Samuel M. BrinsonLate a Representative from North CarolinaMemorial AddressesDelivered in Congress
Photo of Samuel M. Brinson
Samuel M. BrinsonMemorial AddressesDELIVERED IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED STATES IN MEMORY OF SAMUEL M. BRINSON LATE A REPRESENTATIVE FROM NORTH CAROLINA
vignette Sixty-Seventh Congress FEBRUARY 11, 1923GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICEWASHINGTON1924
PREPARED UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE JOINT COMMITTEE ON PRINTING
CONTENTS| Page | |
| Proceedings in the House | 1 |
| Prayer by— | |
| Rev. James Shera Montgomery | 1 |
| Rev. Page Milburn | 4 |
| Memorial address by— | |
| Mr. Charles L. Abernethy, of North Carolina | 7 |
| Mr. Finis J. Garrett, of Tennessee | 10 |
| Mr. Hallett S. Ward, of North Carolina | 14 |
| Mr. Clay Stone Briggs, of Texas | 21 |
| Mr. Robert L. Doughton, of North Carolina | 23 |
| Mr. William W. Larsen, of Georgia | 26 |
| Mr. Homer L. Lyon, of North Carolina | 28 |
| Mr. William C. Hammer, of North Carolina | 30 |
| Mr. William B. Bankhead, of Alabama | 33 |
| Mr. Isaac Siegel, of New York | 36 |
| Mr. Zebulon Weaver, of North Carolina | 39 |
| Mr. Charles M. Stedman, of North Carolina | 45 |
| Mr. B. G. Lowrey, of Mississippi | 48 |
| Mr. Horace M. Towner, of Iowa | 51 |
| Mr. Patrick H. Drewry, of Virginia | 55 |
| Proceedings in the Senate | 61 |
Proceedings in the House of Representatives
Death of Hon. Samuel M. Brinson
Proceedings in the House of RepresentativesTHURSDAY, April 13, 1922.
The Chaplain, Rev. James Shera Montgomery, D. D., offered the following prayer:
Be not silent unto us, O God, for amid our laughter and amid our tears we give Thee thanks. O speak to us out of the clouds which hide the glory of Thy face. Again there is a silence in our roll call, and a Member, honored and esteemed, will answer no more to his name. Remember the loved ones with the rich blessings of the untroubled heart. Impress us with the brevity and uncertainty of life, and also with its tremendous meaning. As men, as citizens, and as servants may our daily lives be born of the conviction that we are dealing justly and with loving mercy, for God is near. Through Christ. Amen.
Mr. POU. Mr. Speaker, it is with sincere sorrow that I announce to the House the death, in the early hours of the morning of this day, of SAMUEL MITCHELL BRINSON, a Representative from the third district of North Carolina. Our colleague had been a sufferer for many months. It was a tribute to the people of his district, among whom he had lived,
that last week, when he had returned to this city from a sanitarium, he made the request that he be carried home in order that he might die amongst his friends among whom he had lived and spent his life. Our dead friend was a man of generous impulses, amiable, and lovable. On his soul when the summons came rested that calm which of right belonged to one who had never knowingly injured a fellow being.
His funeral will be held to-morrow from his home in the city of New Bern, N. C., at 3 o'clock.
I ask unanimous consent for the consideration of the resolution which I send to the Clerk's desk.
The SPEAKER. The gentleman from North Carolina asks unanimous consent for the consideration of a resolution, which the Clerk will report.
The Clerk read as follows:
Resolved, That the House has heard with profound sorrow of the death of Hon. SAMUEL M. BRINSON, a Representative from the State of North Carolina.
Resolved, That a committee of 15 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 connected 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.
Resolved, That, as a further mark of respect, this House do now adjourn.
The resolution was agreed to; and the Speaker appointed as the committee on the part of the House Mr. Kitchin, Mr. Pou, Mr. Stedman, Mr. Doughton, Mr. Weaver, Mr. Ward, Mr. Lyon, Mr. Bulwinkle, Mr. Hammer, Mr. Bowling, Mr. Sandlin, Mr. Lowrey, Mr. Glynn, Mr. Tyson, and Mr. King.
And then (at 12 o'clock and 7 minutes p. m.) the House, in accordance with the resolution, adjourned until Friday, April 14, 1922, at 12 o'clock noon.
FRIDAY, April 14, 1922.
A message from the Senate, by Mr. Craven, its Chief Clerk, announced that the Senate had passed the following resolution:
Resolved, That the Senate has heard with profound sorrow the announcement of the death of Hon. SAMUEL M. BRINSON, late a Representative from the State of North Carolina.
Resolved, That a committee of six Senators be appointed by the Vice President to join the committee appointed by the House of Representatives to attend the funeral.
Resolved, That the Secretary communicate these resolutions to the House of Representatives and transmit a copy thereof to the family of the deceased.
