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IRVIN ST. CLAIR PEPPER
( Late a Representative from Iowa )
MEMORIAL ADDRESSES
DELIVERED IN THE
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AND THE SENATE
OF THE UNITED STATES
SIXTY-THIRD CONGRESS
Proceedings in the House Proceedings in the Senate
May 3, 1914 December 12, 1914
PREPARED UNDER THE DIRECTION OP
THE JOINT COMMITTEE ON PRINTING
WASHINGTON
1915
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Gift
Senator S.W Brookhart
Mai^fi 1,19^3
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page.
Proceedings in the House 5
Prayer by Rev. Henry N. Couden, D. D 5, 7
Memorial addresses by —
Mr. Henry Volhner, of Iowa 11
Mr. Champ Clark, of Missouri 18
Mr. James R. Mann, of Illinois 20
Mr. James \V. Good, of Iowa 22
Mr. Isaac R. Sherwood, of Ohio 26
Mr. George C. Scott, of Iowa 29
Mr. William A. Cullop, of Indiana 32
Mr. Horace M. Towner, of Iowa 35
Mr. Joseph J. Russell, of Missouri 41
Mr. J. Hampton Moore, of Pennsylvania 44
Mr. Joseph A. Goulden, of New York 46
Mr. Clyde H. Tavenner, of Illinois 48
Mr. Sanford Kirkpatrick, of Iowa 51
Mr. Charles O. Lobeck, of Nebraska 52
Mr. William R. Green, of Iowa . 55
Mr. Maurice Connolly, of Iowa 57
Mr. Kenneth D. McKellar, of Tennessee 61
Mr. William N. Raltz, of Illinois 62
Mr. William A. Ashbrook, of Ohio 64
Proceedings in the Senate 73
Memorial addresses by —
Mr. Albert R. Cummins, of Iowa 76
Mr. William H. Thompson, of Kansas 78
Mr. James A. Reed, of Missouri 81
Mr. William S. Kenyon, of Iowa 83
Death of Hon. Irvin St. Clair Pepper, at Clinton, Iowa 87
Body in state at Muscatine, Iowa 89
[3]
Contents
Page.
Funeral services at Ottumwa, Iowa 93
Eulogy by Hon. Wesley L. Jones, of Washington 93
Eulogy by Hon. Joseph J. Russell, of Missouri 68,94
Serm,on by Rev. R. Ames Montgomery, pastor of First
Presbyterian Church, of Ottumwa, Iowa 94
Memorial services at Muscatine, Iowa 98
Addresses by —
Hon. James A. Reed, of Missouri 99
Hon. William S. Kenyon, of Iowa 100
Hon. Martin J. Wade, of Iowa 103
Hon. Maurice Connolly, of Iowa 105
Hon. Sanford Kirkpatrick, of Iowa 107
Hon. Clyde H. Tavenner, of Illinois 107
Tributes 109
[4]
DEATH OF HON. IRVIN ST. CLAIR PEPPER
Proceedings in the House of Representatives
Monday, December 22, 1913.
The House met at 12 o'clock noon.
The Chaplain, Rev. Henry N. Couden, D. D., offered the
following prayer:
Thou Infinite, Eternal, whose footsteps may be traced
on land and sky and sea; whose creative and re-creative
hand, guided by infinite wisdom, power, and goodness,
has left its impress on everything that is. All that we
think or do are but imperfect imitations of what Thou
hast done to perfection. The architect, the sculptor, the
painter, the musician, the poet finds his model and re-
ceives his inspiration in the works of Thy hands. The
real scientist, philosopher, statesman, philanthropist,
teacher, all are students at Thy feet, and happy is the
man who catches truth as it falls from Thy lips. In the
thunderings of Sinai, in the Sermon on the Mount, in the
parables of the Master, in the love poured out on Calvary
is the heart of God writ in characters of living light. May
we read with undimmed eyes, hear with unstopped ears,
and feel the thrill of Thy presence in our hearts, and
departing leave behind us footprints on the sands of time
to the honor and glory of Thy holy name. And now, O
Father, Thou hast touched deeply our hearts in the death
of one of our Members, comfort us, and be especially near
to his stricken family, inspire them with the hope of the
[5]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
immortality of the soul, that they may look forward to an
everlasting reunion in the realms of joy and happiness.
In His name. Amen.
Mr. Haugen. Mr. Speaker, I have the solemn duty to
announce to the House the death this morning of Mr. Irvin
St. Clair Pepper, a Member of the House of Representa-
tives from the State of Iowa. Thus ends the life of a
worthy young man, with years of useful, patriotic service,
and universally loved and respected. At some future
time I shall ask that a day be set aside that proper respect
may be paid to his memory.
I now offer the following resolutions, which I send to
the desk and ask to have read.
The Clerk read as follows :
Resolved, That the House has heard with profound sorrow of
the death of Hon. Irvin St. Clair Pepper, a Representative from
the State of Iowa;
Resolved, That a committee of 18 Members of the House, with
such Members of the Senate as may be joined, be appointed to
attend the funeral;
Resolved, That the Sergeant at Arms of the House be authorized
and directed to take such steps as may be necessary for carrying
out the provisions of these resolutions, and that the necessary
expenses in connection therewith be paid out of the contingent
fund of the House;
Resolved, That the Clerk communicate these resolutions to the
Senate and transmit a copy thereof to the family of the deceased.
The Speaker. The question is on agreeing to the resolu-
tions.
The resolutions were agreed to.
The Chair announced the following committee : Messrs.
Connolly of Iowa, Kirkpatrick, Lloyd, Doolittle, Ashbrook,
Tavenner, Russell, Lobeck, Thomas, Buchanan of Illinois,
Haugen, Kennedy of Iowa, Good, Prouty, Towner, Woods,
Sloan, and Slemp.
[6]
Proceedings in the House
The Clerk read as follows:
Resolved, That as a further mark of respect this House do
now adjourn.
The Speaker. The question is on agreeing to the resolu-
tion.
The resolution was agreed to; and accordingly (at 10
o'clock and 59 minutes p. m.) the House adjourned until
to-morrow, Tuesday, December 23, 1913, at 2 o'clock and
30 minutes p. m.
Tuesday, April 28, 19U.
Mr. Kirkpatrick. Mr. Speaker, I ask immediate con-
sideration of the following order, which I send to the
Clerk's desk.
The Speaker. The Clerk will report the order.
The Clerk read as follows:
Ordered, That Sunday, the 3d day of May, at 12 o'clock, be set
apart for addresses on the life, character, and public services of
Hon. Irvin St. Clair Pepper, late a Representative from the State
of Iowa.
The order was agreed to.
Sunday, May 3, 191k.
The House met at 12 o'clock noon.
The Chaplain, Rev. Henry N. Couden, D. D., offered the
following prayer:
Our Father in heaven, whose heart is ever open to the
prayers of Thy children and always in sympathy with
those who need the touch of Thy spirit, let Thy blessing
descend upon us as we gather here to-day in memory of
[7]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
a departed Member, whose life and conduct challenged
the respect and admiration of all who knew him. Strong
of mind, warm of heart, pure of motive, he lived well,
wrought well, and left behind him a clean record. His
going has left a void in the hearts of all who knew him;
his earthly mission fulfilled, Thou didst call him to a
larger service in the great beyond. May we hold him
sacred to our memory and strive to emulate his virtues.
Be Thou solace to the bereaved family, and inspire them
with the hope he cherished in the immortality of the soul.
So may we all trust in the infinite love of a heavenly
Father revealed in the heart of the Christ, the world's
great exemplar.
If I find Him. if I follow, what His guerdon here?
Many a sorrow, many a labor, many a tear.
If I still hold closely to Him. what hath He at last?
Sorrow vanquished, labor ended, Jordan past.
If I ask Him to receive me, will He say me nay?
Not till earth and not till heaven pass away.
Amen.
Mr. Kirkpatrick. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous con-
sent that the reading of the Journal be dispensed with.
The Speaker. The gentleman from Iowa asks unani-
mous consent to dispense with the reading of the Journal.
Is there objection?
There was no objection.
Mr. Kirkpatrick. I ask further that all those Members
who do not participate in the services here to-day, and
who desire to do so, may have five legislative days in
which to extend their remarks.
The Speaker. The gentleman from Iowa asks unani-
mous consent that those gentlemen who do not partici-
pate in the services to-day and who so desire may have
five legislative days in which to print remarks. Is there
objection?
[8]
Proceedings in the House
There was no objection.
The Speaker. The Clerk will report the order for to-
day's services.
The Clerk read as follows:
On motion of Mr. Kirkpatrick, by unanimous consent, Ordered,
That Sunday, May 3, 1914, be set apart for addresses upon the
life, character, and public services of Hon. Irvin St. Clair Pepper,
late a Representative from the State of Iowa.
Mr. Kirkpatrick took the chair as Speaker pro tempore.
Mr. Vollmer. Mr. Speaker, I offer the following resolu-
tions.
The Clerk read as follows:
Resolved, That the business of the House be now suspended
that opportunity may be given for tribute to the memory of
Hon. Irvin St. Clair Pepper, late a Member of this House from
the State of Iowa.
Resolved, That the Clerk communicate these resolutions to the
Senate.
Resolved, That the Clerk send a copy of these resolutions to
the family of the deceased.
Resolved, That at the conclusion of to-day's proceedings, the
House, as a particular mark of respect to the memory of the
deceased, and in recognition of his distinguished public career,
do stand adjourned.
The resolutions were agreed to.
[9]
MEMORIAL ADDRESSES
Address of Mr. Vollmer, of Iowa
Mr. Speaker : " Can this be the village of Falling
Water?" I can see again, "in my mind's eye, Hora-
tio," the shambling, unkempt figure, with its tattered
clothes and straggling gray hair, with its quavering ac-
cents and bewildered air, created out of the formless mist
of folklore by the genius of Washington Irving and visual-
ized and immortalized by that of Joseph Jefferson. " Does
no one here know Rip Van Winkle?" is followed by that
other inquiry surcharged with pathos: "Are we, then, so
soon forgot? " The allusion is not original with me, but
the application flashed through my mind recently while
I was taking my oath of office in the House, for I had
been in the employ of the House of Representatives of the
Fiftieth Congress 26 years ago, and when I turned and
faced the present membership of the House there was
only one face on this floor that I recalled as belonging to
a Member of the Fiftieth Congress — that of the venerable
gentleman from New York — the Hon. Sereno E. Payne.
I have not looked it up — there may be others — but he is
the only one that I recall. In that Congress were such
Titans as Speaker Carlisle, Thomas R. Reed of Maine,
William McKinley of Ohio, Sam Randall of Pennsylvania,
Sunset Cox of New York, and others whom we readily
recall at this day.
Rut how about the three hundred odd other gentlemen
of that body — most of them loyal, able, patriotic, whole-
souled men of high ideals who rendered great and distin-
[11]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
guished service to the Commonwealth? Who can recall
more than half a dozen of them after a scant 25 years
have rolled by into the ocean of eternity? "Are we, then,
so soon forgot? "
In honoring its departed Members, Congress honors
itself. The faithful observance of memorial ceremonies
speaks volumes for the manliness of the men of whom
the House is composed; men who have good, rich, red
blood, not ice water, in their veins, and are capable of
virile friendships and maintain an exalted standard of
human dignity. And I have felt this more keenly than
otherwise, because as the successor of the universally be-
loved Irvin St. Clair Pepper, it has been enforced upon me
in the words that almost invariably followed immediately
upon introductions to his former colleagues : " You follow
a good man, sir!" That he should have gained so wide
a circle of friends here is not a matter of passing wonder
to those of us who knew him well, because his was an
open, lovable nature, a stainless character, and the sunny
disposition of a great big unspoiled boy. His conscience
was free from haunting shadows, and his trust in hu-
manity was unshaken and undisturbed.
Irvin St. Clair Pepper was born June 10, 1876, and
he was reared on an Iowa farm. He received the benefits
of the splendid public school system of that State and
graduated from its Normal School in 1897. Successively
he became principal of the Atalissa High School and of
the Washington School at Muscatine; private secretary
to Congressman Martin J. Wade from 1903 to 1905; grad-
uated from George Washington University in law; presi-
dent of his class in 1905; elected county attorney of Mus-
catine County in 1906, and reelected to said position in
1908. He was elected to Congress in 1910 and reelected
in 1912. He was taken to the hospital on November 21,
1913, and died December 22 of that year, even when the
[12]
Address of Mr. Vollmer, of Iowa
senatorial toga of the State of Iowa seemed about to fall
upon his shoulders. He sleeps to-day in the " window-
less palace of rest " in the soil of the prairie State which
gave him birth.
Are God and nature then at strife,
That she should dream such horrid dreams?
So careful of the type she seems —
So careless of the single life?
Who would have thought that in the sunniest hour of
all the voyage, when friendly winds were kissing every
sail, that the inevitable shipwreck was at hand? Never
was I so awed with the thought of the certainty and the
eternal tragedy of death as at the news of the untimely
taking of my friend and yours — " Good old Pep."
" If it be not now, it is to come; if it be not to come, it
will be now; if it be not now, yet it will come: the readi-
ness is all."
Mr. Pepper was ready, for he had lived in accordance
with the injunction conveyed in the immortal words of
William Cullen Bryant in Thanatopsis :
So live, that when thy summons comes to join
The innumerable caravan which moves
To that mysterious realm where each shall take
His chamber in the silent halls of death,
Thou go not, like the quarry slave at night,
Scourged to his dungeon, but sustained and soothed
By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave
Like one that wraps the drapery of his couch
About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams.
Mr. Pepper was no great orator, but he was a clear,
convincing speaker. His deeds spoke for him, and they
speak an eloquent language to-day. Few Members of
Congress have accomplished more in actual results in
many years of service than did this comparatively young
[13]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
man and relatively new Member. " There is a sort of
men whose visages do cream and mantle like a standing
pond and do a willful stillness entertain, with purpose to
be dressed in an opinion of wisdom, gravity, profound
conceit, as one would say : ' I am Sir Oracle, and when I
ope my lips, let no dog bark !' ' Mr. Pepper was not one
of these, for he was unassuming to a degree, as modest
as a girl, and this was true modesty, and not the pride
that apes humility.
What may not the future have held in store for this
promising young man in the way of public service? No
man can tell. It has been said that life is but a narrow
vale between the cold and barren mountain peaks of two
eternities, from whose hard, unyielding walls comes back
to us only the echo of our ineffectual cries, but no answer
intelligent to our reason as to the great unsolved riddle
of human existence, of life and of death, of this world and
the beyond. Faith upturns her shining face in trust and
joyous confidence, but the finite intellect acknowledges
its failure to bridge the unknown, to comprehend the un-
knowable, to tear the veil from the future.
Flower in the crannied wall,
I pluck you out of the crannies,
I hold you here, root and all, in my hand,
Little flower — but if I could understand
What you are, root and all, and all in all,
I should know what God and man is.
However, it is a thought which should be ever present
with every Member of this historic body that we do know
that we have it in our power to do something to make this
present life a little better, a little more filled with com-
fort and justice and happiness to the great masses who
are now sojourning here and to the untold multitudes
who will come after us.
[14]
Address of Mr. Vollmer, of Iowa
Abou Ben Adhem, who would not write down his
name as one who loved the Lord, but as one who loved
his fellow men, found when the angel returned with the
list of those who in the eyes of God loved him truly, that
his name led all the rest.
And now a few observations of a political nature, but
not in a spirit of partisanship. Mr. Pepper was an Iowa
Democrat. Under the political conditions prevailing in-
that State for many years after the Civil War this re-
quired some moral courage, disinterestedness of purpose,
and certainly a large portion of buoyant and indestructi-
ble hope. It meant that one would have to meet much
ridicule, some contempt, and, in the good old days, posi-
tive social as well as political ostracism. For you must
understand that in those days the Republican Party was a
civic institution there of almost equally universal accept-
ance as the church and the school. To make Democracy
respectable in Iowa involved quite as desperate and long-
continued a fight as the historic contest of Gov. Russell
and his devoted little band in the Old Bay State.
Our Republican fellow citizens in Iowa have not been
without honor either at home or abroad. Their party
has justly recognized their claims, and they have con-
tributed a galaxy of statesmen who have adorned their
country's posts of honor at home and abroad; and that
can justly be said also of their present delegation. But
the voice of Iowa Democracy has not often been heard or
its representatives seen in the councils of the Nation.
Without recognition from the powers that be in our own
party, we struggled on against overwhelming odds. We
met our Republican opponents in every schoolhouse, at
every crossroads in the State. We pounded into unwill-
ing ears the more obvious truths of economic science as
we saw them, and even when it seemed as though we were
down and out for good came our reward. At a time when
[15]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
the sun of victory shown high in the Republican heavens
and no political barometer told of the coming of a storm,
a cloud no larger than a man's hand appeared on the
horizon and in it were concealed the lightnings of popular
wrath and out of it came the deluge of 1912. It was called
the " Iowa idea," and its genesis can be traced to those
little crossroads meetings in that State where Democratic
doctrine was made to percolate, and there began the fer-
ment which never ceased until the Republican Party was
rent in twain, the Progressive Party was born, and a new
political alignment took place from ocean to ocean.
I am not mentioning this in the spirit of partisanship,
which would be out of place on a solemn occasion like
this, but in the interests of the truth of history and a
belated recognition at the Nation's Capital of the debt
due from somebody to that heroic band of Iowa Demo-
crats like Mr. Pepper, which I believe was one of the
efficient causes of the great revolutionary political changes
of the recent past.
Mr. Pepper held advanced economic views, but by rea-
son of his mildness and fairness of statement acquired
the reputation with many of being ultra-conservative.
He was a single taxer by persuasion and by natural im-
pulse and disposition the devoted friend of the old sol-
diers and of the toiling masses of the land. There have
not been many gentler, sweeter natures among men since
the Nazarene walked on the shores of Galilee.
In conclusion, I can not do better in paying tribute to
our departed friend than to quote the inspired words of
a great southern orator:
I have seen by night the glowing headlight of a giant loco-
motive rushing onward in the darkness, heedless of danger and
uncertainty, and I have thought the spectacle grand. I have seen
the lightning flash across the storm-swept sky till night and
darkness and the shadow-haunted earth gleamed with noonday
[161
Address of Mr. Vollmer, of Iowa
splendor and I have thought the spectacle grand. I have seen
the light come over the eastern hills in glory till leaf and tree
and blade of grass sparkled like myriad diamonds in the morn-
ing ray and I have known that it was grand; but the grandest
thing, next to the radiance that flows from the Almighty's throne,
is the light of a noble and beautiful life shining in benediction
upon the destinies of men and finding its home at last in the
bosom of the everlasting God.
RESOLUTIONS BY DEMOCRATS OF CLINTON COUNTY, IOWA
Whereas the Great Ruler of the Universe has taken from this
district our Congressman, the Hon. Irvin St. Clair Pepper, thereby
depriving the district of a Representative whose heart always beat
loyally toward the people, and whose every act, thought, and wish
were for the advancement of the people he represented;
Cut down in the prime of his young manhood, when life's
advantages were just unfolding, when opportunities were pre-
senting themselves for further advancement, the district has
suffered an irreparable loss;
We who knew Irvin St. Clair Pepper recognized in him a man
of great ability, one who was willing to sacrifice those talents for
the benefit of the people of the district he loved so well;
We, the Democrats of Clinton County, in convention assembled,
desire to pay a tribute to our deceased Congressman; and be it
Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be sent to the be-
reaved family and that a copy be sent to the Clerk of the House
of Representatives.
L. E. Fay.
D. H. Shepard.
W. H. Carroll.
J. H. Ingwersen.
J. E. Moran.
43102°— 15-
[17]
Address of Mr. Clark, of Missouri
Mr. Speaker: Into the Sixty-second Congress from out
the Central West came a new Member, young, handsome,
capable, affable, industrious, graceful, ambitious. He at
once became a prime favorite in the House. He dis-
charged his duties cheerfully and well. His name was
Irvin St. Clair Pepper, and he hailed from Muscatine,
Iowa, on the banks of the Great River. He had one de-
cided advantage over most new Members — the fact that
he had for two years been secretary to Hon. Martin J,
Wade, an exceedingly able man. That gave Mr. Pepper
a clear insight into the way things are done here, both in
Congress and in the departments. It also gave him a
wide acquaintance with Representatives, Senators, and
departmental officials. His service with Judge Wade was
of great value to him.
As Missouri and Iowa lie side by side, and as he was
the only Iowa Representative of my political faith, and
as I was anxious for him to make such headway as to
insure his reelection, I sought him out, cultivated his
acquaintance, and did all that I could to promote his suc-
cess. He needed help as little as any new Member I have
seen here. He possessed a most generous heart, and he
repaid my efforts to aid him in Scripture measure, heaped
up, pressed down, and running over. He was true as
steel, faithful as the needle to the pole, constant as the
North Star. I never had a closer or a better friend.
Iowa is an imperial Commonwealth and from her
entrance into the Union has been as ably represented in
the House, the Senate, the Cabinet, and the Diplomatic
and Consular Service as any of her sister States. She is
[18]
Address of Mr. Clark, of Missouri
one of the two States on the sunset side of the Mississippi
to furnish a Speaker of this House. She seems to have
discovered at an early date the wisdom of retaining able
and faithful men in Congress. Consequently, she has
always been prominent in Washington. At one time she
counted among her citizens the Speaker of the House, two
Cabinet ministers, and the Senator longest in service. In
fact, Senator William B. Allison not only lived to be the
Nestor of the Senate, but he, of all men, had the longest
senatorial service in our history, and he lacked only a
few months of having had the longest total service in
House and Senate, being exceeded in that regard only by
Senator Justin Smith Morrill, of Vermont.
