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Address by Representative Madden

Of Illinois

Mr. SPEAKER AND GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE: It was my privilege to know EDWARD C. LITTLE both as a diplomat, as a soldier, and as a statesman, for he was all three. He represented his Government in the Diplomatic Service with much distinction, and in the Spanish-American War no man displayed more valor or bravery than he. He and Fred Funston were the representatives of Kansas in the Philippines, one as colonel and the other as lieutenant colonel, of a great regiment, which gave more distinction to the American arms than any other organization in the Spanish-American War. Funston afterwards became a major general in the Army and LITTLE became a Member of this House. They were really representative men of their Nation and of their State. I presume that Kansas attained more distinction as the result of the services of these two men than any other two men of their time, and it had great men in many other places, in the legislative halls, in the executive branch of the Government, and in the Diplomatic Service.

EDWARD C. LITTLE came here after his diplomatic service and after his services as a soldier. He had the spirit of a soldier when he entered this House. He was restless, he wanted to forge ahead, he was not satisfied to wait until experience gave him the

right of forward movement. He had been leading the charge in war and he wanted to lead the charge in peace. He soon impressed himself on the membership of the House as a strong character. He loved his State, he was devoted to his people, he loved his country, and there was no service too hard for him, no work too arduous, no day too long, to do the work of the office to which he had been called. He was devoted to the advancement of the country's interest. He had no object in life except to serve his country. I would not call him a diplomat in his services here, but there was no more earnest man who served his country anywhere than EDWARD C. LITTLE.

He was interested in everything that made for the advancement of the Nation. He had ideas, he had opinions, and the courage to express them. They frequently dropped on fertile soil and often resulted in the framing of legislation that was advantageous to the country. And so, no matter whether he was diplomatic or otherwise in the relationship with his associates, his sole object in the service was the advancement of his country. It does not matter whether you agree with one's opinions; in the services here you soon learn whether he is earnest, whether he is honest in the opinions he has to express, and as you learn to trust the integrity and depend on the honesty of the Member you begin to respect the opinions he may express, regardless of whether you believe in them or not.

So it was with EDWARD C. LITTLE. He impressed his personality on the membership of this House.

It was he who in the discharge of his duties persuaded the House to carry the improvements of the Missouri River into the confines of Kansas, when they had no intention of going that far. He was able to persuade as well as to instruct. He had an integrity all his own. He stood foursquare to the world, he stood foursquare to every wind that blew, he never trimmed his sails to meet the passing breeze, he was an American in every particular to which that term can be applied. He used his Americanism for the advancement of the interests of America and for the betterment of the American people. He had no other client except the Nation. Whether you agreed with him or not you would have to agree that his purpose was right, and that, although his opinions might not conform in many cases to the mass of opinions of the House, he nevertheless expressed those opinions and impressed everybody in the House with his sincerity and his honesty in the formulation and expression of those opinions. That kind of membership in the House is more valuable than one may suppose; it is far better to have a man in the House who does not agree with everybody— who everybody does not agree with-than to have a Member who is complacent and willing to cooperate, no matter whether the things in which cooperation is desired is correct or not. The character of his membership led frequently to compromising on problems that confronted the House, whereas there would have been no compromise if some man like Mr. LITTLE was not here to object to the complacency which might have affected the

result. So I say that the critic with the courage that Mr. LITTLE had is invaluable in this body.

He calls the attention of the country to the need for scrutiny of the subject that may be pending before us, and makes every Member of the House a little more inclined to study the problem with greater care in order that results which may be beneficial to the Nation as a whole may be the outcome of the consideration of the problem.

He left a record behind him of which we are all proud, of which his district, his State has a right to be proud, and of which the Nation might well too be proud. We do not come here to mourn his death. Death is just as natural as life. We come and pass through the scene of action, whatever it may be, and pass on, and if, by any chance, we have been fortunate to leave behind us some thought that some one else, with benefit to the Nation, may take up and carry forward, then we have been successful in the life to which we have been called. If by any chance we have done that which calls the attention of the coming generations to the worthiness of our action, we have not lived in vain. If those who follow us can with benefit to the country emulate our example, we have lived a life worth living, and when we pass on, although we may be forgotten soon by those who are in active service and have other things to think of than us, still the work that we did, the views we expressed, and the acts that we performed, if they were worthy, will leave an impress upon the Nation such as will enable it to move forward, to become better, to make friends dearer, homes

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