Lewiston’s Senator Wallace White “All that the voters can ask

Lewiston’s Senator Wallace White

“All that the voters can ask”

by Charles Francis

When George Mitchell was chosen Senate Majority Leader in 1989, it was a proud day for Maine. Countless newspaper articles extolled the Senator’s virtues, placing him in a continuing line of Maine’s great national political leaders. Most often mentioned were Hannibal Hamlin, James G. Blaine, and Thomas B. Reed. Seldom, however, did the name Wallace White appear anywhere. Yet White also served as Senate Majority Leader. In fact, he held that vaunted position in the memory of many Maine citizens, as he was the Majority Leader from 1947 to 1949.

Wallace White served thirty-two years in Congress. Fourteen of those years were in the House of Representatives and eighteen years were in the Senate. He introduced important legislation. It was said that his “colleagues considered him one of the kindest, gentlest, and most fair-minded men to grace the institution [of Congress].” His is an outstanding record. Yet his name is not known in nearly the same way that other twentieth-century Maine Congressional leaders, such as Senators Margaret Chase Smith and Edmund Muskie are.

One of the reasons Wallace White is not remembered is that he was a less-than-dynamic speaker. He never made a “Declaration of Conscience” speech the way Margaret Chase Smith did. Nor was he involved with any great cause the way Edmund Muskie was in his fight to clean up the environment. Nevertheless, White was a morethan effective legislator, especially in the House of Representatives, where he drafted pivotal legislation regarding our country’s merchant marines during the all-important years between the world wars and in the area of mass communication. He was in the Senate when Robert Taft, the man who was

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known as “Mr. Republican,” dominated the Republican Party.

Wallace Humphrey White, Jr. was born in Lewiston on August 6, 1877. His parents were Wallace Humphrey White and Helen (Frye) White. Helen was the daughter of William P. Frye, a long-term member of both the House and Senate, and eight-year president pro tempore of the latter house. Frye is regarded as the consummate Maine politician of his era.

After attending Lewiston public schools, White enrolled at Bowdoin College, graduating in 1899. His grandfather secured a position for him on the staff of the Senate Commerce Committee, which he chaired. While working as a Senate staffer, White took law courses which enabled him to be admitted to the Maine Bar and begin a legal practice in Lewiston in 1911.

In 1916 he was elected to the House of Representatives. His grandfather

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1522 Lisbon Street • Lewiston, ME had passed away some five years earlier, and White was portrayed by the press as carrying on a family tradition. Arthur Staples, the editor of the Lewiston Journal and a major influence in Maine politics, went as far as to say, “By inheritance, education, culture, initiative, and personality, Mr. White is all that the voters can ask.” And as far as most Maine voters were concerned, Congressman White was all they could ask for in a Representative.

During his first two terms in the House, White was a tireless worker on behalf of women’s suffrage. In this regard, he was reflecting the interests of his district. Charlotte Ball of Lewiston, one of the founders of the Pine Tree State Federation of Business and Professional Women’s Clubs, was a White supporter, as were all the clubs in White’s district.

In the 1920s White was a two-term chair of the committee that drafted the most important federal legislation relating to Maine industries, the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries. In his capacity as Chair of this committee, he played a significant role in pushing the Merchant Marine Act of 1928 through Congress. The act was an important factor in keeping the United States a viable presence on the high seas in its isolationist years following World War I, and in preparing its merchant seamen for their contributions to the war effort during World War II. White also co-authored the Radio Act of 1927, the bill which led to the federal government’s oversight of all mass communication, including telephone, and later, television.

During White’s years in the House, the Republican Party was the ascendant political power in Washington. In 1930 Congressman White became Senator White. For most of White’s Senate tenure the Democrats were in power. Even (cont. on page 54)

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(cont. from page 53) so, White was able to maintain his influence in the area of marine and fisheries legislation by working with the Democratic majority. In fact, he was known for being able to communicate, not only with all the varying factions of his own party but also across the aisle. For this reason he was chosen for a number of leadership positions. These culminated with his being named Minority Leader in 1944 and Majority Leader in 1947.

Today, students of Senate history regard Wallace White’s tenure as Majority Leader as that of frontman for Robert Taft of Ohio. Taft was a powerhouse who would have undoubtedly been the Republican nominee for President had Dwight Eisenhower not been chosen. Taft was also the dominant figure in the Senate. He hand-picked White for the position of Majority Leader. This was because White was able to get along with almost everyone, whereas Taft had an abrasive personality.

Wallace White probably did not want to be Majority Leader when the opportunity first came his way. He was seventy years old in 1947 and in failing health. And, of course, he was not a good speaker, a given requirement for any powerful leader. What he really wanted was to work in committees drafting legislation. However, when he tried to resign as Majority Leader, Robert Taft instructed the party to reject the request. Altogether, it was a sad situation for a man who had spent the greater portion of his life in dedicated service to his party and his country.

In December of 1947 Wallace White was hospitalized with what was first reported as the flu. Later the diagnosis was changed to nervous exhaustion, and still later, to a nervous breakdown. When he finally returned to the Senate, an assistant carried on his duties as Majority Leader.

Wallace White left the Senate in 1949. His last years were quiet ones, spent back in Maine. He died in Auburn on March 31, 1952, and is interred at the Mt. Auburn Cemetery.

Regardless of the nature of Wallace White’s final years in politics, he stands as one of Maine’s great political leaders and public servants. If he had a real failing, it was one that we all have, that of aging.

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