Hon. James Wilson, after long service in the House,
held a Cabinet position for 16 years, the longest period
ever served by any member of the Cabinet, William Wirt
and Albert Gallatin coming next, with 12 years each.
With his early start in Congress and his splendid
adaptability for the public service, I have no doubt that,
had his life been spared, Mr. Pepper would have ranked
with the best of them. A multitude of people believe that
he would have been elected to the Senate this fall; but
just when his prospects seemed brightest, just when his
hopes were highest, he was cut off untimely — a great loss
to his State and to his country.
None knew him but to love him;
Nor named him but to praise.
[19]
Address of Mr. Mann, of Illinois
Mr. Speaker: Mr. Pepper, the Speaker, who has just
addressed the House, and myself all belonged to the same
college Greek letter fraternity. There were in the last
Congress, and there are in this, quite a number of mem-
bers of that same fraternity. I do not know that I can
call the names of very many of them at this moment, but
there are frequent meetings in Washington of the local
chapter, and I believe there is an alumni chapter here;
and about the time that Mr. Pepper came into the House
I was informed, either by himself or by some of the other
Members, that he was what we call a Delta Tau Delta. In
fact, I think those Members of the House who paid any
attention to the meetings of that society here very soon
learned to rely upon Mr. Pepper for advice and direction
as to whether we should attend a meeting, or make a
speech at a meeting, or anything of that sort.
Like every old Member, I take a considerable interest
in every new Member who comes into the House, but
when you have added to that the college association, the
spirit that comes from the college fraternity, you have a
very large interest. So that almost immediately, when
Mr. Pepper came to the House, he and I became very
warm friends. I think, probably, there is no spirit of
friendship closer than that which comes out of the fra-
ternal organization, and I doubt whether there is any
fraternal organization that draws the spirits of men
closer together than the college fraternity. I soon became
a very warm admirer of Mr. Pepper in the House and
elsewhere, and he used frequently to do me the honor to
come to me and consult with me about matters in the
[20]
Address of Mr. Mann, of Illinois
House in which he was interested. I think all of us
learned to love him, because he had a peculiarly lovable
spirit and character. He was absolutely reliable; anyone
could see that he was thoroughly honest, as most of the
Members of this House are, without question; but he also
had a desire to accomplish things, and was able to
succeed.
The Speaker has referred to the fact that a man's value
as a Member of Congress increases, at least somewhat,
with length of service, and yet it is true that a new Mem-
ber of the House, in his first term, devoting himself to
those things in which he may be particularly interested
or in which his district may be particularly interested,
can often accomplish what some of the older Members,
largely for lack of time, are unable to do.
It is true that new Members coming into the House
sometimes think they are neglected by the older Mem-
bers, principally because they do not have so much to do
as the older Members; and the older Members, or some of
them, are so busily engaged that they do not have the
time, or do not take the time, to show their interest in
the younger Members; but I think there is no body of
men in the world, possibly outside of a fighting army,
where, when a man drops out who may have been be-
loved by his fellow members and is succeeded by a new
member, the new member is so truly received without
any feeling against him, and with the desire of other
members to be his friends, as in this House. We let go
with our best wishes those who fall, and we take in with
our best wishes the new ones who come; and we never
took in any new Member of the House who more quickly
reached into the hearts and souls of the other Members
than did our late colleague, Mr. Pepper.
[21]
Address of Mr. Good, of Iowa
Mr. Speaker: We are met to-day to pay our tribute of
love and respect to the memory of Irvin St. Clair Pepper.
On occasions such as this we realize how inadequately our
lips convey the feelings of our hearts.
Death is always mysterious. We take a pardonable
pride in the great achievements we have made in all of
the arts and sciences. We stand appalled when we sur-
vey what the ingenuity of man has wrought. As we re-
view the great achievements of mankind we wonder if,
after all, there is any mystery which the human mind
can not solve. And yet before this proud record of human
achievement that has touched every life, mankind must
bow in sorrow and defeat in the presence of death.
Before the open grave we must acknowledge that death
is just as mysterious to-day as it was at the dawn of cre-
ation. We do know, however, that the mystery surround-
ing life and death has not served to lessen our affections
in life or to assuage our sorrows in death. The birth of
a child fdls our hearts with gladness; the death of a man
plunges us into sorrow. So to-day we mourn the loss of
our lamented colleague, Irvin St. Clair Pepper, and the
poignancy of our grief is increased when we recall that at
the time of his death he was less than 38 years old and
that he had just entered upon the duties of his second
term in Congress.
It was not my privilege to have had an extended ac-
quaintance with Mr. Pepper, but it was my good fortune
to know him somewhat intimately after his election to
Congress. He came to Congress splendidly equipped for
a brilliant legislative career. He was born and reared on
[22]
Address of Mr. Good, of Iowa
an Iowa farm, received his early education in the coun-
try schools of Davis County, and later graduated from the
Southern Iowa Normal School at Bloomfield. It was
while serving in the capacity of private secretary to a
Member of Congress that he completed a course in law
and graduated from George Washington University Law
School in 1905. He subsequently returned to his native
State and engaged in the practice of his profession. At
the time of his election to Congress he was serving his sec-
ond term as prosecuting attorney for Muscatine County.
The rise of this young man from the hard and arduous
duties of the farm to school-teacher, private secretary to
a Member of Congress, prosecuting attorney, and finally
to a seat on the floor of this House was not only rapid,
but unusual, and was not attained without hard work and
great effort.
The hard work and difficult jobs which a farmer boy
must do was no exception in the case of young Pepper,
and his early experiences are reflected in his subsequent
public career. His work on the farm made him deeply
sympathetic for the cause of labor. He took great inter-
est in everything that affected the laboring men. In him
the laborers in the Rock Island and other Government
arsenals had a friend who had their interests at heart.
He was a student of the various systems of shop manage-
ment, and while in Congress labored diligently for the
adoption of every measure calculated to dignify labor
and to promote the welfare of the man that toils.
Congressman Pepper's untimely death cut short what
would otherwise have been a useful, if not a brilliant,
legislative career. But during the short time he was a
Member of this House his manly qualities left an impress
upon those who had the good fortune to know him which
death can not efface. Long after his accomplishments
and work as a legislator shall have been forgotten, we
[23]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
will remember well his sterling qualities of mind and
heart and those manly attributes of character which
measured his true worth.
To my mind there were three noble characteristics
which predominated in Mr. Pepper's life. These were
industry, integrity, and kindness. To these splendid traits
of character, more than to anything else, he owed his
remarkable success. After all, are not these the real and
substantial elements of true greatness? A man may be
.brilliant, but if he has not industry he will fail in the
end. A man may have natural ability, but if he has not
integrity he can not permanently succeed. A man may be
brilliant and may possess ability of a high order, yet if
his life is not tempered with kindness his success must be
temporary. No one can accomplish a great work, achieve
a great reform, write a great book, or attain to a high
degree of constructive statesmanship unless he be indus-
trious, honest, and kind.
Congressman Pepper was exceedingly industrious. Dur-
ing the time he was a Member of this body he was found
at his post early and late in the performance of the ardu-
ous duties imposed upon him. I doubt not that to the
hard work and close confinement which the duties of his
office required more than to anything else was due his
untimely death.
Honest and upright himself, he despised dishonesty
and hypocrisy in others. He was not only scrupulously
honest in all his dealings with others, but he was honest
with himself. His honesty made him friends everywhere.
His life truly exemplified the precept :
To thine own self be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man.
[24]
Address of Mr. Good, of Iowa
I have been strongly impressed with Mr. Pepper's great
kindness. He was always most considerate of others. He
would not do an unkind thing to anyone, and seemed to
take great pleasure in doing little kindnesses for others.
I recall with pleasure the kindness and tenderness with
which he cared for the comfort of his aged father, who
made him a visit during one of the sessions of Congress.
His rugged stature, evidencing great physical strength,
stood out in striking contrast with his kindly and tender
nature. He was as tender as a child and as gentle as a
woman.
I shall long cherish the memory of those many traits of
character which were so strongly exemplified in his life.
[25]
Address of Mr. Sherwood, of Ohio
Mr. Speaker : Probably I knew Mr. Irvin St. Clair Pepper
as well as any Member of the House outside of his State.
He came here in the Sixty-second Congress, a valiant son
of Iowa, without legislative experience, but fully equipped
in knowledge, culture, and mental vigor for a successful
career. And it can be said of him that no Member of
either the Sixty-second Congress or the Sixty-third ever
came into this historic Chamber who in so short a career
made a more favorable or enduring impression upon his
compatriots. Mr. Pepper was a capable and earnest stu-
dent of all live and pending problems. His political
career, although short, was rarely exceptional. He was
born and reared on a prairie farm in Iowa. As a boy he
breathed the untainted air of the woods and fields. Born
poor — poor in lucre, but rich in brawn and brain and
courage, and full of the never-say-die spirit.
In the last Congress over 40,000 bills were introduced,
covering every question, social, economic, or political in
the broad and ever-expanding domain of civics. Never
before in all our history has it been so difficult for a new
Member to achieve prominence on the floor of the House
of Representatives as now. We are a continent-wide
Republic, with a membership of 435, on a ratio of 211,877.
For the past decade the tendency in Congress has been to
regulate and control all the multifarious business of the
country and to invade the local functions and legislative
authority of the States. Hence, the main work of legis-
lation is done in the more quiet seclusion of committees.
Argument and oratory on the floor of Congress is no
longer a potent force in legislation. The announcement
in the House that there is to be a general debate on any
question, however vital or continental in import, is fol-
[26]
Address of Mr. Sherwood, of Ohio
lowed by a general exodus of Members to their document
and garden seed rooms in the House Office Building.
Hence, the opportunities of a new Member to make an
enviable record and reputation among his fellows has
never in the history of the American Congress been as
difficult as now. The First Congress of 1789 was composed
of only 65 Members, with a population ratio of only 30,000.
A quarter of a century later the ratio was only 40,000.
For the first quarter of a century the Government of
the people by the representatives of all the people was
regarded as an experiment, the first of its scope and
purpose in the world's history. Congress was then the
central and leading attraction — the star of hope of a new
Nation on a new continent. To-day Congress is regarded
as a side issue, except in case of war or some great con-
flict that stirs the patriotic blood of the people. The Con-
gressional Record is generally unread in the presence of
the baseball bulletins and the staged bouts of the nose
smashers and rib crackers of the brutal prize ring.
Hence, a new Member who comes into this historic
Chamber and commands the attention of his fellows as
a debater, as a legislator, as a logician is rara avis, as
the old Romans would say of a bird prodigy.
The doings of Congress now and a half century ago are
not comparable in general interest.
I first saw the United States Senate in session on the
night of February 25, 1859, when the Cuba thirty-millions
bill was in debate. William H. Seward, of New York,
made an impassioned speech opposing the bill. Robert
Toombs, of Georgia, arose and made a furious attack on
Seward. Dixon, of Connecticut, then replied for two
hours, opposing the bill. Then Judah P. Benjamin, of
Louisiana, arose with a speech full of thunder and threat-
enings, saying that unless the United States purchased
Cuba Spain would emancipate the Cuban negroes, which
[27]
Memorial Addresses : Representative Pepper
would ruin all tropical products, as they could only be
produced by slave labor. Then arose old Ben Wade, of
Ohio, fierce of mien, hot-blooded, and aggressive, and
made a vigorous assault on Robert Toombs. They came
near a personal collision. Finally, long after midnight,
after nine hot hours of continuous debate, the Senate ad-
journed without action on the Cuban bill. The whole
country then gave universal attention to these vital con-
troversies on the floor of Congress. These debates by the
old-time statesmen were the foremost topics of the hour
in the newspapers, in the public forums, everywhere.
How is it now? We seldom see a picture of a Congress-
man in the newspapers, but the leading journals carry
daily (Sunday not excepted) a half-page vignette of some
winning baseball pitcher or a full-length picture of a
champion bruiser of the prize ring.
In the midst of the environment of some 435 Members,
with a large minority of experienced and able gentlemen
versed in the subtle legerdemain of modern parliamen-
tary methods, it is a high tribute to our departed friend to
say that he won a distinct place not only in the regard of
his compatriots on this floor, but the warm friendship of
all who recognized his sterling qualities. But for his
untimely death Mr. Pepper woidd have been the unani-
mous choice of his party for United States Senator for
Iowa, so well had he won the confidence of his State for
capability, sagacity, and saving common sense.
I close this modest mention of our departed friend
with a stanza by Oliver Wendell Holmes, in a tribute to
his dear departed friend, Robert Ware —
A whiter soul, a fairer mind,
A life with purer course and aim,
A gentler eye, a voice more kind,
We may not look on earth to find.
The love that lingers o'er his name
Is more than fame.
[28]
Address of Mr. Scott, of Iowa
Mr. Speaker: It was not my good fortune to have had
either a long or intimate acquaintance with our late col-
league, Mr. Pepper, before my coming into this House a
little more than a year ago. We lived at extreme opposite
borders of the State, and neither the sphere of his activi-
ties nor mine had served to bring us into any frequent
contact. All that I know intimately of Mr. Pepper's per-
sonality I learned after coming here and becoming a
Member of this House. Of course, as a citizen of his
State I knew him by reputation, by a repute that was most
high and enviable from a period even before that which
he entered into public life.
But when I came here and met him personally I soon
recognized in him a man of superior character, a man of
very strong and high ideals personally. He was not a
man who made any pretensions to overshadowing genius;
he was not a man who unduly pressed himself upon
either the acquaintance or friendship of others. At the
same time he was always cordial, always evincing a high
degree of superiority, with a splendid open disposition
which commended him to all as a highly estimable gen-
tleman.
Mr. Pepper was a character that ought to be observed
and studied, not because of extraordinary and over-
shadowing qualities of outward personality, but because
of these qualities of inward character that commend
themselves most strongly to us.
Born, as has been said here, in obscurity, poor so far
as this world's wealth goes, but one of those characters
who accepts life as he finds it, takes hold of his own en-
[29]
Memorial Addresses : Representative Pepper
vironments with a view of making the most of the oppor-
tunities as they are presented to him in life. He was a
man who took life's trial as it led from his abode and
station. He took the trial with all its obstacles, never
seeking to avoid or shun them, but patiently, sincerely,
honestly, and determinedly undertaking to move on and
over them, steadily on and upward, accomplishing and
ever holding that which he had accomplished.
He lived half a lifetime, but in that patient, steady,
unassuming way and method, at the end, he stood far
and beyond the point at which the average man reaches
in the allotted period of three score and ten years.
When we stop to think of it, Mr. Speaker and col-
leagues, that is a record of accomplishment, an exhibition
of personal achievement that ought to challenge the
attention of every young man in this country. It is a
record that can fairly and truthfully and justly be held
out to the youth of the land as an example of what may
be made of the opportunities which our country affords,
without help, without assistance, but simply by exerting
those faculties which come to the average young man of
the East, of the West, of the North, and of the South.
When we stop to contemplate the fact that this man, ob-
scure as he was, without being endowed with an unusual
genius, was able to go on and up through the schools,
through the college, through a technical school of educa-
tion into an honorable profession and public station, and
finally in middle life to walk into this Chamber — a Rep-
resentative — with all that that appellation means — of one
of the congressional districts of one of the greatest States
in this Union, to take his seat here and be returned again
with the respect and veneration and commendation of
the people — not only of his district but of his entire State,
irrespective of party — it is an achievement to be proud of.
[30]
Address of Mr. Scott, of Iowa
We may all esteem it a privilege and honor to come
here to-day, not only to acknowledge his worth, his char-
acter, and his achievement, but lay a tribute of sorrow, to
express regret, that we have been deprived of his pres-
ence, his companionship, his counsel, and of his aid. He
did not belong to the same political party that I did, but
that makes no difference. After he entered this door he
became then a representative of the American people,
not the champion of a party, and I believe, and I have
foundation for my belief in the observation of the man,
that no man ever came here who exhibited less of per-
nicious partisanship or who represented more fairly all
of his constituents, than did Irvin St. Clair Pepper.
Mr. Speaker, I deem it a privilege to say these broken
sentences in memory of Mr. Pepper, and I shall always
treasure my short acquaintance with him, my friendly
meetings with him and daily contact, as an advantage
and a high privilege.
[31]
Address of Mr. Cullop, of Indiana
Mr. Speaker: Irvin St. Clair Pepper was distinctly an
American and furnished a striking illustration of what a
man in this country can do for himself if he possesses the
proper genius and stability of character.
In him were to be found the essential elements neces-
sary to cope with the obstacles which often prevent young
men with less courage and determination from accom-
plishing their ambitions, causing them to fall by the way-
side and writing on the pages of human history the fail-
ure of a life which had promised much for the country
and humanity. He fought his way from the humble and
obscure surroundings of his birth and early youth to a
position of great distinction and honorable usefulness,
furnishing an example which will long live with the peo-
ple of his State as a character to which many will point
with pride as an inspiration to young men and one worthy
of imitation.
Doubtless many young men struggling to overcome
adversity, almost ready to surrender the hopes of their
ideals, relinquish the objects of their ambitions, will re-
new their courage and redouble their energies as they
read and hear from others what this splendid young man
accomplished in the short span of the life allotted to him
and how his memory is sacredly cherished by those who
knew him best and loved him most.
He possessed the essential elements calculated to en-
dear him to all who knew him. Kind in manner, careful
in conduct, ever thoughtful of the rights of others, con-
siderate in speech and treatment, he won and retained the
friendship and esteem of all who came in contact with
[32]
Address ok Mr. Cullop, of Indiana
him. Unyielding in his determination, firm in his pur-
pose, reserved in deportment, he was able to win the
objects he coveted and carry his purposes into successful
execution.
His life was made up of successful efforts, because he
knew no such thing as failure. Less than 40 years of age,
he had earned the means to educate himself, had success-
fully taught school, held the office of school superintend-
ent, had been an officer in the Iowa National Guard,
county attorney, and twice elected to Congress, and at the
time of his death was a formidable candidate for the
United States Senate from the great State of Iowa.
In every position held by him he had filled the expecta-
tions of his warmest and most devoted friends and re-
flected credit upon the people who were so fortunate as
to be his constituents. He earned and deserved the honors
with which he was crowned and the gratitude and plaudits
of the people he represented. The search of history will
furnish but few men so young to have won so many
honors all justly and deservedly earned.
He occupied a warm place in the hearts of the people
of his State. They knew his worth. They respected his
merits and intrusted him with their confidence. The love
of honorable place in the public eye is a laudable ambi-
tion. It is worthy of the best efforts, the greatest sacrifice
any man can make. It pledges good and faithful public
service, careful and scrupulous conduct in office, and the
honest administration of public duty. It is ever the
promise, the hope, the security for duty well performed,
and the progress of the Nation's ideals, the improvement
of its civic affairs, for the betterment of the people who
bear its burdens and share in its blessings.
Death claimed him as his star was in its ascendancy,
rising to take its place in a greater constellation where
opportunity would enable it to radiate farther and wider
43102°— 15 3 [33]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
in the sphere of human usefulness, and where he might
accomplish more for the great advantage of the people
whom he loved and who in return bestowed on him their
unbounded confidence and crowned him with the greatest
laurels at their disposal. Stricken down in the prime of
his life, when opportunity was beckoning and bidding
him to higher places of usefulness, to greater fields of
human endeavor, he sleeps the long last sleep in the
bosom of his beloved State, surrounded by the friends
who supported and encouraged him in life, mourned him
dead, and emulate his example while living as an inspi-
ration to the young of that great State that it may stimu-
late them to greater activities, higher ideals, and nobler
purposes in life as a striking example of what a young
man, surrounded by adversity, may accomplish if he will
try, and, in trying, be true to his purposes and faithful to
all the responsibilities in him reposed. I shall never
forget the many splendid encomiums paid him at his
funeral and how people in all stations of life, irrespective
of politics, stood at his bier viewing for the last time all
that was mortal of the man who had been their friend and
companion and who had won and retained their esteem
and had never abused their confidence.
Sleeping the sleep that knows no waking, on the summit'
of a beautiful hill near by his father's home, overlooking
the prosperous city of Ottumwa, nestled on the rich and
rolling prairies of Iowa, teeming with the bounties of life,
free from the surcease of the busy world, unmindful of
the strifes agitating the people as they come and go, he
awaits " the great Judgment Day " for the reward of a
life well spent and a career of duty well done.
[34]
Address of Mr. Towner, of Iowa
Mr. Speaker : It is a privilege for a Representative from
Iowa to speak honoring the memory of one of her sons
who so creditably and worthily served her on the floor of
this House. Irvin St. Clair Pepper was a native of Iowa,
and his life work was inseparably associated with that
Commonwealth. Out of her splendid citizenship he came,
and in her service he died. He was proud of his birth-
right and citizenship, and glad that the opportunity came
to him to serve the State he loved so well.
Farm boy, school-teacher, lawyer, Congressman, these
are the steps that marked his progress. I remember his
telling me how, when following the plow, he thought out
a plan by which he could prepare himself to teach school
and then study law and become a lawyer. This modest
ambition was not satisfied until he was 29 years old. But
he kept his purpose steadily in view, and finally suc-
ceeded. It was a long, hard road. In order to accom-
plish it he became the private secretary of Congressman
Wade and came to Washington.
It was while here, working hard as secretary and carry-
ing on his studies in the law school, that he began thinking
that he might come to Congress.
