It is occupied by another." The galleries roared;
the somnolent Senator shambled over to his own side of the aisle
and Senator Penrose was given credit, by the unwise, for humor
quite unintended.
Life with Mr. Penrose is a much more serious business than most
people imagine. And it became even more serious a little while ago
when illness laid hold of him and his brother, a physician,
prescribed dietary rules restricting the freedom that he had once
exercised without restraint. There was something lion-like in the
gaunt figure in the rolling chair which he occupied when he
returned to the Senate from his sick bed. It was amazing that he
recovered; it was even more amazing that he should have submitted
to the rigorous rules laid down by his doctor, even if that doctor
was his own brother. The bated breath with which Pennsylvania
politicians awaited bulletins from his bedside was a striking
acknowledgment of the power he wields.
The evolution of Boies Penrose is an amusing commentary upon
American politics in more ways than one. Three years after he was
graduated from Harvard College he was elected to the Pennsylvania
State Legislature on a reform ticket. His election was made the
occasion for great rejoicing on the part of the good people of
Philadelphia. And well might they rejoice. They had at last driven
a wedge into the sinister political machine that had brought the
city of brotherly love into disrepute as a boss-ridden
municipality.
Pages:
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194