There is a hint of Ingersoll in his speeches
which are full of alliteration and rhythmic phrases. He has a sense
of form sadly lacking in his stammering and inarticulate
colleagues, for oratory in the Senate is probably at its lowest
ebb. But, strangely enough, it is only occasionally that he makes a
lasting impression. His eloquence ripples like water and leaves
scarcely more trace.
Mr. Borah's entire political career has been characterized by an
impulsiveness which has given him a halo of popularity but has
never enabled him to garner the fruits of plodding labor. At one
time or another this has led him to break with nearly every faction
with which he has been identified. The "regular" Republicans have
felt that they never could rely upon him; the "progressive" element
has found him inconstant and at intervals he has threatened to pull
down the party house of the Republicans and to bring destruction to
one or other of the leaders whom he dislikes.
This was illustrated by an observation he made to me one spring
morning in 1919 when the Republican attitude toward the League of
Nations was still in the formative process. Borah was "convinced"
that Elihu Root and Will H. Hays were conspiring to induce the
Republicans to accept the League and he said, quite seriously, that
he had about come to the conclusion that it would be necessary to
wreck the Republican Party to save the country.
Pages:
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198