He told me how the idea kept its place in his thoughts
that perhaps matters might shape themselves to give him
the chance. When he went back to Iowa to commence
the practice of law he kept constantly in mind this ambi-
tion, and when the opportunity came he was ready to
seize it. It was a hard fight, but he won.
The endeavor to rise above the general average, the
effort to achieve distinction, is one of the motive powers
[35]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
of civilization. Especially is it a characteristic of Ameri-
can youth. Here, where the doors of opportunity swing
wide to merit and worth, here where nearly all the exam-
ples of success are those where striving against odds
marks the pathway to distinction, there is constant incen-
tive and almost certain attainment for honest endeavor.
In every country there is a certain average of capacity.
Distinguished men, great men as they are called, leaders
in every line of effort, are those whose energy and capa-
bilities rise above the general average. In France their
bourgeoisie, in England their " middle class," and in the
United States our " common people " constitute a some-
what undetermined but still definitely imagined general
average. In America we say we have no classes. This
is true if by that we mean a fixed and unchanging status.
Yet the average American citizen is a concrete and palpa-
ble thing. When we speak of the common people in
America we mean the general average, and because that
general average is so superior to the general average of
other lands we rightly give it the tribute of our respect
and consideration.
But whence comes distinction? Not from distinction.
It is not from the homes of the great that great men come.
It is from the homes of the humble. Distinction arises
from the general average. High as that average is in
America, it is not to attain it that the American youth
strives. It is not to become the average politician that he
studies political economy and history. It is not to be-
come an average lawyer, or physician, or engineer that
the student aspires. It is of distinction that he dreams.
It is for distinction that he strives. His vision is not of
the plains, but of the heights, sun-kissed and golden. The
commencement orator's promise that with effort all may
be presidents or governors excites our ridicule. But, after
all, this aspiration for the highest has a sound basis. It
[3G]
Address of Mr. Towner, of Iowa
is the lure that shining through the open door of oppor-
tunity has led the American hoy, poor and portionless, to
distinction and honor; yes, even to immortality and un-
dying fame.
We have taken a boy from a log hut and made him
President. We have taken a hunted refugee from foreign
oppression, made him a citizen, and placed him in the
Senate Chamber, that from such supreme vantage ground
he might so plead the cause of liberty that all in the world
might hear. We have taken a pauper's child and made
him a merchant prince, to show that freedom is the
wisest postulate of economics.
Washington in his inaugural address declared that " the
destiny of the republican model of government," was
"justly considered as deeply and perhaps finally staked
on the experiment intrusted to the hands of the American
people." Now, we are thinking that these words were not
merely the expression of a conjectured hope, but rather
the pronouncement of an inspired and justified belief.
For nowhere else in the world, at no time in all the history
of nations, has it been so easy to achieve distinction by
effort and merit alone as in our own beloved land to-day.
This is shown by the career of Irvin Pepper and others
like him. His life and success are at once an inspiration
and a promise. Hopeful, indeed, would it appear to all
those who, like him, are poor, but who aspire; hopeful
for all those who can not expect the help of others, but
who must depend on their own unaided efforts; hopeful
for all those who have only industry, ambition, and honest
purpose to speed them in the race of life.
I am glad to draw this other lesson from his life. No
one thing so helps a career as much as striking integrity
of character. The time when shining gifts without char-
acter could hold the confidence of men has gone by. Tin-
sel now will not suffice. Pure gold is demanded.
[37]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
I know that with many this view is not accepted. To
such the trickster still may win, the schemer still succeed,
the demagogue and the corruptionist still have place and
power. Exceptional cases and individual instances can be
cited to prove this contention, but the rule is otherwise.
The bosses have been largely dethroned, the corruption-
ists driven from public life — we have " turned the rascals
out." The people have given unmistakable evidence of
their moral soundness. A more sane and wholesome
state of public opinion never was known before. The
flood of indignation against the public and private wrong-
doer has borne the people to a moral height seldom if
ever before attained.
Never was there a time when the young man who
wishes to strive unselfishly for the betterment of man-
kind could with more promise of success gird on his
armor. Never could an ambitious youth who desires to
dedicate his life to honor and truth be more certain to
find a welcome for such service.
it is a great age in which we live. To the men and
women of to-day, as gradually there comes to them a
fuller realization of their obligations to their fellows,
there is born a greater charity, a larger humanity. Selfish
interests are not primary, and the individual finds his
greatest happiness in serving and helping others. More
and more the citizen gives up his private right, his indi-
vidual gain, for his fellows. More and more does society
become a scheme of individual sacrifice for the common
good. No government of to-day can be found which does
not in some measure sacrifice individual interests for the
common welfare. And yet by so doing they do not enslave
themselves, they only establish a larger liberty. It is not
by isolation but by association that men live the larger
life. And so government, which is only a rule of associ-
ation, gives while it takes away, frees while it restrains.
[38J
Address of Mr. Towner, of Iowa
No laws can be effective for good that are not based on
the conscience of the people and supported by their moral
sanction. And no work for the public good can accom-
plish anything which does not ally itself with that public
conscience and strive for the approval of that moral
sanction.
There can be no government without men. No matter
what its form, it will be a reflex of their character. John
Stuart Mill said: "Political institutions are the work of
men; owe their origin and existence to human will. Men
do not wake on a summer morning and find them sprung
up. Neither do they resemble trees, which when once
planted are ever growing while men are sleeping. In
every stage of their existence they are made what they
are by human voluntary agency." We are apt to forget
this in America. We have almost an adoration for form.
We change constitutions to change conditions. We de-
mand a law when we need a man. It is astonishing how
many political ills could be cured by the simple expedient
of electing good men to office.
God give us men —
Men whom the lust of office does not kill,
Men whom the spoils of office can not buy,
Men who possess opinions and a will,
Men who have honor, men who will not lie.
Kipling put it still better when he described the man
who could fully meet the demands of the hour:
With great things charged, he shall not hold
Aloof till great occasions rise,
But serve, full harnessed, as of old,
The days that are the destinies.
He shall forswear and put away
The idols of his sheltered house;
And to necessity shall pay
Unflinching tribute of his vows.
[39]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
He shall not plead another's act,
Nor bind him in another's oath,
To weigh the word above the fact
Or make or take excuse for sloth.
The yoke he bore shall press him still,
And long ingrained effort goad
To find, to fashion, and fulfill
The cleaner life, the better code.
Gladstone, in one of his great papers, after enumerating
the material achievements of England and America, said:
But all these pompous details of material triumph are worse
than idle unless the men of the two countries shall remain or shall
become greater than the mere things that they produce, and shall
know how to regard those things simply as tools and materials
for the attainment of the highest purposes of their being.
And so it is that we read our surest promise of perpe-
tuity as a Nation in the character of our citizenship. We
see the guaranty of a cleaner political life and a better
national code in the prevailing cleanliness of our public
men, in the higher ideals of our national life.
In large measure he whose memory wc honor this day
possessed those elements of sterling manhood and integ-
rity of character that make the standard of which I speak.
It was to them he was indebted for his success. It should
be a source of satisfaction to those who love him, that in
memory he will ever be recalled for those traits and char-
acteristics which merit unreserved approval. It should
be an encouragement to the student and observer of our
times that so strongly is the love of justice, the apprecia-
tion of righteousness in public service, the admiration for
sterling worth ingrained in the consciousness of the peo-
ple, that one who bases his appeal on these meets with
instant approval and steady support.
[40]
Address of Mr. Russell, of Missouri
Mr. Speaker: To me it is always a sad occasion when
this House meets to consider a resolution like this, when
the friends of a former colleague meet in this Chamber
to honor the memory of one who has passed away, but
my feelings of sadness are intensified when we meet as
we do to-day to honor the name and the memory of one
who was to me in life such a sincere and such a devoted
friend.
I was appointed by the Speaker of this House, who
knew that Mr. Pepper and I were warm friends, to attend
his funeral, and I was requested by his friends to deliver
a eulogy upon his life and character at the funeral serv-
ices in his home State. Speaking as I did then in his
presence, as he slept in death, with my heart filled with
grief and emotion, I perhaps better expressed my love
and friendship for him than I could do to-day, and may
be pardoned if I repeat in substance some of the senti-
ments uttered on that occasion.
I met Mr. Pepper soon after his election to Congress and
before he had taken his seat. We soon became warm
personal friends, and as our acquaintance became more
intimate the ties of friendship that bound us together
became stronger and stronger.
The last day he spent in Washington we took dinner
together, and he advised me at the time of his contem-
plated trip to his home State that he loved so much, and
of the purposes of his mission.
Soon afterwards I learned that he was seriously sick,
and I frequently inquired of his condition. On Friday
before his death I was informed that he was out of dan-
ger, and went at once to my office and wrote him a brief
[41]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
letter congratulating him upon the information that I
had received. That letter, I am now informed hy his
sister, she read to him on the last day of his life, and but
a few hours before his death. In my letter at that time
I addressed him as " My dear Pep," a term which to-day
might seem disrespectful, but it was not so then; it was to
his associates in Washington a term of endearment and
one that was inspired by the warmest personal friendship.
On Saturday, the following morning, his secretary
showed me a telegram stating that our friend had suf-
fered a relapse and was much worse. I at once felt that
all hope of his recovery was gone, knowing as I did of
his long and serious sickness and of his necessarily weak-
ened physical condition. On the following Monday morn-
ing, when the message came announcing his death, and
when the official flag was hung at half-mast, it seemed to
me that a cloud of gloom at once covered this Capital City,
and I know that a feeling of sadness filled the hearts of
all who knew him.
Mr. Pepper had the confidence not only of his constitu-
ents in his own district, but was highly esteemed by all
of the people of his State; and if he had lived there is but
little doubt that he would have been elected to places of
higher political distinction. He was a man of great indus-
try and with a remarkable capacity for work. The politi-
cal party to which he belonged, recognizing these qualities,
had selected him as the secretary of the Democratic con-
gressional committee. As a member of that committee
I, at his request, had the pleasure of placing him in nomi-
nation at the time of his election.
The confidence, the friendship, and the esteem of the
people of Iowa were plainly shown by the large number
of distinguished citizens from all parts of the State who
attended his funeral. I have never seen a more positive
demonstration of universal grief, nor a more genuine
[42]
Address of Mr. Russell, of Missouri
expression of profound respect for the dead, than I wit-
nessed on that occasion. There were probably a thousand
present in the church, with many more outside who were
unable to gain admission. The tears of hundreds of
strong men and women gave unmistakable testimony of
their love for him in life and for their grief at his bier.
Mr. Pepper had been an active member of the State
militia, and the members of that organization, and all
others who ever knew him as he was, were devoted to
him as a comrade and a friend, and gave to him a military
burial.
The newly made grave was at the brow of the hill over-
looking the beautiful little city and surrounding country,
the scenes of his childhood and youth. When his body
was slowly lowered into his grave the last volley of his
former military comrades was fired over his remains,
and as the echo of their solemn notes died away in the
distant hills we saw the body of our friend laid to rest.
It was a sad but an impressive scene; and if he could
have spoken and prepared the ceremonies and surround-
ings in every detail it would not have been changed. In
obedience to his last request, he was buried by the side
of his angel mother. The ceremonies were plain and
simple, in harmony with the life he had lived. The snow-
covered landscape was emblematic of his pure life and
spotless character. The many floral offerings from for-
mer friends and associates were indicative of their love
and sorrow. His grief-stricken father and other living
kindred stood at the foot of the open grave surrounded
by many of the most intimate friends of his professional
and official career. Every face, every flower, and every
tear seemed to breathe in respectful silence the universal
grief and a loving farewell to our friend until we shall
meet and greet him in a better and a brighter world in
that spirit land beyond the grave.
[43]
Address of Mr. Moore, of Pennsylvania
Mr. Speaker: It is something of a coincidence that my
bundle of mail this morning should contain a letter from
the widow of a soldier saying she had recently written to
Mr. Pepper in support of a bill to correct her husband's
military record and that she had not received an answer.
She did not know that the service our lamented colleague
had undertaken to perform as the chairman of a subcom-
mittee of the Committee on Military Affairs had sud-
denly ended and that he had responded to a higher call.
But her letter, written in the stress of her anxiety, re-
minded me of the very great devotion to the detailed
work of the House which characterized our departed
friend from Iowa. As a member of the Committee on
Military Affairs he was painstaking and assiduous. To
Members who had business with that committee he en-
deared himself by his courtesy and the personal attention
given to their claims. It was a pleasure to present a
case to Mr. Pepper, and whether he found himself in
favor of or against a bill, his decision left no sting.
And now that we are come to extol his memory, par-
ticularly those of us who saw him enter this House, the
wonder is that in so great an assemblage of men chosen
from the body of the people because of their experience
and public service he should have made so marked a
progress in so brief a period. Mr. Pepper was only 35
years old when he came into this body. He served
throughout the Sixty-second Congress only. In that two
years he took an advanced position in committee and
on the floor. He was modest, but he was forceful. He
did not obtrude himself into the proceedings at any time,
[44]
Address of Mr. Moore, of Pennsylvania
but when he felt called upon to speak he did so unhesi-
tatingly and with emphasis and decision. Indeed, it was
early evident that Mr. Pepper possessed the elements of
statesmanship and that in due course his influence would
be strongly felt in Congress.
It is not my purpose to speak at greater length, Mr.
Speaker. In God's own time and in His own good way
He has called our colleague from the scene of his earthly
activities. We wonder that one so young and so well
equipped for service to his fellow men should thus be
taken, but it is not for us to murmur or complain. We
know the caliber of man he was; we know the excellence
of his heart and mind; we know had he lived that laurels
would have clustered thick upon his brow. All this we
know and treasure in our memories. Tis the best that
we can do.
[45]
Address of Mr. Goulden, of New York
Mr. Speaker: We have met to-day to do honor to the
memory of a former colleague. Irvin St. Clair Pepper,
late a Representative from Iowa, served his district, his
State, and the Nation well in the Sixty-second and a part
of the Sixty-third Congress. He was known as a patient,
hard-working Member, ever faithful to the call of duty.
Nothing was too small or trivial when he took it up, giv-
ing the best that was in him. He was always kind and
courteous, ever read}' to help those that needed it.
He came from a sturdy stock of farmers from that
splendid State that has produced so many patriots, sol-
diers, and statesmen. Like many sons of the farm he
taught school, and in many respects was a self-educated
man, of which our favored land has produced so many
eminent successful men in all walks of life.
These sturdy Americans that have so materially aided
in the development of the country acquired their strength,
their clean minds and hearts by contact with nature and
nature's God by working on the soil, man's best and truest
occupation.
Irvin St. Clair Pepper was a splendid illustration of this
truth. Actuated always by the principles of right living,
honest purposes, and an unflinching loyalty to his country,
bis loss is seriously felt.
Of him it may well be said what the angel spoke to the
wise man of the Far East —
Abou Ben Adhem (may his tribe increase!)
Awoke one night from a deep dream of peace,
And saw, within the moonlight in his room,
Making it rich, and like a lily in bloom,
An angel writing in a book of gold:
Exceeding peace had made Ben Adhem bold,
[46]
Address of Mr. Goulden, of New York
And to the presence in the room he said,
" What writest thou? " The vision raised its head,
And with a look made of all sweet accord,
Answered, " The names of those who love the Lord."
" And is mine one? " said Abou. " Nay, not so,"
Replied the angel. Abou spake more low,
But cheerily still, and said, " I pray thee, then,
Write me as one who loves his fellow men."
The angel wrote and vanished. The next night
It came again with a great awakening light,
And showed the names whom love of God had blessed,
And lo! Ben Adhem's name led all the rest.
It is a privilege lo lay this brief tribute to the memory of
a good man and a true patriot, Iryin St. Clair Pepper, late
of Iowa.
The Speaker pro tempore (Mr. Towner). The Chair
will now recognize the gentleman from Illinois [Mr.
Tavenner].
[47]
Address of Mr. Tavenner, of Illinois
Mr. Speaker : If a stranger had been in the city of Mus-
catine, Iowa, on the morning of Sunday, December 28,
he would have observed that something out of the ordi-
nary was taking place.
He would have noticed groups of men standing about
the streets conversing in low tones, and that in every face
there was an expression of sadness. A& the day ad-
vanced, more and more people appeared. By 1 o'clock
hundreds had gathered, and then they moved silently
toward one of the large churches and went inside, and the
down-town streets became deserted.
Muscatine on that day was a grief-stricken city. Mus-
catine had sent Irvin St. Clair Pepper to the Halls of
Congress because it had believed in him, and after arriv-
ing in Washington he had proven true to the trust that had
been reposed in him. He had now been taken by death,
and no one in Muscatine on this day could have failed to
notice that the hearts of the people had been touched.
Funeral services for Mr. Pepper had been held in Ot-
tumwa on Friday, following which was planned a special
tribute in the form of this great memorial meeting held
in Muscatine two days later.
When I saw the doors of the Muscatine church thrown
open, and the people pour into and quickly fill the build-
ing, the thought occurred to me that it would be a great
mistake to assume that this great audience of people had
gathered to pay tribute to Irvin St. Clair Pepper simply
because he had been an able Member of Congress. The
mere fact that a man was a Member of Congress would
never of itself alone have touched the hearts of the peo-
[48]
Address of Mr. Tavenner, of Illinois
pie of this community as the death of Irvin St. Clair
Pepper touched them.
There was something deeper than his official position,
and more important, which explained the presence of so
large a throng, and that something was the fact that his
life outside Congress, and his acts in Congress, proved
that his heart beat in sympathy with the plain people of
this land.
Simply because a man is elected to Congress is no sign
that he is great; a Member of Congress is worth while
only when he takes advantage of his presence here to do
something for the masses of the people.
Some men come to the Halls of Congress from humble
surroundings, as did Mr. Pepper, only to acquire new
and aristocratic ideas and sympathies and to gradually
and unconsciously permit to steal over them a feeling of
shame, indeed, if not of contempt, for the old-fashioned
plain people at home who, believing their protestations
of sympathy, were the very ones who had elevated them
to their high positions of trust and honor.
Irvin St. Clair Pepper was not one of these. To him it
always remained a pleasure to stand by and espouse the
cause of that vast majority that Mr. Lincoln referred to as
the plain people.
It was Irvin St. Clair Pepper who, on the floor of this
House and before the committees of the House, fought the
introduction of the inhuman Taylor system of scientific
shop management, a cruel process of scientifically grinding
down the spirit, the hopes, and the ambitions, as well as
the physical bodies, of those who toil. Of course, strong
pressure was brought on Mr. Pepper to abandon that fight,
but he never wavered; and there is pending before one
of the committees of the House now, ready to be reported,
a bill bearing his name which will prohibit the introduc-
43102°— 15 i [49]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
tion of the nerve-wrecking Taylor system in the Govern-
ment arsenals.
Representing adjoining districts, Mr. Pepper and I
were thrown into contact almost daily, and it was our
habit to confer on nearly everything. Next to the dis-
tinguished Speaker of the House, the Hon. Champ Clark,
who was one of the first to help me when I was at the bot-
tom of the ladder struggling to get along, Irvin St. Clair
Pepper probably did more toward bringing about my
election to Congress than any other one man. Mr. Pepper
had no opposition in the last campaign, and took it upon
himself to make my fight for a seat in this body his fight,
and it seemed to me there was absolutely nothing within
his power that was too much for him to do for me.
I mourn for Irvin St. Clair Pepper not only because he
was one of my best friends and benefactors, nor merely
because he was a Member of Congress, but because I saw
him on the firing line in this House, and I saw that he
was not ashamed of the cause of the common men and
women from whose ranks he sprang; and I observed, too,
that whenever the line was drawn as between the forces
of special privilege on the one hand and the welfare of all
the people on the other, without hesitation and without
apology Irvin St. Clair Pepper quietly took his place on
the side of the plain but godly people who gave him birth.
When Irvin St. Clair Pepper passed to the world beyond
the people realized they had lost a friend — they were sad.
The Speaker pro tempore. The Chair will recognize
the gentleman from Iowa [Mr. Kirkpatrick].
[50]
Address of Mr. Kirkpatrick, of Iowa
Mr. Speaker: I am here to-day to assist in paying trib-
ute in these last sad rites of a departed Member of this
House, and I now come to place, as it were, a flower of
love and reverence on the newly made grave of Irvin
St. Clair Pepper.
Notwithstanding the seriousness of the occasion, I am
happy in the thought that I have known the Pepper
family for many years. The father of the deceased is
now bending with age; still he is one of God's noblemen.
I have known the deceased from childhood. He was an
exemplary boy, always standing for the right and high
ideals. Young Pepper came from a sturdy stock, as evi-
denced by those who survive him. Not long before his
death he was telling me of his departed mother, and,
among other things, said:
If I am permitted to enter the "gates ajar" and do not find
mother there, I do not feel that such a condition will be heaven
to me.
By reason of his parents having been pioneers in the
settlement of the great West he was frequently obliged
to face the storms of adversity. In life he was my friend,
my neighbor, and colleague in this the Sixty-third Con-
gress.
In the triumph of his early ambitions the summons
came, and he was called beyond the veil which separates
all earthly vision from the paradise of God.
Sure when thy gentle spirit fled
To realms beyond the azure dome,
With outstretched arms God's angels said,
" Welcome to heaven's home sweet home."
[511
Address of Mr. Lobeck, of Nebraska
Mr. Speaker: We meet to-day to pay our tribute of love
and affection for our late colleague, Hon. Irvin St. Clair
Pepper, who in the wisdom of Providence has been called
away from our midst by the hand of death.
We tender our sincere sympathy to his father, the
loved ones, and the relatives in the sudden calling away
of this splendid young man from life's activities.
