is the one time he refuses to give me his smiles; Smoot—he continues to read when I mention his name—he is trying to preoccupy his mind; he wants to forget it; Stanfield—I am sorry he is not in the Chamber; Wadsworth—well, it might not hurt him; nothing can; Warren; Watson of Indiana—he will hear more about it during this fall; Weller—poor Weller; and Willis, whose opponent may be a lady. And Pepper—oh, what a hurricane. No more are the people of Pennsylvania to be served that brand of seasoning.

“Those are the names of Senators, most of them coming up for re-election this year, who voted for Newberry; and here is the article that Leo Sack wrote about the Pennsylvania situation: “‘It was charged in the Newberry contest that expenditures in his behalf exceeded $200,000. His manager admitted $195,000. In Pennsylvania the George Wharton Pepper forces are spending $2,000,000, it is conservatively estimated by well-posted politicians, veteran political reporters and officeholders. Some think the expenditures may reach $5,000,000.'”

Mr. Caraway: “The Senator is a very able lawyer. Can my friend Pepper now sue the people who got his money and did not deliver, and recover? He ought to have some kind of forum where he can get his money’s worth.”

Mr. Harrison: “To paraphrase a legal term, may I say, ‘One who comes into court must come with clean hands.’ But in Mellon he has a friend who knows how to sue. My friend from Michigan [Mr. Couzens] will agree to that.”

Mr. Reed of Pennsylvania: “I want to say a word about the Senator’s strictures on the expenditures in Pennsylvania. The Senator forgets, I think, that the population of Pennsylvania is over 9,000,000 people, and all of our adults who are citizens are permitted to vote. In the Senator’s home State, where three-fourths of the adult citizens are disfranchised, it doubtless is not necessary to spend a dollar.”

Mr. Harrison: “I would not be surprised if some of this money that was expended in Pennsylvania was spent in getting some of those voters from Mississippi up there to help out on yesterday.” [Laughter.]

“I am through, Mr. President.”

Then it was that Senator Jim Reed sprung a surprise, and for once the fighting Missourian had the Democrats behind him to a man. He called a resolution ordering a special committee of five Senators to investigate campaign expenditures, a committee on which there should be two regular Republicans, one Progressive Republican and two Democrats—giving the opposition the majority.

The other Reed, David of Pennsylvania, objected to consideration of the resolution. The vote was 45 for and 34 against consideration. A moment later another roll call was held and the resolution was passed 59 to 13. In both cases only regular Republicans voted in the negative. Of the 34 regular Republicans who first voted “no”, 14—Butler, Cameron, Cummins, Curtis, Dale, Gooding, Harreld, Jones (Washington), McMaster, Pine, Stanfield, Weller, Williams and Willis—changed to “yes” on the second vote. And seven others simply left the Chamber and did not vote the second time—Watson, Robinson (Ind.), Deneen, Keyes, Norbeck, Capper and Reed (Pa.).

Jim Reed rose once again grimly to his feet: “Mr. President, I arise merely to call attention to the fact that between the time we voted to take up the resolution and the time we voted on its adoption, as nearly as I can estimate, there was a lapse of only about seven minutes and three-quarters, including the time consumed by the roll call. . . . The fact is that 34 of you voted against taking up the resolution; and then 21 of you—and I am going to drop into the vernacular—’welched’ inside of seven and three-quarter minutes. . .

“A few weeks ago a primary election was held in Illinois. It has been charged by many people that one of the candidates expended from a million to a million and a half dollars in that primary. Even then he went down to defeat. . . . The press today states, and the statement is not categorically denied, that there was on yesterday and the few preceding days expended in the Pennsylvania primary from $2,000,000 to $5,000,000. If the charge be true, every man concerned in it ought to be speedily tried and sent to the penitentiary. . . .

“If, sir, you were to muster before me the murderer with blood-wet hands, the thief in possession of his loot, the highwayman armed with bludgeon and pistol, the firebug with his torch, the burglar with dark lantern and jimmy, and if you were to place with that assembly of rogues the wretch who had corrupted an election, I would unhesitatingly declare the corruptionist the blackest scoundrel of them all. I would so say because the man who attacks the foundations of his Government and thereby assails the very structure of society is the greater criminal, the more intolerable villain, for his criminality poisons the soul of the Nation.”

Within a few minutes Vice President appointed the investigating committee: Reed of Missouri and Bayard (Democrats), LaFollette (Progressive Republican), Reed of Pennsylvania and Deneen (Republicans). But three of these promptly withdrew—Reed of Pennsylvania, Deneen and Bayard. In their places were appointed Fernald, Goff and King. Fernald withdrew and Mr. Dawes named McNary. The reason for the numerous withdrawals were chiefly connected with the coming campaign.