I had the pleasure of knowing Congressman Pepper
quite intimately. We came to Washington at the same
time to enter upon the duties of congressional life, and
his kindness and services to me shall always be a pleasant
memory as long as life shall last.
Mr. Pepper had congressional experience as secretary
to Hon. Martin J. Wade, of Iowa, and therefore knew
personally of the many details of duty that come to a
Member. I went to him often for advice, and he was
always kind, helpful, and courteous to me. It was this
characteristic of Congressman Pepper's nature that
pleased us; that made him a loved Member in this great
legislative body — his willingness to assist, to be of service.
He could not have been otherwise, for it was a part of
his nature. He was one of those men we meet in life
who are always happiest when they can be of service to
their fellow men. Truly, such men are God's noblemen,
and Mr. Pepper was one of these. He was ever helpful
to others, and seemed to truly enjoy the work of service
to his fellow Members and his friends.
Everything seemed to point to a splendid future career
for our friend; young, strong, enthusiastic, with a firm
[52]
Address of Mr. Lobeck, of Nebraska
faith and confidence in his own ability, coupled with an
untiring energy, it was easy to predict for him success in
any ambition with which he might have been inspired.
Ambition directed in proper channels is worthy of highest
commendation and, from my personal knowledge of him,
I am sure his greatest ambition was to be of service to his
fellow men. We looked for and bespoke for him a bril-
liant future in public affairs in his State and in the
Nation.
The State of Iowa has given to the Nation some splendid
men for deeds of service and the betterment of mankind.
The names of Allison, Kirkwood, Harlan, Dolliver, Boies,
are familiar to us all, and we knew Congressman Pepper
had the right to believe that his name would become
Nation wide the same as these illustrious predecessors.
But our friend is no more. We can not understand why
this able and conscientious and painstaking young man
should be called away from our midst. The hand of death
comes when least expected, and the lesson to us is to do
our best for mankind, and to be helpful as he was, and
be ready to drop aside the cares of life when the Messen-
ger comes.
Our friend and colleague demonstrated during his life-
time what an American boy can do for himself. Coming
from the humble walks of life, he showed the true Ameri-
can spirit and carved for himself a name worthy of any
American boy to emulate. In every line of work he made
good — as a farm boy, as an educator, and in all public
trusts placed with him he proved himself to be a manly
man, honest, fearless, conscientious.
Congressman Pepper fought a good fight; he kept the
faith; he was true to his friends; he loved his country;
he stood erect among men, and we miss him — miss his
cordial greeting, his kindly smile, and his friendly hand-
[53]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
shake. He loved his family. I remember the affection
he showed for his good father when he was here in
Washington on a visit. The son that honors his father
and mother makes no mistake.
To his loved ones, to his good father, we tender our
sincerest sympathies in their grief and sorrow at the loss
of their loved one.
[54]
Address of Mr. Green, of Iowa
Mr. Speaker: I first met Mr. Pepper when I came into
this House as the result of a special election some three
years ago. It was easy to become acquainted with him
and our relations were always most cordial. He was the
youngest of our delegation, and if I had given a thought
to the subject I would have considered that he was likely
to be the last to pass away. If he suffered from illness,
it was known only to his intimate friends. To me he
seemed to be endowed with unusual vigor and strength,
and especially fitted to endure the stress of campaigns
and the strain incident to service in this House, to which
so many succumb, and which since my membership has
laid such a heavy toll upon us. His untimely demise
admonishes us of the slender hold which we have upon
life and the uncertain tenure of our existence.
There are some who as they draw near the sunset of life
are able to look back upon a long career of activity and
feel that they are ready to lay down life's cares and bur-
dens. To those who are wearied and discouraged death
often seems a happy relief, and those whose efforts have
been crowned with success can feel that their work is
finished and their race is run. But to the young man
who finds in each day a new inspiration, and cherishes
the belief that as the years go by he will find new oppor-
tunities for rising higher and higher, the future is radiant
with hope and full of promise. Yet the inexorable mes-
senger of fate spares none and beckons too oft to those
for whom the panorama of life is just beginning to un-
fold. So it was with our departed friend. Success came
to him early. Young as he was he had the promise of a
notable career. He had made for himself a position.
He had friends in high places and an admiring and faith-
ful constituency. He could look forward through the
[55]
Memorial Addresses : Representative Pepper
vista of years and see no obstacle that he could not over-
come. But just when hope was most high, when the
future was most promising, the grim angel of death
crossed his path and he heard the call which the strongest
can not resist. The promise of the morning faded into
the blackness of night. Life's dreams and actualities
alike were no more.
Mr. Speaker, such incidents are inexpressibly sad. In
our weakness we can not comprehend why such strokes
should fall. It is a part of the riddle of the universe that
we can never solve. We can only bow our heads in sub-
mission to the Ruler of all, knowing that a higher wisdom
than ours shapes the course of men and nations, and that
not a sparrow falls to the ground without His notice.
Another has come to the place of our departed col-
league. Able hands will take up his work. Congress
does not pause in its duties upon the death of one of its
Members, no matter how great or influential, but it is well
that no public matters, however important, should prevent
our rendering a tribute to the memory of the departed.
Mr. Pepper's kindly and genial manners attracted to
him a host of friends. There was no malice in his dispo-
sition nor evil intent. I never heard him speak ill of
another, or knew him to injure anyone. The same quali-
ties that made him so attractive in private life contributed
to his success in the political arena. He had a strong
following in his own district, and no one here could
refuse him a favor. To meet him was to like him, and
he was as good a companion as a friend. It is not alone
in public life that his loss will be felt; we shall miss him
in that social intercourse which goes far to brighten our
lives and ease our tasks. Never again shall we hear
his cordial greeting or see his pleasant smile. Let us
trust that in another world he may find that sunshine
and hope which he so freely imparted when with us.
[56]
Address of Mr. Connolly, of Iowa
Mr. Speaker : Farmer boy, school-teacher, private secre-
tary to Congressman Wade, county attorney of Muscatine
County, twice elected by the people of the second Iowa
district as their Representative in Congress, and at the
time of his death the probable nominee of his party for
the office of United States Senator from Iowa, this, in
brief, was the ladder of achievement scaled by Irvin
St. Clair Pepper during a life prematurely and unex-
pectedly terminated; and with his passing went one of
the most promising, one of the noblest, one of the kindest
figures in the public life of Iowa.
There are Members of this House who knew him longer,
but I question if any knew him as intimately as I did. In
the December following the election of 1912 I made a
journey to Panama in his company. We shared the same
stateroom, and on this delightful trip was born a friend-
ship that grew apace and bound us together by bonds
" though light as air were strong as bands of iron." The
frankness of his character, the cheeriness of his disposi-
tion, the liberality and unselfishness of his spirit, the
quality of his heart and mind, at once drew me to him.
In the balmy breezes of the Caribbean we cemented
our comradeship, underneath the Southern Cross we ex-
changed our confidences; and the sheen of the moon upon
the waters seemed to mark the clear, straight path of a
brotherhood that never wavered.
Outside of the love of womankind there is no sweeter,
nobler sentiment than the love of a man — the pure, un-
selfish, loyal love of a kindly man for his fellow man.
[57]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
Although somewhat my senior we were near of an age,
and being bachelors we had not known the love of those
dear helpmates of life that make the home the shrine of
perfect domestic happiness, but we had both been trained
in the old-fashioned school of family affection and had
responded to the love of a splendid motherhood and
fatherhood. We had known the love of women who had
watched us from the cradle. We had seen the love light
in their eyes, that light that never fails, that shineth in
the darkness; that beacon that led us in the blackness
of worldly tempests to the harbor of peace and righteous-
ness. And in one of our fraternal confidences he had told
me that it was the mother who had determined him to
run for Congress. When urged to make the race his
inclination was to decline, and as he expressed this view
to the family gathered round he saw the light of disap-
pointment in the mother's eyes. He read in them the
aspirations and ambitions of his dearest friend, so he
turned about and addressed himself to the earnest work
of the campaign. Her love and cheer were .his inspira-
tion, her hopes and pride sustained him; but the pathos
of it all came when she was called away by the Great
Elector of the Universe upon the eve of the son's elec-
tion. As he recalled that incident, so epochal in his
career, there was moisture in his eyes, and we gazed
silently out upon the waters under the spell and thrall
of homely sentiments, the memory turning willingly back
to the thoughts of home, and we heard again the songs
of childhood. Yea, at that moment there rose above the
strains of splendid orchestras, more appealing than the
chants of practiced choirs or the tonal peal of a great
organ in some grand cathedral, - a voice stealing through
our sympathetic ears and swaying the tendrils of our
hearts — the homely croon and mellow lullaby of those
silver-haired guardians of our birth and being.
[58]
Address of Mr. Connolly, of Iowa
Ado! in the quiet of that uight I voiced our common
sentiment with the old lines —
If I were hanged on the highest hill,
I know whose feet would follow me still.
Mother o' mine, mother o* mine. t
If I were drowned in the deepest sea,
I know whose tears would come down to me.
Mother o' mine, mother o' mine.
If I were damned of body and soul,
I know whose prayers would make me whole.
Mother o' mine, mother o' mine.
Others can relate his triumphs, other tongues tell of his
honors, of his legion of friends, of his numerous activities,
as he stood high in the Masonic and other fraternal lodges
that had recognized his sterling manhood, hut it was the
lodge and shrine of that pioneer, old-fashioned parental
home that impressed upon him the hall-mark of character
and sentiment and that had influenced the course of his
honorable career. And now that course is run. The
mother had gone before to prepare for his coming. At
the grave I saw the aged father, bowed with grief, as the
youngest of the flock slipped quietly into his couch upon
the snow-clad hill. The brothers and sisters gathered
round with heavy hearts, and I could see in the eyes of
each the undisguised and unreserved sentiment of the
old-fashioned family love for the brother and the son.
In such homes and through such genuine attachments are
the finer, higher, nobler instincts reared.
In the passing of Irvin Pepper this House has lost one of
its most efficient and capable Members. We all miss his
smile and friendly greeting. I feel a peculiar personal
loss, as our daily associations were most intimate and
agreeable. He was my good friend, my intimate associ-
ate, my chum. It is hard to realize that he has gone
[59]
Memorial Addresses : Representative Pepper
never to return in this life. In the Office Building I turn
unconsciously toward his door as if to meet him. In the
cloakroom and on the floor I look in vain for his sugges-
tions and counsel. In the evening, after the day's work, I
await his call for the customary walk on the Avenue. At
every turn and in each hour I yearn for the " touch of a
vanished hand and the sound of a voice that is still."
In the last flickering moments at the hospital, with the
eyes growing dim and the heartbeats waning, the spirit
halting within the vestibule of eternity, he asked his
brother about his chances, and the answer was, " You are
going to your final sleep," and then his old philosophy in
life expressed itself in his familiar phrase, " Well, what-
ever is, is," and with a smile of fortitude upon his kindly
face he went —
Not like the quarry slave at night,
Scourged to his dungeon, but sustained and soothed
By an unfaltering trust, approached the grave
Like one that wraps the drapery of his couch
About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams.
[60]
Address of Mr. McKellar, of Tennessee
Mr. Speaker: Upon coming into the House in Decem-
ber, 1911, one of the first Members that I came to know
well was Irvin St. Clair Pepper. Only a short time after
the beginning of the session he and I both were appointed
on a committee to witness the opening of the "Over-Sea
Railway" to Key West, Fla. On that trip we became
warm and true friends — a friendship that was one of the
most delightful of the many I have made here.
In politics we had the same views, the same ambitions
and aspirations. In social life we had largely the same
friends. We served for a long time on the same commit-
tee in the House. Rarely a day passed that we were not
together. Both being bachelors and about the same age,
the friendship that grew up between us was close and
intimate and will never be forgotten by me.
Irvin Pepper was absolutely straight, clear-headed, vig-
orous minded, strong in his views, temperate in his
speech, kindly, yet determined, in all his dealings with
men, and was, as I esteemed him, one of the highest types
of the American citizen.
No Member was more generally or more sincerely loved
by all who came within the sphere of his association. No
Member deserved more the great popularity that was his.
His ambition was to come to the Senate from his be-
loved State, and he was to be a candidate at the approach-
ing election, and with great prospects of success. His
death was a great loss to his State and to the Nation, but a
far greater loss to his loved ones, both relatives and
friends. He was cut off in the very flower of a splendid
young manhood, and while our hearts are sad that he was
taken away, we, who were his friends, will ever cherish
his memory and feel grateful that we were privileged to
have known him.
[61]
Address of Mr. Baltz, of Illinois
Mr. Speaker: We withdraw for a short time from the
scenes of political strife to pay the last sad rites to a
departed brother.
His death in the very prime of an active and useful
career suggests again the words of Burke on a similar
occasion, " What shadows we are and what shadows
we pursue."
While my acquaintance with Mr. Pepper was not of
long duration, I knew him long enough to be impressed
with his sincere and manly stand on all public issues
and to be charmed by his courtesy and geniality.
One trait of Mr. Pepper's character was his tireless
devotion to his public duties. Few Members of Congress
displayed greater zeal and industry in their public
careers.
The people, who are the fountain of power in this
country, are quick of discernment. This is strongly illus-
trated in the career of Mr. Pepper. He justified in the
fullest measure the confidence reposed in him by his
constituents. As a Member of the House and as chair-
man of a committee he gave his time and talent unstint-
edly to the service of his district, his State, and his Nation.
In such a life there is inspiration and encouragement.
The memory of his faithfulness may well nerve us to
greater faithfulness in our own efforts.
In the presence of death it is hard to sing a song trium-
phant o'er our tears and our fears; hard, indeed, is it for
the bereaved when their dearest is taken from them. But
in this terrible test of our faith we have some inspiring
examples in the saintly ones who have suffered before us.
When Prof. Andrews Norton, of Harvard, was called upon
[62]
Address of Mr. Baltz, of Illinois
to mourn the loss of his only daughter, dead at woman-
hood's door, with unshattered trust in God he sat in his
studj- while his beloved child slept the eternal sleep in
an adjoining room, and there and then that godly man
wrote these brave and courageous words, and with all
humility may I commend them to those who as relatives
or friends mourn the loss of our departed comrade:
My God, I thank Thee, may no thought
Ere deep Thy chastisements severe;
But may each heart by sorrow taught
Calm each wild wish, each anxious fear.
Thy mercy bids all nature bloom,
The sun shines bright and man is gay;
Thine equal mercy sheds the gloom,
That darkness round his little day.
Full many a throb of grief and pain
Thy frail and erring child must know,
But not one sigh is breathed in vain,
> T or does one tear unheeded flow.
Thy various messengers employ,
Thy purposes of love fulfill;
And 'mid the wreck of human joy
Let kneeling faith adore Thy will.
ADJOURNMENT
Then, in accordance with the resolution previously
adopted (at 1 o'clock and 55 minutes p. m.), the House
adjourned until to-morrow, Monday, May 4, 1914, at 12
o'clock noon.
[63]
Address of Mr. Ashbrook, of Ohio
Tuesday, June 9, 191k.
Mr. Ashbrook. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent
to extend my remarks in the Record by inserting a tribute
on the late Congressman Pepper. I will say I was not
here on the day set apart, nor was I here within five days
thereafter.
The Speaker. The gentleman from Ohio asks unani-
mous consent to extend his remarks by printing a speech
on the life, character, and public services of the late Rep-
resentative Pepper. Is there objection? [After a pause.]
The Chair hears none.
Mr. Ashbrook. Mr. Speaker, I was in Ohio on the day
set apart to pay a tribute to the memory of my good
friend, Irvin St. Clair Pepper, of Iowa, and was therefore
not permitted to avail myself of that opportunity. My
conscience would condemn me, however, if I failed to say
just a few words, and have therefore asked the indulgence
of the House at this time.
Words never seem so futile as when employed to give
expression of the sorrow and loss of a friend. They are
meaningless, shallow, and unavailing. A single tear shed,
if inspired by an aching heart, is more by far than extrav-
agant expression of words. When I recall in memory
the tall, manly figure, the handsome face, the gracious
smile, kindled by an honest eye, the hearty handclasp
and kindly words so often spoken, my eyes moisten and I
can truly say my heart longs for my friend.
Mr. Speaker, men imagine that elevation to positions
of honor and trust mean happiness. We fancy it will
bring bliss supreme and will satisfy our longings. But it
[64]
Address of Mr. Ashbrook, of Ohio
is the old story of more pleasure in pursuit than in pos-
session. The things longed for usually bring disappoint-
ment with possession. We fight for fortune and for fame.
If we reach our loftiest goal, believing, hoping, that at last
contentment will be ours, it is but to turn aside in despair,
convinced that " all is vanity."
When I end my service here but two things will long
linger with me or be recompense for the struggle and
strife of this life — the satisfaction that possibly I was
able to help lighten the load and brighten the path of
some one less fortunate and the recollection of my asso-
ciation with and friendship for my colleagues. Surely a
more cordial, courteous, and considerate body of men
never assembled together than may be here found. Good
will, good cheer, good fellowship, and an honest and will-
ing desire to help a fellow along prevails more gen-
erally in this Chamber than in lodge room, church, or
community.
No one was ever sent to Congress who possessed in a
larger degree these splendid attributes than did Irvin
Pepper. He had a big, honest heart. He was ambitious,
but never to the extent that he would do a dishonorable
thing or resort to unfair methods. I first met Mr. Pepper
soon after he began service here, while on a trip to witness
the opening of the " Over-Sea Railroad" to Key West, Fla.
A strong friendship was formed during several days'
pleasant association in the Southland. Soon after we had
a friendly rivalry for a committee assignment. We
showed our hands like brothers, and when the contest
was ended in my favor he was just as cordial and as much
my friend as before. I think this was his innate disposi-
tion. I never heard him speak disparagingly of any man.
If he could not speak good, he would not speak ill. His
tongue " when it could not praise was chained " and
" gentle concord never broke."
43102°— 15 5 [65]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
He was just beginning life, and a splendid beginning it
was, too. The future with all the allurements of higher
honors, the culmination of things best calculated to make
this life worth living, stood temptingly within his easy
grasp. But it is the story of life. " To-day he puts forth
the tender leaves of hope; to-morrow blossoms and bears
his blushing honors thick upon him; the next day comes a
frost which nips the tender shoot; and when he thinks his
honors still aspiring, he falls, like autumn leaves, to enrich
our mother earth."
He was stricken with disease, and before it could be
realized the icy hand of death was upon him. When told
a few moments before he closed his eyes for that last long
sleep that he would soon fall asleep never more to wake
up in this life, he said faintly, but without apparent fear,
" If that is so, lay me beside my mother, and take good
care of my father." If those who may read this poor
tribute of mine to my friend never knew more of Ms life
and character than the expression of his last wish, it
would be easy to understand why we loved him and why
his people so highly honored him. He honored his father
and his mother in life, and they were last in his thoughts
as the lights burned low.
When last I saw him in life, late last October, and bid
a hasty but a hearty adieu, he seemed the picture of
health. I little thought it was possible that the next time
it would be to gather about his bier. I shall not soon
forget the final scene in that country cemetery in his
home State the day after Christmas, so well described by
my friend Joe Russell in his tribute. Mother Earth, the
last, best friend of man, was carpeted with pure white
snow; the bugler's notes reverberated across the prairie
as the casket, laden with flowers and surrounded by
family and friends, was lowered to the grave. I realized
then I would see my friend no more. I looked into the
[66]
Address of Mr. Ashbrook, of Ohio
grief-stricken faces of a dear old father, the brothers and
sisters, and the hope of immortality rose high in my heart
that the separation was not forever.
I can not say — I will not say —
That he is dead. He is only away.
With a cheery smile and a wave of the hand
He has wandered into an unknown land
And left us dreaming. How very fair
It needs must be, since he lingers there.
And you — oh, you who wildest yearn
For the old-time step and glad return — ■
Think of him faring on, as dear
In the love there as the love here.
Mild and gentle as he was brave,
Willi the sweetest love of his life he gave •
To simple things; where the violets grew,
Pure as the eyes they were likened to.
The little brown thrush that harshly chirped
Was as dear to him as the mockingbird;
And he pitied as much as a man in pain
A writhing honeybee wet with rain.
Think of him still as the same, I say;
He is not dead — he is just away.
[67]
Funeral Eulogy by Hon. Joseph J. Russell
Friday, June 12, lMh.
Mr. Ashbrook. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent
to extend my remarks in the Record by printing a eulogy
delivered by the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Russell]
at the funeral of the late Representative Pepper at
Ottumwa, Iowa, on the 26th of December last.
The Speaker. The gentleman from Ohio asks unani-
mous consent to extend his remarks in the Record by
printing a eulogy by the gentleman from Missouri [Mr.
Russell] on the life and character of the late Representa-
tive Pepper, of Iowa, delivered at his grave. Is there
objection?
There was no objection.
The eulogy is as follows :
EULOGY BY JOSEPH J. RUSSELL, DELIVERED AT THE FUNERAL OF
THE LATE CONGRESSMAN IRVIN ST. CLAIR PEPPER, DECEMBER
26, 1913.
[From the Courier, Ottumwa, Iowa, Dec. 26, 1913.]
Ladies and Gentlemen : I have been requested to say a
few words in behalf of the Members of the lower House
of Congress. What I shall say will be personal in their
nature; I feel that it is more appropriate that they
should be.
We are here by appointment of the Speaker of the
House of Representatives to pay a last tribute of respect
to the memory of your distinguished dead, to mingle our
tears with yours, and to join with all the people of this
great State in their spontaneous expressions of universal
sorrow.
It was my good fortune to meet Mr. Pepper soon after
his election and before he had been sworn in or taken his
[68]
Funeral Eulogy by Hon. Joseph J. Russell
seat. I was at once attracted to him by his splendid,
open countenance, his natural frankness, and his gen-
erous, manly spirit, and soon thereafter I became closely
attached to him as a personal friend. As our acquaint-
ance became more intimate, the ties of friendship that
bound us together became stronger and stronger.
During his service in the House I met him almost
daily, both officially and socially. I knew his ambitions
and he knew mine. Our mutual confidences and our
mutual sympathies, it seemed to me, gave vitality to our
ambition and strength to the hope of the future success
of us both. The last day that he spent in Washington
we took dinner together, and he advised me at the time
of his contemplated trip to this, the State that he loved
so much, and the purposes of his mission.
Soon afterwards I learned that he was seriously sick
with a dreadful disease, and I frequently inquired of his
secretary of his condition. On last Friday, one week
ago to-day, I was informed that he was out of danger,
and went at once to my office and wrote him a brief letter
congratulating him upon the information which I had re-
ceived. That letter, I am now informed, was read to him
by his brother or sister on the last day of his life. In my
letter at that time I addressed him as "My dear Pep,"
a term which to-day, when I speak in his presence as he
sleeps in death, might seem disrespectful, but it was not
so then; it was to his associates in Washington a term of
endearment, and one that was inspired by the warmest
personal friendship.
On Saturday, the following morning, his secretary
showed to me a telegram stating that our friend had suf-
fered a relapse and was much worse. I at once felt
that this was the beginning of the end, knowing as I did
of his long and serious sickness, and of his necessarily
weakened physical condition. On the following Monday
[69]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
morning when the sad message came announcing his
death, and when the official flag was hung at half-mast,
it seemed to me that a cloud of gloom at once covered
the Capital City, and I know that a feeling of sadness
filled the hearts of all who knew him.
Two weeks ago to-day a bill was under consideration in
the House which carried an item for a pension for the
deserving widow of an old Union soldier in Mr. Pepper's
district. An amendment was offered and an effort made
to strike that item from the bill. I at once rose in my
place to resist the amendment, stating to the House that
this item in the bill was introduced by Mr. Pepper, who
was at that time in his home State seriously sick, and as
he was not able to speak for himself I desired to speak
for him. I defended the item, the amendment was
defeated, and the item remained in the bill and was
approved and passed by the House. It will be a great
satisfaction to me till the day of my death to remember
that I seized this opportunity, the last one that I could
ever have during his life, to do him a personal favor.
Knowing him and his loyal friendship as I did, I am
perfectly conscious of the fact that if the circumstances
had been reversed he would have done as much for me.
On one occasion when his beloved father, who is now
stricken with grief, was visiting his son in Washington,
upon his invitation and request I went with him and his
father to Alexandria, Va., where we attended the Masonic
Lodge over which George Washington once presided as
its master. I now remember very distinctly of the appro-
priate and beautiful remarks that Mr. Pepper made on
that occasion, expressing his devotion to the Masonic
order and to its teachings. He believed, as all Masons
believe, that —
It is not all of life to live,
Nor all of death to die.
[701
Funeral Eulogy by Hon. Joseph J. Russell
I trust that it will not be inappropriate to-day to refer
to one of the teachings of this honorable and venerable
institution, that of the immortality of the soul. Our
Masonic brethren compare human life to the hourglass.
Behold how the little particles contained in that instru-
ment slowly and almost imperceptibly pass away, and
yet in one short hour they are all exhausted. So wastes
man; to-day he puts forth the tender buds of hope,
to-morrow he blushes and blooms and bears his honors
thick upon him; the next day a chilling frost destroys all,
and when he thinks his greatness is still aspiring he falls
like autumn leaves to enrich our mother earth.
This thought would be dark and gloomy were it not for
our belief in immortality, but we are also taught and
believe that there is in man a divine spark which bears
a close affinity with the Supreme Architect of the Universe
which shall never die. This enables us to look forward
with hope and confidence to a blessed immortality.
In the cemetery at Columbia, Mo., the city where the
university of that State is located, the monument at the
grave of Dr. Read, an ex-president of the university, bears
this inscription : " I tried to do my duty." These were the
last words spoken by him. I think that I may with pro-
priety appropriate these words to-day expressive of the
life and efforts of our departed friend whose mortal
remains now sleep before us. I know, and every Member
of Congress knows, that he tried to do his duty and
succeeded well.
In conclusion, permit me to say to his father and his
surviving brothers and sisters, you have lost a jewel from
your family circle, but it should be some consolation to
know that he has left to you the priceless inheritance of
a spotless name. The people of the district that he
represented have lost a useful and an able Representative
in Congress, one who was devoted to them and a tireless
[71]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
worker for the interests and the welfare of those who
had honored and trusted him. The American Congress
has lost an active, an influential, and a beloved Member.
This the great State of Iowa has lost one of its purest and
most promising public men. The country has lost an
honest, an efficient, and a faithful public servant.
May he rest in peace until we shall meet and greet him
again in a better and a brighter world, in that spirit land
beyond the grave.
[72]
Proceedings in the Senate
Tuesday, December 23, 1913.
The Vice President. The Chair lays before the Senate
resolutions of the House of Representatives, which will
be read.
The Secretary read the resolutions, as follows :
In the House of Representatives,
December T2, 1913.
Resolved, That the House has heard with profound sorrow of
the death of Hon. Irvin St. Clair Pepper, a Representative from
the State of Iowa.
Resolved, That a committee of 18 Members of the House, with
such Members of the Senate as may be joined, be appointed to
attend the funeral.
Resolved, That the Sergeant at Arms of the House be author-
ized and directed to take such steps as may be necessary for
carrying out the provisions of these resolutions, and that the
necessary expenses in connection therewith be paid out of the
contingent fund of the House.
Resolved, That the Clerk communicate these resolutions to the
Senate and transmit a copy thereof to the family of the deceased.
Mr. Kenyon. Mr. President, I offer the resolutions which
I send to the desk, and ask for their present consideration.
The resolutions (S. Res. 240) were read, considered by
unanimous consent, and unanimously agreed to, as
follows :
Resolved, That the Senate has heard with deep sorrow the
announcement of the death of Hon. Irvin St. Clair Pepper, late a
Representative in Congress from the State of Iowa.
Resolved, That a committee of eight Senators be appointed by
the Vice President to attend the funeral of the deceased Repre-
sentative.
[73]
Memorial Addresses : Representative Pepper
Resolved, That the Secretary communicate these resolutions to
the House of Representatives and transmit a copy thereof to the
family of the deceased.
The Vice President appointed under the second reso-
lution as the committee on the part of the Senate Mr.
Kenyon, Mr. Cummins, Mr. Brady, Mr. Jones, Mr. Reed,
Mr. Lewis, Mr. Thomas, and Mr. Thompson.
Mr. Kenyon. Mr. President, I desire to give notice that
at some future day I shall ask the Senate to consider reso-
lutions on the life and public services of Representative
Pepper.
The Vice President. The notice will be entered.
Mr. Kenyon. I move, as a further mark of respect to
the memory of the deceased, that the Senate do now
adjourn.
The motion was unanimously agreed to; and (at 4
o'clock p. m.) the Senate adjourned, the adjournment
being, under the concurrent resolution of the two Houses,
until Monday, January 12, 1914, at 12 o'clock m.
Thursday, September 24, 19U.
Mr. Kenyon. Mr. President, I desire to give notice that
on Saturday, December 12, at the conclusion of the routine
morning business, I shall submit resolutions commemo-
rative of the life and services of Hon. Irvin St. Clair
Pepper, late a Representative from the State of Iowa.
Saturday, December 12, 191k.
Mr. Kenyon. Mr. President, I ask that the resolutions
of the House of Representatives relative to the death of
the late Representative Irvin St. Clair Pepper be laid
before the Senate.
The Vice President. The Chair lays before the Senate
resolutions of the House of Representatives, which will
be read.
[741
Proceedings in the Senate
The Secretary read the resolutions, as follows:
In the House of Representatives,
May 3, 1914.
Resolved, That the business of the House be now suspended
that opportunity may be given for tribute to the memory of Hon.
Irvin St. Clair Pepper, a Member of this House from the State
of Iowa.
Resolved, That the Clerk communicate these resolutions to the
Senate.
Resolved, That the Clerk send i copy of these resolutions to
the family of the deceased.
Resolved, That at the conclusion of to-day's proceedings the
House, as a particular mark of respect to the memory of the
deceased and in recognition of his distinguished public career,
do stand adjourned.
Mr. Cummins. Mr. President, I submit resolutions which
I send to the desk and ask for their adoption.
The resolutions (S. Res. 501) were read, considered
by unanimous consent, and unanimously agreed to, as
follows :
Resolved, That the business of the Senate be now suspended
that opportunity may be given for tributes to the memory of
Hon. Irvin St. Clair Pepper, late a Member of the House of Rep-
resentatives from the State of Iowa.
Resolved, That the Secretary communicate these resolutions to
the House of Representatives.
Resolved, That the Secretary send a copy of these resolutions
to the family of the deceased.
[75]
MEMORIAL ADDRESSES
Address of Mr. Cummins, of Iowa
Mr. President: When a man who has traveled life's
journey into old age and has been overtaken with the
feebleness which comes with many years passes on to
his reward upon the other shore, while his death
may occasion the profoundest grief and sorrow, we
feel that it is in harmony with nature and nature's
designs; but when a young man who has barely touched
his full maturity, a young man full of strength and vigor
and hope and ambition, a young man whose work and
opportunities are yet before him, is summoned by the
grim messenger of death, it is impossible to avoid the
consciousness that somehow his passing is not a part of
the plan of the world, and to our sadness there is added
a touch of protest and rebellion. It is such an instance we
are considering this afternoon.
Irvin St. Clair Pepper was a young man, a strong man,
a man who loved life; a man who was fond of his fellow
men; a man whose circle of friends was limited only by
the scope of his acquaintances; a man who had thoroughly
prepared and trained himself for his chosen work; a man
loyal to the highest conceptions of public duty; a man
faithful to the interests of the people. When such a man,
so trained and equipped for a great work, a man in the first
blush of mature life, is called away it is not only a source
of profound grief and sorrow to those who knew him, but
it inspires the deep regret of which I have, already spoken.
We wonder why so potent an instrument for the public
[76]
Address of Mr. Cummins, of Iowa
good should be broken at the very moment it can render
the highest and the best service to humanity.
Mr. President, Mr. Pepper gave at all times his whole
strength to the people whom he represented. He was
faithful to them, persistent and efficient in performing
the duties which his office devolved upon him, and his
death created a vacancy that it is difficult to supply. As
a friend he was without flaw; as a citizen he had the
highest ideals; and as a public servant during all the time
I knew him he never faltered or wavered in his course
nor strayed from the path of duty which his intelligent
conscience opened for him. We in Iowa appreciated the
man's fine attainments, pure character, and noble quali-
ties. Those who mourn his loss are numbered only by
those who knew him.
[77]
Address of Mr. Thompson, of Kansas
Mr. President: Hon. Irvin St. Clair Pepper was one of
the first Representatives in Congress that it was my good
fortune to meet when I came to Washington about two
years ago. I first learned of him through his brother, Mr.
E. L. Pepper, who resides in Kansas. Mr. E. L. Pepper once
lived in Haskell County, adjoining my home county. He
and I were personal and political friends. In 1906 we
were both candidates for office on the Democratic ticket.
He was a candidate for county clerk, and I was a candi-
date for district judge. He so neglected his own cam-
paign in looking after my interests that he was defeated
while I was elected. He virtually voluntarily sacrificed
himself in my interests. This is the true character of the
Pepper family, so far as I have known any of them, and
I know it was a particular characteristic of the deceased.
Soon after entering the Senate I became quite well
acquainted with Representative Pepper. He was the sec-
retary of the Democratic national congressional commit-
tee, of which I was a member, and we frequently met both
before and after the committee was organized until his
last illness. He was a tireless worker. After the usual
day's work was done, and when most Congressmen had
left their offices, you would always find Representative
Pepper at his post. He was so thoroughly devoted to duty
that at his death it was generally remarked that overwork
killed him.
He learned to work as a very young man. He was the
youngest son in a family of 10 children, and was early
[78]
Address of Mr. Thompson, of Kansas
obliged to shift for himself. He worked his way through
college by teaching country schools in the wintertime. He
was taken from the principalship of a school by Judge
Martin J. Wade and made his private secretary when he
was a Representative in Congress during the years 1903,
1904, and 1905. Not content with the arduous duties
devolved upon him as secretary to Representative Wade,
which were sufficient to keep two ordinary men busy, he
attended law school in connection with his work, and
graduated in law from George Washington University in
1905. He forcibly demonstrated what an able young man
can do who is not afraid of hard work. He immediately
entered the practice of the law at his home in Muscatine,
Iowa, and soon forged to the front in his profession. After
serving two terms as county attorney, he was elected to
Congress in 1910 on the Democratic ticket. His work was
so satisfactory to all of his constituents that even the
Republicans did not nominate anyone against him in
1912, and he was practically unanimously reelected, only
the Socialists voting against him. It is certainly a very
high compliment to a Democrat when the Republicans in
a northern State, where they usually have the best chance
for election, fail to nominate a candidate for Congress.
This is the only instance of the kind I have ever known.
Representative Pepper at the time of his death was the
most prominent among those mentioned in Iowa as the
Democratic candidate for the United States Senate, and
had he lived he would no doubt have received the nomi-
nation without opposition. His death was a very great
loss to his party and was deeply lamented without parti-
san distinction by all who knew him.
It was my privilege to accompany the body to its last
resting place at Ottumwa. People gathered from all over
the State to attend the funeral. Floral offerings were
most profuse, beautiful, and gorgeous. Everyone, regard-
[79]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
less of party, spoke most highly of the deceased, and
expressed the greatest regret that one so young, with such
a promising future, should have been carried away so
early in life. Representative Frank E. Doremus, chair-
man of the Democratic national congressional committee,
at the time of Representative Pepper's death, said:
I am completely stunned by the news of Mr. Pepper's death.
Our work on the national congressional committee, of which he
was secretary, brought us in intimate contact with each other,
and I came to regard him very highly. He was thoroughly
honest and conscientious in all he did, both for his country and
his party, and possessed a keen appreciation of the duties and
responsibilities of public office. Mr. Pepper was highly regarded
in the House, and there are many of us to whom his untimely
death is a personal loss.
Speaker Clark paid him this high tribute:
He had a phenomenal political and professional career, and
everybody expected that he would achieve other and higher
honors. No young man in the House appeared to have brighter
prospects.
He was as loyal a friend as man ever had. He was as true as
steel in every relation of life; courteous, kind, considerate. He
was one of my prime favorites, and he repaid my friendship in
Scripture measure — heaped up, pressed down, and running over.
Nothing but words of praise and kindness can be truth-
fully spoken of this man. The people of the State of
Iowa and of the Nation were proud of Representative
Pepper, proud of his high character, his achievements,
his unswerving devotion to duty and loyalty to his
country, his blameless life, and his noble and patriotic
purposes. His death is not only a personal loss to every-
one who knew him, but also the Nation's loss.
[80]
Address of Mr. Reed, of Missouri
Mr. President: On such an occasion as this the poverty
of our speech is made manifest. There is no voice or
tongue that can express the sorrow of the human heart.
Words can not paint the pangs that all men feel when
death has ravished them of loved ones or of friends. We
stand beside the grave with silent lips, because our words
can not portray the anguish of the soul.
From life's dawn to age's twilight men struggle and
contend; they moil to gather wisdom, gold, and honors,
yet in a moment all is gone. Before the sepulcher ambi-
tion, wealth, and power are cast aside.
The only thing that lives beyond the tomb is the sweet
memory of noble aspirations nobly brought to consum-
mation.
By that high standard the life of Irvin St. Clair Pepper
may be justly judged and rightly praised. Who judges
so must grant to him the encomium of success. The story
of his career is a recital of devotion to the general good.
Perhaps no other man has lived in his great State, engaged
in life's stern battles, and struck so few blows that have
given needless pain or left behind as many memories of
kindly deeds. He was one of those rare characters who
fight so generously that even antagonists are not made to
suffer.
He was brave, and yet his courage never crushed a foe!
Firm, but his steadfastness was so mixed and mingled
with the quality of gentleness scars were not left behind.
He marched straight forward, yet his feet did not crush
the weak or bring a needless sorrow to his fellow man.
He filled the full measure of citizenship. Devoted to
his home, to his county, to his State, his ideals were yet as
43102°— 15 6 [81]
Memorial Addresses : Representative Pepper
great as the Nation, his patriotism as lofty as that which
inspired the hearts of the founders of liberty.
His death was a crushing blow to those who knew him
and an irremedial loss to the public, but his memory is
sweet with the fragrance of nobility, kindliness, and sym-
pathy. And so in these poor words that seem so hollow
and inadequate I can do no more than thus to pay public
tribute to his untarnished memory.
[82]
Address of Mr. Ken yon, of Iowa
Mr. President: I only wish to add a word to what has
been said.
Irvin St. Clair Pepper was horn in Davis County, Iowa,
June 10, 1876, and died at Clinton, Iowa, December 21,
1913. He came to Muscatine, Iowa, when a very young
man; had been a school-teacher, secretary to Congress-
man Martin J. Wade, county attorney of Muscatine County,
Member of Congress from the second district of Iowa, and
at the time of his death was secretary of the Democratic
national congressional committee.
His home was Muscatine; his death occurred at Clinton.
The funeral services were held at Ottumwa, Iowa, his
father's home, and the following Sunday a great memorial
service to his memory was held at Muscatine, participated
in by thousands of sorrowing friends.
He passed away just a few days before Christmas. He
had planned to spend Christmas with his father at the old
home. I shall never forget the eloquent tributes at that
funeral and memorial service, but especially the tribute
of Judge Wade to his friend Pepper. He described how,
at the time of the first nomination of Pepper for Congress,
he had come home to Muscatine, after the convention or
the primaries, and had been received at the train by a
great outpouring of citizens, the band playing martial
music as the procession passed along; and then he pro-
ceeded to describe how a few days before Pepper had
come home again to Muscatine; that the same crowds
were at the depot, but no exultant look in their eyes; that
heads were bowed and eyes were dim; the same band
was there, as the solemn procession moved on. with thou-
[83]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
sands following the casket, but it did not play the same
strains; it played Nearer, My God, to Thee. Tributes of
affection were on every hand.
This untimely death just at the commencement of
seemingly a great career, and just at the Christmas time — ■
a time of happiness among people — and occurring away
from home, at that last solemn moment of life, when the
thought instinctively turns to home, made the surround-
ings of his death and funeral doubly sad. While with
sorrow we said good-by to our friend, our sorrow was
relieved by the thought that the devoted mother was
waiting for him yonder in the fields of far away.
He was 37 years of age at the time of his death.. One
great advantage in life was his — the advantage of poor
parents. He knew what hardship and toil meant. It is
one of the splendid things of our national life that the
son of poor parents has a better chance in the race of life
than the son of the rich. The early sacrifices of his
boyhood life developed the splendid character of the man.
He was clean in private and in public life. He had the
greatness of simplicity in his soul. The Congressional
Directory recites as to him probably the shortest biog-
raphy written, very refreshing in this bombastic docu-
ment. He became a candidate for Congress to please his
mother, but it was a strange fate that she should not live
to see his success; she passed away during the early
months of his first campaign. His tenderness and devo-
tion to his mother exemplified the traits of character
which endeared him to his friends.
He was a man without vanity in his soul, without pride
or guile, without deceit in his heart. He was a man of
mercy and of truth. A wise son was he, making glad his
parents. He had that righteousness which tendeth to life,
that charity of spirit which edifieth. He believed in the
things that are honest, the things that are pure, the things
[84|
Address of Mr. Kenyon, of Iowa
that are noble. Justice was with him a passion. He
believed in the triumph of peace, the realization of human
brotherhood. He believed that love worked no ill to his
neighbors; therefore he loved his neighbor as himself.
He believed the strong should bear the burdens of the
weak; that made him a brother man and a heart man.
He loved little children, helped the poor, and strengthened
the weak. He kept " his father's commandments and for-
sook not the law of his mother."
He cared little concerning the world's riches. To him
life was more than food and raiment. Life meant to him
service, helpfulness. No one in want was ever turned
from him. His hand reached out to the poor and unfor-
tunate. Moral integrity was ever present with him. He
believed in the great stewardship of life. He was a frank,
straightforward man, and life was to him a brotherhood
in the human family To have known him intimately
made one better, gave one a stronger grasp on the things
that make for right, a greater faith in mankind, an enthu-
siasm for fellowship.
In public life he was one of the leaders of his party; a
strong party man, but placing the welfare of his country
above the welfare of his party. He had capacity for
service and high ideals. He caught the great vision of the
hour — that human rights were more important than prop-
erty rights; that with men and women it was not merely
a question of how to live, but how to live better and how
to get more satisfaction and happiness for others out of
life.
He was always a friend of the soldiers, and secured the
passage of many pension bills for infirm, aged soldiers.
He was always a friend of the under man.
So good a Congressman was he that at the end of his
first term no nomination was made by the Republican
Party against him.
[851
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
It is hard to understand the purposes of the Almighty,
hard to understand why he should be taken just at the
sunniest hour of all the voyage. It is hard to think that
we are so soon forgotten, that the world passes on, that
one individual counts but little; and yet if somewhere a
little sunshine has been brought into human hearts, some
hope has been revived, and some one is really sorry that
we have passed away, then life has not been a failure.
In everything that goes to make real success Congress-
man Pepper's life was a success. He honored his parents,
he honored his State, he honored mankind. He was proud
of Iowa, and Iowa is proud of his life work.
Mr. President, I shall not submit the customary resolu-
tion of adjournment, because of the fact that the Senate
has fixed 3 o'clock this afternoon as the hour of recess
until to-morrow. Hence the accustomed resolution which
I should otherwise submit would not be in order.
[861
DEATH OF HON. IRVIN ST. CLAIR PEPPER
[From the Muscatine (Iowa) News-Tribune of Dee. 23, 1913.]
The entire community was cast in gloom yesterday with the an-
nouncement of the death of Congressman Irvin St. Clair Pepper,
which occurred at Mercy Hospital, Clinton, Monday morning, at
5.10 o'clock, as the result of peritonitis, following closely a pro-
longed siege with typhoid fever, which left the distinguished
patient in no condition to successfully combat the ravages of the
disease.
Mr. Pepper was first taken ill on Friday morning, November 21,
while on his way from Muscatine to Clinton, believing his illness
to be simply an attack of acute indigestion. However, in a few
days symptoms of typhoid fever appeared, and the efforts of his
physician were devoted to combatting this disease, and he was
successful, the last vestige of the germ having been eliminated
about 10 days ago. Mr. Pepper was recovering rapidly and had
reached the point where he was allowed solid food, when a
recurrence of the first trouble set in.
Mr. Pepper's condition became rapidly worse, and his brother,
Dr. J. L. Pepper, was sent for, resulting in Dr. William H. Marsha,
of Chicago, being called into the case. An operation was the
only chance, and it was performed; but as later developments
proved, the disease had progressed too far, and even the operation
was of no avail.
Early in Mr. Pepper's illness his sister, Mrs. Nell P. Liden, of
Mitchell, S. Dak., came to Clinton to take personal charge of the
case. Mrs. Liden is a trained nurse, and devoted efforts untiring
in making her brother as comfortable as possible.
It was on last Thursday night that the condition of the Con-
gressman became worse, and Dr. Joseph C. Langan remained
constantly in attendance at his bedside, keeping up a watchful
vigilance, in which he was joined by Dr. Pepper.
Congressman Pepper regained consciousness early on Monday
morning, and, realizing that he could not recover, asked for his
family.
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Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
After stating what disposition he wished to be made of his
property and asking to be buried near his birthplace, the old
Pepper family home on a farm near Ottumwa, he said good-by
to his sister, father, and two brothers, all of the family who had
time to reach his bedside, and a few minutes later passed quietly
away.
Mr. Pepper is survived by his father, John Pepper, of Ottumwa.
His mother — which was a loss from which Mr. Pepper never
recovered — died four years ago. The surviving brothers and
sisters are: Ben S. Pepper, of Ottumwa; E. L. Pepper, of Conway
Springs, Kans.; Dr. John L. Pepper, of Goldfield, Iowa; Mrs. Myra
Weller, of Mitchell, S. Dak.; Mrs. Harriett Minthorne, of Grove
River, Oreg.; Mrs. Alice Harbaugh, of Kansas City, Mo.; Mrs.
Bertha Pratt, of Kansas City, Mo.; and Mrs. Nell P. Liden, of
Mitchell, S. Dak.
[88]
BODY IN STATE AT MUSCATINE, IOWA
[From the Muscatine (Iowa) News-Tribune of Dec. 23, 1913.]
Before a subdued throng of more than 2,000 people, the body
of the late Congressman Irvin St. Clair Pepper was taken from an
interurban car at Second Street and Iowa Avenue last evening at
9.30 o'clock, having been accompanied to this city by large delega-
tions of Clinton and Davenport friends of the Muscatine legis-
lator. The remains were met at Davenport by a representative
committee of Muscatine citizens, who returned with the body on
special interurban cars.
The great crowd which awaited the arrival of the last remains
of Congressman Pepper displayed the deepest respect and con-
cern for the distinguished citizen whose untimely demise shocked
the entire community. With bared heads, the many stood in
deep reverence as the casket was lowered from the interurban
car and placed in a waiting hearse.
All Muscatine paid tribute to the dead. Although every down-
town store was open, business was practically suspended last
night during the time the funeral cortege wended its way to
the courthouse, where the body will remain in state until Wednes-
day morning, when it will be taken to Ottumwa for burial.
Laughter was stilled in the down-town thoroughfares. Even
conversation was silenced. Not a loud voice was to be heard
in the mighty crowd of more than 2,000 which paid honor and
tribute to its foremost son. There were many eyes holding
tears as the Stark Military Band played that remarkable hymn,
Nearer, My God, to Thee.
Seldom in the history of the city has such a tribute been paid
one of its citizens.
Muscatine's loss is shared by the entire Nation, as evidenced
by the many expressions of grief manifested. The House of
Representatives adjourned yesterday in respect to the memory
of Mr. Pepper. A resolution of regret was adopted by the Senate
[89]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
and the House, and a committee was appointed by both legislative
bodies to be in attendance at the funeral services.
Shortly after the arrival of the body in the city it was taken
to the courthouse, a long procession of county and city officials,
visiting delegations, and friends accompanying the body to the
Federal building.
Draped in an American flag, which he represented in the
Halls of Congress at the Nation's Capital with such great credit
as to win universal admiration and respect of members of all
parties, irrespective of politics, the deceased Congressman will
have a guard of honor detailed from Company C throughout the
time the body lies in state at the courthouse.
At Ottumwa the body will lie in state in the Federal building
throughout Thursday. The funeral service will be conducted
either from the Federal building or from the large Methodist
Episcopal Church of that city. This was not definitely deter-
mined last night. The body will be buried next to that of Con-
gressman Pepper's mother, in the Shaul Cemetery, at Ottumwa,
Friday afternoon, at 1.30 o'clock."
Ben S. Pepper, of Ottumwa, brother of the late Congressman,
who was at his bedside when he expired at Clinton yesterday
morning, was the lone representative of the immediate family
to accompany the body to Muscatine. Mrs. Nell P. Liden, of
Mitchell, S. Dak., a sister; Dr. J. L. Pepper, of Goldfield, a brother;
and John Pepper, father, went directly to Ottumwa from Clinton.
Citizens of three cities acted as pallbearers upon the arrival
of the body here last night. Those serving were the following:
Clinton. — J. E. Moran, D. H. Shepherd, George E. Farrell, and
James C. Smith.
Davenport. — Fred Vollmer and M. J. Malloy.
Muscatine. — Mayor Conrad Koehler and Nicholas Barry.
The following general committee was selected yesterday after-
noon to direct the arrangements here: Mayor Conrad Koehler,
J. G. Van Lent, Nicholas Barry, A. S. Lawrence, D. V. Jackson,
J. B. Reay, H. F. Lange, R. S. McNutt, H. G. Thompson, C. P.
Hanley, F. W. Eichoff, F. D. Throop, Ben G. Lilly, J. L. Giesler,
and C. R. Stafford.
The personnel of the committee named to supervise the local
arrangements while the aforementioned committee went to meet
the body at Davenport was Charles F. Hoefflin, Charles Mosqua,
and W. W. Richards.
[90]
Body in State at Muscatine, Iowa
Muscatine will send a large delegation to Ottumwa, Friday, to
attend the funeral. Arrangements for the trip will be made by
the following committee: W. B. Fuller, J. A. Rowan, and J. F.
Devitt.
The following delegations, representative of Iowa cities, arrived
in this city last night with the remains of the late Congressman:
Iowa City. — Judge Martin J. Wade and W. J. MacDonald.
Dewitt.—E. J. Quigley and P. H. Judge.
Clinton.— Fred Hansen, Henry Toenningsen, W. E. Doherty,
R. C. Langan, George Farrell, J. H. Dunman, Judge P. B. Wolfe,
Senator J. L. Wilson, William R. Lee, T. J. Burke, W. J. Keefe,
L. E. Fay, T. J. Hudson, J. E. Moran, County Attorney W. T.
Oakes, D. H. Shepherd, W. H. Carroll, J. H. Ingeersen, F. L.
Holleran, L. C. Moesginger, B. M. Jacobsen, George Mclntock,
Dr. Kellogg, John Strieb, Del Armentrout, Charles Lee, and Dr.
D. A. Hohenschuh.
Davenport. — County Attorney Fred Vollmer, Dan Home, Louis
Roddewige, M. J. Malloy, I. J. Hild, H. H. Boettger, Harry McFar-
land, John Hoeney, William Noth, L. Goldsmith, August Balluff,
E. J. Carroll, William Harrison, Otto Schramm, Fred Sharon,
Frank Holm, Barney McMahon, John Stelk, Charles Rich, and
Theodore Gosseling.
Three gigantic floral offerings were among those sent from
Clinton with the body last night. These were from the Kaaba
Temple, the Elks' Club, and the Clinton County Democracy. The
offering from the last named was an immense cluster of roses,
containing several hundred in number.
The following prominent citizens have been selected as pall-
bearers to carry the body of Congressman Pepper from the
Federal building Wednesday morning to the Milwaukee train
which leaves for Ottumwa:
Muscatine County Bar Association: Judge D. V. Jackson and
County Attorney Herbert G. Thompson.
Elks: R. S. McNutt and J. P. Breen.
Masons: A. E. Othmer and A. S. Lawrence.
Personal friends: J. G. Van Lent and Dr. A. A. Petersen.
The Commercial Club appointed the following committee to
represent the club at the funeral: J. L. Giesler, president; A. A.
Peterson, J. P. Breen, A. S. Lawrence, F. D. Throop, and Frank
Eichoff.
[91]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
The Muscatine County Bar Association yesterday delegated
Attorneys J. F. Devitt and Herbert G. Thompson to accompany
the remains to-day to Ottumwa. Practically the entire member-
ship of the association will be present at the funeral services
Friday, according to announced intentions. At the session of
the bar association it was decided to draft resolutions expressing
regret at the death of Mr. Pepper, himself a member of the asso-
ciation, and to record same upon the court records. A com-
mittee, including J. F. Devitt, J. G. Kammerer, and C. R. Stafford,
was selected to prepare the memorial.
In tribute to Mr. Pepper, Judge William Theophilus adjourned
court yesterday morning until Saturday.
[92]
FUNERAL SERVICES AT OTTUMWA, IOWA
[From the Muscatine (Iowa) Journal of Dee. 26, 1913.]
Ottumwa, Iowa, December 26, 1913.
Simple and unostentatious as he lived, so were the last sad rites
which laid to rest to-day all that remained mortal of Congressman
Irvin St. Clair Pepper. Surrounded by sorrowing relatives, hun-
dreds of close friends, and scores of prominent men in the State
and Nation, the casket lay enshrouded in the American flag and
banked by scores of beautiful floral emblems before the altar of
the First Methodist Church, and in front of a packed audience, as
the quartet sang Lead, Kindly Light. An impressive invocation
was given by Rev. J. H. Cudlip, pastor of the church, which was
followed by a Scripture reading by Rev. P. Ames Montgomery and
an impressive prayer by Rev. R. C. Smith, a Methodist minister
who officiated at the funeral of Mr. Pepper's mother. The
quartet then sang Nearer, My God, to Thee. This was followed
by a beautiful eulogy spoken by Senator Jones, of Washington.
United States Senator Jones, of Washington, in his eulogy this
afternoon said that, while he was not sufficiently intimate with
Congressman Pepper to speak of his personal characteristics,
he wanted to say that the deceased had become to a certain
extent a national character, and as such the Nation mourned his
untimely taking off.
" It is not given to us to understand the ways of the Almighty.
It seems to us that his death is the Nation's loss as well as your
personal bereavement. In the presence of death all partisan
spirit and criticism is hushed. Nothing but words of praise and
kindness are spoken. This is well, and should be more and more
extended to the living. There is no doubt but that Congressman
Pepper was in life all that is said of him in death, but we should
not keep the word and meed of praise for the cold and lifeless
clay. It is well that death dissipates partisanship; but let us
have less of it in life. You are proud of Congressman Pepper,
proud of his high character, his blameless life of devotion to duty,
and lofty and patriotic purposes. You should know that other
districts send in the main the same kind of men to Congress.
[93]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
"Accusations of dishonesty which are so often spoken and
written against Congress are as unfounded and unwarranted as
such would be against Mr. Pepper. The great majority of the
men who have been honored by the people of this great country-
are men of the highest integrity, the purest of motives, the loftiest
of purposes, and with the strongest desire to protect the welfare of
the people and to uphold the honor of our common country from
their viewpoint. From what I know of Congressman Pepper's
life and achievements I am convinced that the day of opportunity
for the young man has not passed. A short 10 years ago he was
an humble school-teacher, probably unknown outside of his im-
mediate neighborhood. Since then he has been admitted to the
bar, been twice elected attorney for his county, and twice selected
as the sovereign Representative of the thought, intelligence, hopes,
and desires of this great constituency in the Congress of the
United States.
" This has not just happened; it has come through his honesty,
industry, devotion to duty, and faithful loyalty to every trust
that came to him. In his very youth he is taken away, but he
leaves behind a great inspiration to our young men.
" You, his friends and neighbors, endure a personal sorrow,
the district and the Nation suffer a great loss, but the youth of
the land inherit an inspiration to honest, earnest, faithful, loyal
living."
Congressman Russell, of Missouri, followed with a masterly
tribute to the life and work of the deceased:
" It was my good fortune to meet Mr. Pepper soon after his
election. He was so frank, so generous, and such a manly man
that I was soon attracted to him as a personal friend. During
his service in the House we met almost daily, both ollicially and
socially. I knew his ambitions and he knew mine, and our
mutual sympathies gave hope of the future success of both.
" The last evening Mr. Pepper spent with me in Washington
he advised me of his contemplated trip to Iowa and the purpose
of his mission. When the news was wired to Washington that
he had passed away, the official flag was run at half-mast and
gloom and sadness filled the hearts of all who knew him. The
father and family have lost a jewel from the family circle, the
district a faithful Representative, and the country an honest and
faithful public servant."
The funeral sermon was delivered by Rev. R. Ames Mont-
gomery, pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of this city.
The Rev. Mr. Montgomery took for his text I Corinthians xv, 57:
" Thanks be to God who giveth us the victory through our Lord
Jesus Christ." This is the indestructible testimony of the gospel,
said the minister. It stands and shows victory in the face of the
[94]
Funeral Services at Ottumwa, Iowa
last great enemy. It is not a mere declamation that the apostle
makes. He faces these who mourn the absence of companions
who inspired and sustained and comforted them, to whom they
were bound by the ties of kinship and who look to Him now
for a word of consolation. To these he gives this word of
triumph, " Thanks be to God who giveth us the victory through
our Lord Jesus Christ." The pastor told in glowing terms of
the sacrifice made by Jesus Christ and of the story of that
sacrifice in the light of to-day. He continued:
"Men, this is a Christian Nation; that is to say, the teachings
of Christianity are at the heart of our history and institutions;
they create and regulate and measure the motives and conduct
of our national activity; and, as this Christian faith is at the heart
of our civilization, so is this fact and doctrine of the resurrection
in our faith at the heart of our Christmas tide, the celebration of
a life that had just reached the splendor of high noon when the
darkness fell. Think of the struggle and the combat that marked
the day; think of the high hopes and noble spirit that must have
been enshrined in a life like this; think of the sad catastrophe for
all of us, signified in an occasion like this, if we have no victory
over death.
" Men, I have reason to believe this was the note of victory in
the soul of our departed brother, Irvin St. Clair Pepper. Like a
true and valiant man and believer in Jesus, he linked himself with
Christ in health. When the end drew near he bravely bade his
loved ones farewell, and, wrapping the cloak of faith about him
as one who knew Him in whom he had believed, laid him down
to sleep until the break of the celestial morning."
The quartet sang Abide With Me, following which the pall-
bearers bore the body out of the edifice to the waiting hearse.
The funeral procession proceeded to the Shaul Cemetery, a
little green spot just outside the city limits, where the remains
were buried beside those of his mother. The procession moved
slowly through the city, led by the honorary pallbearers, who
were: First district, A. R. Miller, Washington; second district,
Fred B. Sharon, Davenport; third district, Louis Murphy, Du-
buque; fourth district, Frank O'Connor, New Hampton; fifth dis-
trict, Nick Furlong, Marshalltown; sixth district, Dan W. Hamil-
ton, Sigourney; seventh district, Harley Sheldon, Ames; eighth
district, Claude R. Porter, Centerville; ninth district, W. F. Cleve-
land, Harlan; tenth district, Maurice O'Connor, Fort Dodge;
eleventh district, G. R. Whitmer, Sioux City; and M. J. Wade,
Iowa Citv.
[95]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
The active pallbearers were C. R. Stafford, J. W. Watson, A. E.
Othmer, A. S. Lawrence, D. V. Jackson, H. G. Thompson, R. S.
McNutt, and J. P. Breen.
The body of the late Congressman Irvin St. Clair Pepper was
brought to the First Methodist Episcopal Church this morning
after it had been reposing throughout the Christmas Day at the
home of Ben Pepper, a brother of the deceased, and where the
aged father of the departed makes his home. The body was
escorted by a company of the National Guard, and upon its arrival
at the church it was taken in charge by a detail from Malta Com-
mandery, Knights Templar, who stationed a guard there, which
remained until the service this afternoon. The body, incased in
a beautiful copper-lined oaken casket, was literally buried in a
lavish array of floral tributes from throughout the Nation.
Chief among the floral exhibits were the following:
Woodrow Wilson Club, Muscatine, wreath of oak leaves and
roses.
Ancient Order of United Workmen, Clinton Lodge, pillow with
carnations and roses.
Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, No. 304, Muscatine,
star and crescent of roses and carnations.
Large broken wheel of carnations and lilies from the employees
of Rock Island Arsenal.
Immense broken wheel of pink roses, white chrysanthemums,
and hyacinths from the delegation from the United States Senate
and House of Representatives.
Red cross of carnations from Malta Commandery, Knights
Templar, Ottumwa.
Wreath of carnations and hyacinths from Jackson Club and
friends from Jackson County.
Wreath of roses from Clinton County Democrats.
Anchor of roses, carnations, and lilies from Roach & Musser
Hose Co., Muscatine.
Wreath of roses, lilies, and carnations from Benevolent and
Protective Order of Elks, No. 347, Ottumwa.
Anchor of chrysanthemums from Ancient Order of United
Workmen, Muscatine.
Maltese cross of roses and carnations from De Molay Com-
mandery, Knights Templar, Muscatine.
Wreath from Mr. and Mrs. M. A. Walsh, of Clinton, Iowa.
[96]
Funeral Services at Otti'mwa, Iowa
Wreath of roses from Hon. J. B. Sullivan, of New York, and
W. W. Marsh, of Waterloo.
Star of roses from Order of the Eastern Star, of Muscatine.
Wreath of roses from Washington, D. C, Chapter of Delta Tau
Delta Fraternity.
The above list of flowers was supplemented by spray upon
spray and many beautiful set pieces by friends, relatives, and
acquaintances over the entire State of Iowa. The Methodist
Church was visited by hundreds of people this morning, who
gazed upon the silent face and paid a tribute at the bier of one
of Iowa's brightest Congressmen.
The congressional party from Washington arrived over the
Burlington at 7.40 this morning in a private car. It was com-
posed of Senators Thompson, of Kansas; Jones, of Washington;
Kenyon, of Iowa; and Reed, of Missouri; Congressmen Kirk-
patrick, of Iowa; Connolly, of Iowa; Prouty, of Iowa; Haugen, of
Iowa; Sloan, of Nebraska; Cullop, of Indiana; Thomas, of Ken-
tucky; Russell, of Missouri; Lloyd, of Missouri; Lobeck, of Ne-
braska; Anderson, of Minnesota; Doolittle, of Kansas; Tavenner,
of Illinois; Buchanan, of Illinois; and Ashbrook, of Ohio; Acting
Sergeant at Arms of the Senate Edwin A. Halsey; Sergeant at Arms
of the House Robert B. Gordon; Bennett Clark, son of the Speaker,
Champ Clark; and M. F. Cronin, private secretary of the late Con-
gressman. The parly immediately went to the Ballingall Hotel,
where they breakfasted. This hotel lobby immediately became
the center of interest, for from all over the State were prominent
politicians and officeholders.
Every congressional district in the State is represented. The
largest delegation present is that from the second district. Many
are here from Scott, Clinton, Jackson, Iowa, and Johnson Counties,
while the Muscatine delegation consists of nearly 50 men, close
friends of the late Congressman.
43102°— 15 7 [97]
MEMORIAL SERVICES AT MUSCATINE, IOWA
[From the Muscatine (Iowa) Journal of Dec. 29, 1913.]
A beautiful and impressive tribute was paid the memory of the
late Congressman Irvin St. Clair Pepper on Sunday afternoon
when before an audience of 1,500 people assembled to pay their
final respects to the departed lawmaker and citizen men prominent
in national life gave expression to the sentiments felt by all those
who were brought to a realization of the debt which was owed
the departed in his untimely demise, which occurred a week ago.
The service was perhaps the most impressive and inspirational
memorial ever conducted in Muscatine. The exercises served as
an expression of the love and affection which was tendered the
second district Representative and the high esteem in which he
was held. The beautiful eulogies which were pronounced by the
distinguished speakers were as jewels which added to the bril-
liancy of the crown of merit which was placed upon him by those
who recognized the service which he performed in behalf of his
county, his district, and his Nation. The audience which packed
the spacious auditorium of the First Methodist Church was one
of such a character as to impress one with patriotic devotion.
The musical program, together with the eloquent tributes which
were voiced by the speakers, combined to make the service one
of deep inspiration
The several musical numbers offered during the afternoon
added to the impressiveness and beauty of the service. The
great audience was stirred by the organ prelude as played by
Miss Emma Parkins. A quartet composed of Mesdames F. H.
Little and Edwin L. McColm, F. S. Pentzer and A. LeMoyne
Porter, sang with feeling Nearer, My God, to Thee, and Lead,
Kindly Light, while Mrs. McColm gave beautiful expression to
Haven's One Sweetly Solemn Thought.
Rev. L. M. Grigsby, pastor of the First Methodist Church, pre-
sided at the service, while Rev. J. B. Rendall, the pastor of the
First Presbyterian Church, offered the prayer.
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Memorial Services at Muscatine, Iowa
An eulogistic tribute was paid the departed Congressman by
Senator James A. Reed, of Missouri, who appeared as the first
speaker. Speaking with a distinctness which enabled every
member of the great assemblage to hear every word spoken, the
distinguished visitor from the neighboring State to the south
gave expression in beautiful rhetoric to the feelings which were
brought to him with the realization of the loss which was suffered
in the death of Congressman Pepper. His remarks follow :
" Long ago a great English poet, standing beside the bier of a
prince of the realm, gave expression to the sentiments of his
heart in the following lines:
The glory of our blood and state
Are shadows, not substantial things;
There is no armor against fate —
Death lays his iey hand on kings;
Scepter and crown must tumble down,
And in the dust be equal made
With the poor crooked scythe and spade.
The laurels wither on your brows,
Then boast no more your mighty deeds;
Upon death's purple altar now
See where the victor victim sleeps.
Your head must come to the cold tomb ;
Only the actions of the just
Smell sweet and blossom from their dust.
" Standing in the presence of this assemblage, come here to lay
laurels of respect and love upon the memory of Irvin St. Clair
Pepper, I find the words just uttered to be singularly appropriate
to this occasion. Cut down in the very flower and bloom of
manly perfection, just at the beginning of a great career and just
at the time of harvest, the death of our beloved Pepper causes us
to wonder. We can not but pause and wonder at so strange a
decree. We turn our eyes back to the days when even as a child
he brought to every task a purpose and a determination to suc-
ceed; splendid characteristics of building upon the solid rock of
human achievement. The man who is dead was not a child of
fortune nor a favorite of fate. Slowly and steadily he forged to
the front, and every day he considered lost which did not bring
to him added strength and power. We watched him as he
climbed ambition's ladder slowly — round by round. At last we
see him standing upon the sunlit field of opportunity. We see
him as he enters upon the broad and splendid plain where he
may gain that glory and renown which comes from honest service
rendered in loving faithfulness. When his strength and honesty
of purpose might be exercised for the good of the country and
the home which he so loved, his life was brought to a close.
" In the presence of such a death silence alone is eloquent. There
is no language which can voice the agony of the human heart.
Our words are but poor crutches upon which our sentiments come
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Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
lame and halting. All men pause and -wonder, and every aching
heart asks why. The mockery of silence is our only answer.
We stand as all have stood upon the shores of that immeasurable
gulf which separates the sunlit vales of life from the shadow-
wrapped banks of eternity. Upon our lips the everlasting ques-
tion, ' Whence and whither? ' Young and old, rich and poor,
babes with sunlight in their hair, the aged with snows upon their
brows, sweep by in endless procession to take passage in the
ghostly crafts. The ships move out and vanish from our view.
We strain our eyes, but we can catch no glimpse of a returning
sail. And so we stand as stood the shepherds on the plains of
Galilee 2,000 years ago, and from our pallid lips comes the old,
old question, ' Whence and whither? ' And so we stand appalled
alike before the miracle of birth and the mystery of death and
ask the question, Is this indeed the end?
"And yet there is no death. The kindly deeds of the departed
are reproduced in other lives. Each noble thought finds lodg-
ment in some other brain, and every great example has a resurrec-
tion in countless souls. Not a single noble deed which has stirred
the soul of man is lost; not a noble thought that has not trembled
down through the corridors of time. The notes of harmony
struck by the skilled fingers of musicians long since dead still
echo through the world.
" The 300 Greeks who died at Thermopylae have led the charge
in every battle for 2,000 years and marched with flaming sword
wherever patriots brave wage a fight for home and fatherland.
There is not a man who loves his country but may find inspiration
in the deeds of those who are but dust. In this sense no man's
life is quite lost. Inspiration may be found in the life of him to
whom we pay our last respects to-day. As years go by the sweet
example of his life will triumph. The high and lofty sentiment
which inspired his soul will find resurrection in the souls of those
who follow on. The departed leaves a legacy which we all may
cherish.
" From the cradle to the coffin let us trace his steps. From
childhood to manhood we find no blot for which his friends may
feel ashamed. It is in such lives that we find a reconciliation.
It extends a hope for the country and for the future and softens
the grief of the bitter parting that death must bring to all."
Senator Reed was followed by Senator William S. Kenyon, of
Iowa, who paid a glowing tribute to the private character and
public service of the late Congressman. Senator Kenyon said:
" My friends, it has not been easy for me in private conversa-
tion, and it is not easy now in public, to speak of our departed
friend. There always comes a moisture to the eye and some-
thing gripping at the heart. No; it is not easy now to speak of
him. I had been thrown into close contact with him by our
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Memorial Services at Muscatine, Iowa
mutual public duties. I loved him in life, and I love him now
as he lies on that little green hillside at Ottumwa and sleeps the
dreamless slumber that knows no end.
" His has been a particularly sorrowful taking off. This is the
Christmas time, the time of happy faces, of laughing children, the
time of good cheer. Into this time stalks this great sorrow. The
Christmas time has stolen by us; once again we have commem-
orated the birth of the humble Nazarene; once again little chil-
dren — a ye, and old men— have heard the story of the shepherds'
vigil, and in imagination have heard again the herald angels sing.
" From the cradle at Bethlehem came the Great Leader of the
people, despised by those in temporary power, but heard will-
ingly by the masses of the people. He warred against enthroned
wrong. He sent His disciples out into the world to preach not
only theology but a political philosophy. Those men who put
that political philosophy into practice, they who work for equal-
ity and fraternity among men, they who write into the statute
books the doctrines of the Man of Galilee have made the world
better.
" No man in public life was more committed to dethroning
enthroned wrong, to making the world a better place for the
average man, to saving for childhood its blessings and opportuni-
ties, to making the hard places of labor brighter and more fraught
with hope, than our departed brother, Irvin St. Clair Pepper.
" Endowed with a kingly presence, equipped with a mental
poise, ability, and intellectual honesty, able to grasp the problems
of statecraft, he carried character and conscience into all his
work. His life illustrated the opportunity for a poor boy in this
the poor boy's country, and he was resolved that so far as he
could accomplish it by law the doors of opportunity should not
be closed here to the children of to-morrow.
" We feel sometimes as if we must rebel against Providence.
We long for the touch of the vanished hand, for the sound of the
hushed voice, and cry aloud in our anguish. Through all the
ages the divine purpose has run its course. We can not now
understand, but some day we shall know all. We carry our
crosses to Calvary, but our Gethsemanes we can never under-
stand.
" Many pictures come trooping back to us from the galleries of
memory as we consider this life which is now ended. I can see
the little chamber at Washington. To it he often came, good-
natured, earnest man that he was, and he would drop down in a
chair by mine and say, ' Bill ' — for I was always ' Bill ' to him and
he was ' Pep ' to me — ' Bill,' he would say, ' we must get this bill
through,' referring to some soldier's pension measure or a meas-
ure for the pension of some soldier's widow. I tell you, my
soldier friends, you never had a better friend in the Halls of
Congress than Irvin Pepper. He believed that nothing that this
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Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
Government could do for the old soldiers was too good for you,
and I am glad that you honor him to-day.
"Another picture comes back to me. It was just a year ago
when a party of us left New York for Panama. In that party
were Congressman Connolly here, Congressman Pepper, Mrs.
Clark, her daughter, and a number of the Members of Congress.
It was a jolly, laughing party. We had laid aside the cares of
state and were just boys and girls together. The picture of one
night will never be erased from my memory. We spent Christ-
mas on the water. I can never forget that night. Out on the
water, in harmony with the murmuring of the waves, floated the
strains of Auld Lang Syne, My Old Kentucky Home, and kindred
melodies. We couldn't sing very well, but the melody and fellow-
ship of the evening drew us together in bonds of affection and
friendship which words can not describe. Who would have
thought that that happy night in one short year would have been
changed to one of gloom and sorrow?
" Triumphantly he has crossed the bar, and probably his wish,
could he speak to us now, could not be better expressed than in
those words of Tennyson:
Sunset and evening star,
And one clear call for me !
And may there be no moaning of the bar,
When I put out to sea.
Twilight and evening bell,
And after that the dark!
And may there be no sadness of farewell,
When I embark.
,; Standing by that open grave on Friday last, beside that old
father and those loving brothers and sisters and friends, the
thought came to me, if this is all of life it is not worth while;
if this is all of life and our hearts are to be rent by saying con-
tinued farewells; if over there there is no immortality; if we
shall not meet and know the dear ones who have gone before,
then is this life a dreary waste. But we know that over there
there is a mansion not made with hands, that the kindly light of
heaven will lead us on to that beautiful isle of somewhere where
we shall know them all again.
" Knowing this, I can not say to our departed brother,
' Good-by,' but only ' Good night,' for the morning will dawn, and
then beyond all sorrow we can say, ' Good morning.'
Good night, beloved;
Blessed be thy rest;
And lay thy head upon the Savior's breast.
We loved thee well,
But Jesus loved thee best.
Good night, good night, good night.
[102]
Memorial Services at Muscatine, Iowa
The death of Congressman Pepper brought sorrow to the hearts
of thousands, but of the vast host of those who mourned his death
the loss was felt by no one more keenly than by M. J. Wade, of
Iowa City. Judge Wade took a pardonable pride in the rise of
the promising young man, for it was the kindly interest displayed
by the former second district Representative which permitted the
lamented legislator to follow in the footsteps of the man who
iirst took him to Washington as his secretary.
Judge Wade gave evidence of the deep sorrow which he experi-
enced through the death of Congressman Pepper on several occa-
sions during the service when the other gifted speakers voiced a
touching sentiment, and, during the remarks of Congressman
Connolly, controlled his feelings only through the greatest effort.
" It is a gray day outside," said the eminent jurist. " The
clouds are hanging low as though all nature mourned with us.
If I could but say the words which those cold lips would utter if
they might speak to-day, I would not speak of virtues nor
triumphs but would bring back a message to people of Muscatine
and Muscatine County, his home. I would give expression to an
appreciation of the splendid loyalty which you have shown him.
" Mr. Pepper realized the value of friends. He knew that no
man could successfully fight life's battle alone. He knew that as
the world grows older that we will be brought to realize more
and more the great truth that each of us is in a degree our
brother's keeper. If there is to be found one dominating note
in his life it was his love for friends. I never knew a man who
so deeply appreciated the affections of those about him. He
recognized no division of party, class, creed, or race, because to
him all were his brothers.
" Let us go back to-day to the time of his advent into your
community. Ten or twelve years ago he came as a stranger to
your county. He came to you in the profession of a teacher.
He sought then to serve the rising generation by strengthening
the qualities and increasing the capacities of the boys and girls.
You opened your arms to him because you beheld in him the
qualities that make a man. I met Mr. Pepper in 1902, at which
time he was a teacher in your city schools. I was impressed with
his manly character and offered him my secretaryship. I remem-
ber pleasantly his desire to be of service to all. A dominant
characteristic of his life was his desire to serve his friends.
And what a worker he was. He knew no hours, no obstacles.
No night was too dark or stormy to discourage him if a friend
were in need. It was through his splendid industry that he was
privileged to graduate at the head of his class. When he returned
to you, you again gave evidence of your appreciation of his
worth, and as your Representative he has served you nobly.
" I returned to Muscatine with Pepper on last Monday. It was
not the first time I came to your town with him, but they were
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Memorial Addresses : Representative Pepper
under different circumstances. Muscatine gave a wonderful
manifestation of its love for him last Monday. The old crowds
were upon the streets, but the smiles of their faces were replaced
with tears. There was a band there, too. Instead of the patriotic
strains which stir the heart, however, the band played that beau-
tiful prayer, Nearer, My God, to Thee. As his remains lay in state
at the courthouse the old friends, rich and poor, of all political
parties and creeds, passed by and placed upon the coffin their
wreaths of affection.
" I now recall three things in Pepper's life which show the type
of man he was. First was his love of the old soldiers. It was
no pretense made for effect. He had studied history and had
read the story of the Nation's struggle for freedom and of the
men who had preserved the Nation. His heart went out like
the sun to the saviors of his country. He left nothing undone
in his effort to extend justice to the men in blue. He gave evi-
dence of affection for the younger men in blue in his interest in
the State militia.
" He also had affection for the man who just toils. There was
no pretense about that, either. He remembered his days of toil
and retained always a sense of justice. His early struggles caused
him to feel kindly toward his brothers of toil, and he was loyal
to all regardless of party or any other consideration.
" Mr. Pepper's life has been but a short one, yet how much he
has achieved. His loyalty and faithfulness to his friends, his
patriotic purpose, and his high aspirations we remember with a
keen appreciation. Life is not measured by years but rather by
deeds, and measured by that standard he has accomplished more
than nine hundred and ninety-nine men out of one thousand.
To every man who came to know him closely this is a sorry day.
It is hard to reconcile ourselves to his death.
" He was 37 years of age, but still he never lost the boyish
enthusiasm which permitted him to meet with courage every
obstacle. As I left him on last Sunday night only a few hours
before his spirit took its flight he gave me a parting smile. His
was a successful life. His death presents a mystery which our
finite minds can not comprehend. God's ways are not our ways.
In his life we find deep inspiration. His death brings to mind
what may be accomplished by a young man in this land of
promise. To fellow workers in the factories, in the mines, and
in the walks of life he brings a message of hope and cheer. His
success demonstrates to the world that those who are surrounded
by the most humble opportunities may reach the highest places.
His life brings a heritage to youth no language can express, no
eloquence can paint. His honesty, his integrity, his industry,
his loyalty and purity all served as stepping-stones in his success.
Pepper had all of these attributes of character. I never knew a
nobler soul. I do not believe he ever did an unkind act or an
intentional wrong.
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Memorial Services at Muscatine, Iowa
" Years will come and go, other men will occupy the seat vacant
to-day, others will raise their voices for you in the Halls of Con-
gress, the old will pass away and youth will advance with steady
step into the hall of manhood, the old flag which Pepper loved
so well will wave with resplendent glory o'er the Nation which he
cherished, and in all those years the youth of this Nation may go
to the little grave at Ottumwa and, kneeling beside it, gather the
inspiration which makes men heroes and patriots."
The first of three messages from Representative Pepper's col-
leagues in the House was delivered by Congressman Maurice
Connolly, of Dubuque. Mr. Connolly spoke in a voice which
vibrated with emotion and it was evident that he labored under a
severe strain. He said:
" Friends, this is an ordeal that I have been dreading to face.
The duration of the friendship of some of those who have spoken
this afternoon with Congressman Pepper dates further back than
mine. I have known Mr. Pepper but two short years, but during
the last year and a half of our friendship there grew up an inti-
macy which bound us both together with ties as light as air but
as strong as bands of steel. I was younger than Mr. Pepper —
younger in years, younger in legislative and political experience.
" Ten years ago I lost the only man who had ever served in
the capacity of brother to me. He was my father. In the inter-
vening years I have never felt the same sentiment toward any
other man but Mr. Pepper. We were both bachelors. Neither
of us had families in Washington. Almost every night of the
year he would come to my office, roll down the top of my desk,
and say, ' It's time to walk down town.' We would walk down
town together, dine together, and as a rule return together to the
Office Building of the House, and often work together late into
the night, for we had much to do in common.
" I have dreaded this gathering. I am too young in years to
have acquired the control that is necessary for me to properly
pay tribute to my friend and chum. Just a week ago to-morrow
morning I was at the White House to see the President about a
matter in which both Mr. Pepper and myself were interested. As
I waited for the interview to be arranged for I stepped to the
telephone and asked my secretary for the latest reports from the
hospital at Clinton. She read me the telegram. I left the tele-
phone a dazed man.
" Mr. Pepper and I had one thing in common. We came from
old-fashioned stock. Our people were pioneers. If you seek the
source of sentiment which Mr. Pepper possessed for the old sol-
diers, for the men who work and toil, you will find that that
sentiment was cradled in an old-fashioned home. I was im-
pressed with the services at Ottumwa; I was impressed with the
devotion and affection of Congressman Pepper's friends and of
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Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
the orders and organizations of which he was a member; but I
•was not so much impressed then as I was afterwards when I spent
the evening with that old father, now going down the hill of life.
Those qualities which had endeared Mr. Pepper to me, which
had endeared him to you, and to the members of his orders had
been fanned by family love and nourished in the sacred family
life of an old-fashioned home.
" Yes, my friends, above the strains of splendid orchestras,
beyond the chants of practiced choirs, before the tonal peals of a
great organ in a grand cathedral there comes stealing through our
willing ears and nestling around the tendrils of our hearts the
mellow lullabies of the silver-haired guardian of the cradle in
such a home.
" I had learned to love Mr. Pepper with an intense affection.
There is no sweeter sentiment than the love, the unselfish love, of
one man for another, except the love of womankind. Mr. Pepper,
like myself, had never married. He and I were bachelors, but
we had known the love of womankind, had seen the light of love
in woman's eye, the light of a mother's love for her boy.
"Mr. Pepper felt the sentiment of these lines:
If I were hanged on the highest hill,
I know whose feet would follow me still,
Mother o' mine, mother o' mine.
If I were drowned in the deepest sea,
I know whose love would come down to me,
Mother o' mine, mother o' mine.
If I were damned of body and soul,
I know whose prayers would make me whole,
Mother o' mine, mother o' mine.
" When a man is single, when he has not the inspiration and
influence of a good wife, there is that love of mother which
remains an inspiration throughout his life.
"As I understand it, the chief incentive of Mr. Pepper to make
the race for Congress was the wish of his mother, the wish that
he read in her eyes. The force which sustained Mr. Pepper
through his public life was the grip, the hold, the band, with
which the memory of his mother held him. Her influence ran
through the whole of his life, chastened him, softened him, mel-
lowed his heart. The heart which had learned to love at the
font of family affection expanded until it was able to take into
the embrace of his affection his friends, his neighbors, the people
of a county, a district, and a Nation.
" Irvin Pepper was a good friend of mine. I do not think
that in all the days we spent together I ever said to him, ' I think
a lot of you, you have my love, you have my affection,' nor did
he ever say the like to me. Mr. Pepper did not need such assur-
ance from me nor I from him. From the time we met no dis-
cord arose between us, but only the steady growth of a spirit of
rl06]
Memorial Services at Muscatine, Iowa
cooperation, of mutual hopes and ambitions, and the desire fo be
of good service to one another.
" I only trust for my friend that has left us that as every step
in his earthly progress was upward and onward, that in this
last step, which separates us from him, God grant it carried him
from the terrestrial to the celestial. I know the spirit of his last
words. When his good brother told him that he was going to
sleep never to awaken, he smiled and said, ' If it must be, it is
well,' and then joined the innumerable caravan that moves on
to that destination where each in turn takes his chamber in the
silent halls of death. He approached his death like one who
wrapped the draperies of his couch about him and laid down to
pleasant dreams."
Following Congressman Connolly came Congressman Sanford
Kirkpatrick, of Ottumwa, a lifelong friend of Mr. Pepper. He
spoke in part as follows:
" We are enshrined in the hallowed influence of God's house.
I am here this afternoon to assist in paying tribute in the last
sad rites in memory of a departed friend. I came to place
flowers of love and reverence on the newly made grave of Irvin
St. Clair Pepper.
" To me this is an occasion of deep sorrow, and the event
which to-day bows us down in deepest grief can be likened best
unto an arrow which pierces cruelly the hearts of those who
knew him. I knew him in boyhood and I knew him in man-
hood. He was always a good boy, an honest one, who was
devoted to his parents.
"Just three weeks ago he said to me these words: 'If I am
permitted to follow on and enter the gates ajar and do not find
my mother there, Mr. Kirkpatrick, that will not be heaven for
me.'
" He was one of the greatest and best men I ever knew. At
the triumph of an eventful and well-spent life the summons
came.
" Friends, Senators, fellow Members of Congress, would you view
Irvin St. Clair Pepper, draw with me the veil of immortality."
The concluding speaker of the afternoon was Congressman
Clyde H. Tavenner, of Rock Island. He spoke but briefly, and,
in part, as follows :
"As I sat here a few moments ago and saw the crowds of peo-
ple pour through these doors, the thought occurred to me that it
would be a mistake to think that because Mr. Pepper was a Mem-
ber of Congress was the only reason the hearts of those people
were touched in this way. There is something deeper which so
moves them, and that is that the life of Irvin St. Clair Pepper
outside the Halls of Congress — in the schoolroom and on the street
as well — showed that he was a sympathetic friend of the people.
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Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
" Some men go to Congress only to develop new and different
ideas; yes, even contempt for the old home and the old friends.
But Congressman Pepper was not one of these.
" Irvin St. Clair Pepper was the man who fought the cruel
and inhuman Taylor system. Strong and weighty pressure was
brought to bear upon him to make him give up that fight, but
' Pep ' never faltered.
" It was Mr. Pepper's voice that I heard in Congress pleading
for the old soldier and the widow of the old soldier.
" When Mr. Pepper took his seat in the House, Speaker Clark
felt, as all of us on both sides of the aisle felt, that he could not
resist that genial, whole-souled friendship.
" When Speaker Clark was told of his friend's death, he
penned the following beautiful tribute:
" ' He was one of my prime favorites, and he returned my
friendship in scriptural measure, heaped up, pressed down and
running over.'
" That was the way he repaid Speaker Clark and others of us."
[108]
TRIBUTES
[From Ihe Muscatine (Iowa) News-Tribune.']
Messages bearing sympathy to the members of the late Con-
gressman's family and his associates, and at the same time con-
veying the highest tribute to his memory, came from various parts
of the country. President Woodrow Wilson was among the many
to express his grief over the sudden demise of the distinguished
Iowa legislator. Among the messages were the following:
The White House,
Washington, D. C, December 23.
Dr. John L. Pepper, Muscatine:
I was greatly shocked to hear of your brother's death. Accept
my deepest sympathy for the family and friends.
Woodrow Wilson.
Speaker Clark sent this telegram to Dr. John L. Pepper, brother
of the late Congressman :
" I and all our household and all Members of the House are
shocked and grieved by the death of my well-beloved friend,
Congressman Pepper.
" Champ Clark."
From the Smithsonian Institution:
Washington, D. C, December 22.
John Pepper, Esq.:
Personally and on behalf of the Board of Regents of the Smith-
sonian Institute, permit me to express my deepest sympathy at
the loss of your distinguished son.
Charles D. Walcott, Secretary.
The general feeling of grief in the House at the death of Rep-
resentative Pepper was expressed by Speaker Champ Clark. Mr.
Clark said:
" I was greatly grieved and shocked to hear of the death of
Representative Pepper. He was one of the ablest and most
promising of the younger and newer Members of the House.
Vigilant, industrious, ambitious, his course was constantly up-
ward. He had had a phenomenal political and professional
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Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
career, and everybody expected that he would achieve other and
higher honors. No young man in the House appeared to have
brighter prospects.
" Being from adjoining States and the only Representative
from the great State of Iowa of my political faith in the Sixty-
second Congress, it was natural that he and I should form an
acquaintance at an early day — an acquaintance which grew into
a very close friendship.
" He was as loyal a friend as man ever had. He was true as
steel in every relation of life, courteous, kind, considerate. He
was one of my prime favorites and he repaid my friendship in
full measure. His death is a loss to Iowa and the country at
large. To me it is a sore personal bereavement."
The Iowa Members of the House and Senator Kenyon all ex-
pressed their deep sense of loss. Senator Cummins had departed
for Iowa before news of the death was received.
Senator Kenyon said:
" The news was a great shock to me. It was the more so that
he should have been cut down under 40. I can not express my
regret too strongly."
Representative Connolly who, as one of the Democratic Mem-
bers from Iowa, was particularly close to Mr. Pepper, said:
" This comes to me as a matter of deep personal bereavement.
I feel it the more because it was to me unexpected. I felt con-
fident he would pull through. His death is a loss to his district,
to the State, and to the party."
Chairman Frank Woods, of the Republican congressional com-
mittee, said:
" Every Member of the Iowa delegation feels keenly the loss of
Representative Pepper. I am deeply touched by his death."
Representative Kirkpatrick, of the sixth district, said:
" I can only express my profound sorrow over the untimely
death of Representative Pepper. He was hard working, active,
and useful. It came as a great shock to me."
Representative Haugen said:
" Representative Pepper was industrious, able, and useful. He
was popular among the Iowa Members and in the House. The
fact that his career was cut short so suddenly when he had just
begun makes his death especially regrettable."
Representatives Prouty, Good, Towner, Scott, Green, and Ken-
nedy all expressed themselves in like fashion and paid tribute to
the dead man.
[110]
Tributes
Representative Frank E. Doremus, of Michigan, chairman of
the Democratic national congressional committee, said:
" I am completely stunned by the news of Mr. Pepper's death.
Our work on the national congressional committee, of which he
was secretary, brought us in intimate contact with each other, and
I came to regard him very highly. He was thoroughly honest and
conscientious in all he did, both for his country and his party,
and possessed a keen appreciation of the duties and responsibili-
ties of public office. Mr. Pepper was highly regarded in the
House, and there are many of us to whom his untimely death is a
personal loss."
M. J. Wade, Iowa City, Democratic national committeeman for
Iowa:
" Pepper's death is a personal loss to me and a loss to the State
and Nation. Few men accomplish what he has in the short
space of 10 years. It is 10 years ago last March since he, then
a school-teacher, became my secretary when I went to Washing-
ton. Since that time he studied law, was admitted to the bar,
returned to his native State, and was twice elected county attor-
ney of Muscatine County. He was twice elected to Congress, in
which place he attained a prominence acquired by few men even
after a service of many years. He was one of the most loyal,
faithful, and generous men I ever knew. His success and his
achievement were due to his willingness to serve and his ca-
pacity for work. He never knew when to stop working, espe-
cially if it were in the service of a friend. Broad and generous,
he responded to every call for assistance regardless of personal
inconvenience to himself. No man in Washington has done more
genuinely hard work, not only for the people of his district but
for the people of his State. This was illustrated in his efforts
in behalf of old soldiers. He procured more special pension
legislation for old soldiers, I dare say, than any other Congress-
man who ever served from the State of Iowa.
" Every Member of Congress, regardless of party, had a deep
affection for him, but I can not at this time undertake to review
his career. He was a kind, noble soul. Had he lived he would
have reached an eminence attained by few men. He will be
mourned wherever he was known and his achievements will
stand as a monument to a conscientious, industrious, generous, ^
and decent life."
Hon. Henry Vollmer, of Davenport, said:
" I am profoundly shocked and deeply grieved to hear of the
death of Congressman Irvin St. Clair Pepper. I fear that he was
a martyr to a forced attendance at Congress during a Washington
summer. He was a man of the highest personal character, a con-
scientious official, and a loyal Democrat."
[Ill]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
Newspapers, both Republican and Democratic, received here
paid high tribute to the life and deeds of Hon. Irvin St. Clair
Pepper editorially. The comments follow:
[Iowa City Press.]
News of the death of Congressman Pepper, who passed away
in the Mercy Hospital at Clinton at 5.10 this morning, came as a
grievous shock to the people of this city.
Having been a resident of this city much of the time while
he served as Judge Wade's secretary, and having been here many
times since then, he has almost seemed like an Iowa City boy, and
all our people have taken genuine pride in his rapid rise in the
world of politics to which their votes called him.
Congressman Pepper was one of the brightest of the rising
young Democrats of this State, and his confident friends foresaw
for him a bright future, either continuing as Congressman from
this district or going to the United States Senate if he should
covet that honor.
But all these calculations left out of the account the uncer-
tainty of human life. A fe\v weeks ago Mr. Pepper seemed in
robust health and the prospect of a life of usefulness appeared
to spread before him. But the ravages of typhoid, possibly the
result of a summer's hard work in the miasma of Washington in
summer, so weakened his powers of resistance that peritonitis,
which followed quickly after his seeming recovery from typhoid,
found him an easy victim.
His death removes from Iowa one of its foremost political fig-
ures, and takes from his immediate personal circle as true a
friend as any man may ever hope to have.
He served his district faithfully and his country well. Though
serving only his second term, he had obtained high rank among
his colleagues, had won important committee assignments, and
had been honored by his colleagues by selection as secretary of
the congressional committee.
The second district has lost a good man, the community a firm
friend.
[Rock Island Argus.]
The Congress of the United States has lost a valuable Member
in the passing of Representative Irvin St. Clair Pepper, of the
second Iowa district, who expired at Clinton this morning after a
protracted illness. So closely associated with the fourteenth dis-
trict of Illinois, there has been much in common in this commu-
nity in Congressman Pepper's work in Congress. All matters
pertaining to Rock Island Arsenal, the interests of the institution
in its broadest sense, as well as the cause of the workingmen
employed there, have had his best efforts and his conscientious
and consistent devotion.
[112]
Tributes
A close personal friend of Congressman Clyde H. Tavenner of
this district, through association formed before the latter was
elected to the House, the two have for four years worked together
for propositions involving the highest welfare of the locality,
and in all that has been accomplished Mr. Pepper has played an
important part. His home was at Muscatine.
[Davenport Democrat.]
The news of the death of Congressman Irvin St. Clair Pepper
comes with a shock to everyone in the wide circle of friends that
the genial Representative of the second district of Iowa has made
since he entered public life a few years ago.
It was characteristic of Mr. Pepper's modest way that the facts
concerning himself which he contributed to the Directory of the
Sixty-third Congress, second session, should have made his one
of the very shortest biographies in the book, some of which are
ridiculously long and self-laudatory. Of himself Mr. Pepper
simply wrote:
"Irvin St. Clair Pepper, Democrat, of Muscatine, Iowa; taught
school; studied law; elected to the Sixty-second Congress and
reelected to the Sixty-third Congress."
These were the high points in a well-ordered life. Mr. Pepper
was an active and enthusiastic Democrat, but this did not pre-
vent his giving the same attention to all requests from residents
of his district who belonged to another party that he gave to his
own. He was their Representative first and a partisan afterwards.
Of the simple record of his life he was proud and not ashamed.
Many great men have climbed by the same rungs — teaching
school, studying law. Some of them went to Congress and some
further. There was a good prospect that Irvin St. Clair Pepper
would have gone further had he lived. The decree which cut
short his promising career takes from Iowa one of its young men
who might well be an example to those who remain.
[Burlington Hawkeye.]
There will be general regret at the death of Congressman Irvin
St. Clair Pepper, of the second Iowa district. Although in pub-
lic life only a comparatively brief time, he already had come
into prominence as a worthy and capable citizen. The son of a
farmer, a native of Davis County, a pupil in a country school, a
graduate of the Southern Iowa Normal School, at Bloomfield, he
had the talent and energy that make for success. He taught
school (always a valuable experience preparatory to a profes-
sional life), became private secretary to Congressman M. J. Wade,
studied law, graduated from the George Washington University
Law School, of Washington, D. C, in 1905, and while serving his
second term as prosecuting attorney of Muscatine County, Iowa,
was elected to Congress over Charles Grilk, Republican. He was
relected in 1912 and participated in the recent extra session, but
43102°— 15 8 [113]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
a fatal illness intervened to deny him service in the present
regular session.
Mr. Pepper ranked high in the councils of his party and had
much to say in the distribution of Democratic patronage in Iowa.
It was thought by many he would be the Democratic candidate
for United States Senator to succeed Senator Cummins. He was
secretary of the Democratic national congressional committee.
He was held in high regard by his colleagues in both parties, and
his death is a distinct loss, not only to his political associates,
but to Iowa.
[Clinton Advertiser.]
Monday the Advertiser recorded the death of one of Iowa's
greatest sons, Congressman Pepper, of the second district. It
was called upon to deplore with the whole Nation the passing of
this sterling Iowa statesman, in tribute to whose real worth have
come spontaneous expressions from the lips of men the Nation
over — of men from all the walks of life.
The Advertiser has taken pleasure in following his public life
closely — in recording the richly deserved successes which have
come to him. Monday it conveyed to its readers the sad intelli-
gence of the halting of this superb career.
He might have been a future Senator from Iowa; he might even,
in the years to come, have occupied the chair which Lincoln and
Cleveland honored. For of such timbers are rulers made.
The newspaper is a literal kaleidoscope — it reflects every phase
of life in its every issue; it runs the gamut; it plays the chromatic
scale. And so it mingles every day " the bitter and the sweet."
Clinton chanced to be the theater of an occurrence which
brought to the Nation an irreparable loss, and for a few hours
the eyes of the Nation were turned onto Clinton.
[ Marshalltown Times-Republican. ]
The death of Congressman Pepper, of the second Iowa district,
will be felt as a distinct loss all over the State. Mr. Pepper had
won a deserved reputation as a working Representative and had
gained the respect of Iowa and his colleagues in the Iowa dele-
gation to Congress. He will be missed greatly by his party, in
which he had attained strong leadership.
What the Democracy will do to fill the gap thus left is prob-
lematical. The Democracy of Iowa is not especially strong in
leadership. The party within the State has not accomplished
much in the many years of struggle for control of the State gov-
ernment. It can ill afford to lose the Congressman from the
second from its councils.
Pepper has been notable among Congressmen elected by the
Democracy of the State by reason of usefulness and capacity.
He gained much by comparison with such other Democratic
representation as Iowa sends to Congress. He had made good
[114J
Tributes
with his district and was respected for his abilities throughout
the State. That is a good record for a first term.
[Williamsburg Journal-Tribune.]
The death of Hon. Irvin St. Clair Pepper at Clinton on Monday
morning plunged the second Iowa congressional district into uni-
versal sorrow. For two terms he served his constituents in Con-
gress, and men of all parties held him in the highest esteem. He
was gifted with great ability, and his painstaking efforts to ren-
der the very best service made him one of the prominent men in
the lower House of the National Congress. He was clean in his
life; clean in his dealings with men; and his untimely death
comes as a common loss to the public.
He died in the midst of his useful activities; no one in Con-
gress had a brighter future. He was yet young in years, and his
friends and associates and the general public review his life
with moistened eye and extend to his bereaved father, brothers,
and sisters the sympathy rendered keener by the great love
severed.
[Des Moines Capital.]
Death has claimed Congressman Irvin St. Clair Pepper, of the
second Iowa district, just at a time when the promise of a career
of usefulness to his party and his district and State seemed espe-
cially bright. He was an Iowa product and loyal to his State.
He was ambitious, and the studious habits acquired in boyhood
remained with him in his later career. He was serving his sec-
ond term in Congress and for several months has been seriously
considered as an available candidate for the Democratic nomi-
nation for the United States Senate. The untimely passing away
of this capable young man is an event to be deeply and widely
deplored.
[Rellevue Leader.]
Mr. Pepper was one of the brightest young men the State of
Iowa ever produced and had a very rosy political future before
him. To be cut down in the prime of life is indeed very sad.
[Dubuque Times-Journal.]
The death of Congressman Irvin St. Clair Pepper, of the second
Iowa district, at the age of 37, just at the noonday of life, came as a
shock to his friends throughout the Nation. While he had accom-
plished much during his 37 years of life, his achievements were
all the more pronounced because he came up from the bottom
of life's ladder through the force of his own endeavors. He was
a self-made man. He gained a place of prominence in the affairs
of the Nation and his party, not through influence or circum-
stances, but through industry, integrity, and fidelity to every
trust. That he should pass into the beyond just at a time when
all his hopes were brightest and when the avenues of success
were widening for him is sad, indeed. He was a type of man
[115]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
needed. In his death Congress has lost an able Member, Iowa a
distinguished son, his family and friends a devoted comrade.
[Davenport Times.]
The death of Congressman Pepper comes as a shock to every
resident of the second district of Iowa not only because he
was a young man just entering upon what promised to be a bril-
liant career but also because he had endeared himself to all the
people by his sensible conduct as a public official and his hard
work on behalf of his district as a Representative in Congress.
He entered politics at an opportune time. There had de-
veloped a feeling of unrest, and the old lines of party division
were disturbed. His clear presentation of conditions as he saw
them, his definite espousal of his party's program without quib-
bling, his evident sincerity of purpose and his tireless energy
that took him to almost every farmhouse in the district resulted
in his election to Congress after he had served his home county
of Muscatine well as a public prosecutor.
In Congress Mr. Pepper had been regular — that is to say, he
worked with the dominant forces of his party — and, although at
times he may have had ideas differing from those who were the
responsible leaders of his party, he realized that only by team-
work could anything be accomplished. Since the election of
President Wilson, however, greater work has been thrown upon
Congressman Pepper than usually falls to the lot of a member
of the majority. Reference is made to the necessity of recom-
mending men for responsible positions to be filled in Iowa.
Congressman Pepper was the older in point of service of the
small Iowa delegation. Upon him rested the responsibility of
listening to the leaders at home boosting their favorites. His
judgment had to be to a large extent the judgment of all, and
this additional work and worry finally so undermined his health
that he was easily the victim of typhoid, followed by other com-
plications.
Though one differed with Congressman Pepper in regard to
Government policies, one usually had to admit he liked the man.
He made friends everywhere and he was sincere, frank, and
straightforward.
[ Muscatine News-Tribune. ]
Muscatine, the second congressional district, and thousands of
people throughout the State of Iowa to-day mourn the death of
Hon. Irvin St. Clair Pepper, Congressman, and one of the best-
known Democrats in Iowa. His passing is made doubly sad in
that omnipotence in its uncertainty has suddenly and unexpectedly
descended upon a life just entering mature manhood and mys-
teriously carried it away as the distant horizon was disclosing to
it greater things and broader and more important political prefer-
ment. In other words, Irvin St. Clair Pepper has been taken
away, most cruelly, it seems, when life meant most to him; when
[116]
Tributes
everything among life's pleasures and accomplishments seemed
his, and the passing of our friend, and we dare say, your friend,
crowds into deeper mystery the uncertainty of life, and em-
phasizes with startling force and abrupt suddenness the certainty
of the end.
Tribute after tribute will be generously and sincerely paid to
the record of Congressman Pepper, and we of Muscatine and the
second district unite in praising to the full his public life and
deeds, and at the same moment bow our heads in deepest grief
and sorrow, as we recognize the passing of one endowed with
those attributes of character that made Mr. Pepper in every sense
a man, and realize that in his death there has been cruelly taken
from us a friend, true and sincere, leaving a community vacancy
that can not be filled and the sorrow of which may only be
softened as time, in its mercy, heals.
Mr. Pepper was successively farmer, student, teacher, lawyer,
and finally Congressman, and each little step forward in life's
progress was earned through close application to duty and the
ability to apply clearly and thoroughly his knowledge of things
to the subjects that confronted him. He came to Muscatine about
15 years ago as principal of the old first ward school on West
Third Street, which has since been named the Washington School,
and it was while occupying that position that he received the
appointment as private secretary to Judge Martin J. Wade, who
was chosen to represent the second district in the National
House. Mr. Pepper desired to become a lawyer, and while at
Washington he not only capably and thoroughly looked after
his duties as the private secretary to a busy man, but completed
the course at the law school of George Washington University.
He returned to Muscatine to practice law in the office of Carskad-
den & Burk, and thus we find Mr. Pepper on the threshold of a
career that brought to him and his home town honor and dis-
tinction.
He was nominated the following fall for the office of county
attorney by the Democratic Party and, in the face of a Republi-
can majority in the county, was elected and reelected by an
increased vote two years later. It was his service as county
attorney that paved the road toward future political success, just
as his excellent record in the lower House of Congress was paving
the way to higher honors, had fate been kind enough to permit
Mr. Pepper to enjoy to the fullest the returns of service well and
faithfully rendered.
Mr. Pepper was very near the candidacy for the United States
Senate, and genuine booms for him had assumed large propor-
tions in many sections of the State, and it is the confident belief
of his closest friends that had he retained his health he would
have been almost forced into the senatorial campaign, and un-
doubtedly would have been named by the Democrats. This, of
course, is a glance into the future, but it is important in that
[117]
Memorial Addresses: Representative Pepper
Congressman Pepper, importuned from all sides to make the
race, was stricken with what proved a fatal illness just when
he was making ready to announce his willingness or unwilling-
ness to enter the senatorial campaign, and thus he died with his
lips sealed. Fate had intervened, and even though he may have
finally declined to make the race next year, the United States
Senate, ultimately, was not only possible, but most probable, as
Mr. Pepper was growing rapidly and was in every way of sena-
torial caliber.
Mr. Pepper received political preferment at the hands of his
fellow citizens, not because he was a politician or that he loved
politics, but because of his natural fitness for public office. He
has been the central figure in numerous campaigns, and one of
the highest tributes that can be paid him is to say that not a
wound or even a scratch was ever left upon opponent or friend
as the result of Mr. Pepper's political efforts. He played the game
cleanly, as the saying goes, and what he could not obtain honestly
and fairly he did not want and would not take.
A gifted public speaker, endowed with a happy faculty of
making friends and arousing almost spontaneous ' confidence,
Mr. Pepper made rapid progress in the battle of life. He early
proved his integrity and fidelity to duty, and with the elements
upon which the foundation of character is firmly and lastingly
laid made so prominent a part of his life it is not surprising that
in his death all who knew and admired him mourn deeply and
sorrowfully.
Mr. Pepper was first a lawyer, and it was an encouraged ambi-
tion to some day devote his entire time and energies to the prac-
tice of his profession. He was a man in whom was found united
many of the rare qualities which go to make up a successful
lawyer or jurist, and it was the application of these that he at
times longed for which led many of his intimate friends to
believe that Mr. Pepper would have eventually retired from poli-
tics to enjoy all that might come from a lucrative law practice.
Though Muscatine was the home of his adoption, it was his
home in every sense that the word implies, and Muscatine to-day
mourns him as her own and sees the passing not only of one of
her favorite sons, but of a man whose proportions in life are to
a large extent unwritten, as no one can foretell how far he might
have gone as a servant of the people had Omnipotence seen fit
to continue life in the form that was so well equipped to meet
the demands of life as days might come and go.
Mr. Pepper was a man of the highest personal character, a
painstaking and conscientious public servant, a loyal Democrat,
and a true and sincere friend, and his untimely end is a distinct
loss to his country and to the city in which he lived; a city that
will honor and perpetuate his memory and pay tribute straight
from the heart to one all admired and esteemed.
[118]
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