Resolved, As a further mark of respect to the memory of the deceased the Senate do now adjourn.
THURSDAY, January 4, 1923.
Mr. ABERNETHY. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that Sunday, February 11, be set apart for the holding of memorial exercises on the life, character, and public services of my deceased predecessor, Hon. SAMUEL M. BRINSON, Member of Congress from the third North Carolina district.
The SPEAKER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
There was no objection.
SUNDAY, February 11, 1923.
The House met at 11 a. m., and was called to order by Mr. Lee of Georgia as Speaker pro tempore.
The Rev. Page Milburn offered the following prayer:
Holy Father, Almighty, Eternal God, we the creatures of Thy hand, and the grateful recipients of Thy daily bounty, present our sincere acknowledgment of Thy mercy and protection.
Unworthy as we are of Thy gratuity and too often forgetful of our obligation to Thee, we beseech Thee to continue to bear us up in Thy hands and comfort us with Thy counsel. In prosperity restrain us; in sorrow and calamity comfort and calm us.
May the citizens of this Republic, and more particularly those identified with the making of its laws, be sensible of their obligation to remember Thy commandments to keep them, and to be filled
with the spirit of the Son of Man who gave Himself to the uplifting of mankind, and was not unwilling to suffer death, to finish His chosen service.
May the grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ be with us all. Amen.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Without objection, the reading of the Journal of yesterday will be deferred. [After a pause.] The Chair hears no objection. The Clerk will report the special order for the day.
Mr. Stedman took the chair as Speaker pro tempore.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the additional special order.
The Clerk read as follows:
On motion of Mr. Abernethy, by unanimous consent,
Ordered, That Sunday, February 11, 1923, be set apart for addresses on the life, character, and public services of the Hon. SAMUEL M. BRINSON, late a Representative from the State of North Carolina.
Mr. ABERNETHY. Mr. Speaker, I desire to send forward a resolution and ask for its adoption.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the resolution.
The Clerk read as follows:
Resolved, That the business of the House be now suspended that an opportunity may be given for tributes to the memory of Hon. SAMUEL M. BRINSON, late a Member of the House from the State of North Carolina.
Resolved, That as a particular mark of respect to the memory of the deceased and in recognition of his distinguished public career, the House at the conclusion of the exercises of the day shall stand adjourned.
Resolved, That the Clerk send a copy of the resolutions to the Senate.
Resolved, That the Clerk send a copy of these resolutions to the family of the deceased.
The resolution was unanimously agreed to.
Address by Representative AbernethyOf North Carolina
Mr. SPEAKER: We speak of those who have departed as if they were swept out of existence. It is difficult to conceive that they have simply changed relations. We speak of the sun at evening as gone. It has only faded from our sight, to shed its light on some other part of the world. We speak of the ship, as it gradually sinks from sight, as gone. It is just plowing its way across waters deep to find, ere many days, another harbor. Our friend whose memory we honor to-day has gone to find rest in another harbor, to live in another realm and in a changed existence.
There is no death; what seems so is transition.
This life of mortal is but the suburb of the life elysian, Whose portals we call death.
My distinguished predecessor, SAMUEL MITCHELL BRINSON, was born at New Bern, N. C., on March 20, 1870. He was the son of William George and Kittie (Chestnut) Brinson. His father was an honored citizen of Craven County and held positions of high trust in the county.
SAMUEL M. BRINSON was educated in the public schools and at Wake Forest College, where he graduated A. B. in 1891. After his graduation he taught school for a year and then took the law course at the University of North Carolina, and
was admitted to the bar in 1896 and began to practice at New Bern. In 1902 Mr. BRINSON was elected superintendent of public instruction for Craven County, and for more than 15 years he directed and supervised the county school system and built up for Craven County a system of schools the equal of any in the State. He soon became a prominent factor in school matters in the State and was a member of the executive committee of the North Carolina Teachers’ Assembly and a trustee of the Eastern Carolina Training School at Greenville and a trustee of Meredith College at Raleigh.
Mr. BRINSON was elected to the Sixty-sixth Congress in November, 1918, and took his seat on March 4, 1919. He was reelected as a Member of the Sixty-seventh Congress in November, 1920, and died April 13, 1922. Mr. BRINSON was a thirty-second degree Scottish Rite Mason, a member of Sudan Temple of the Mystic Shrine, and was affiliated with the Royal Arcanum, in which he was supreme guide. He was a deacon in the Baptist Church. Mr. BRINSON was married to Miss Ruth Martin Scales, of Salisbury, N. C., January 16, 1901. His wife died on January 19, 1919, while he was a Member of Congress. They have one daughter, Miss Mary Steele Brinson. During the last few years of his life Mr. BRINSON was a terrible sufferer from illness. No one but he and God will ever know the suffering which he underwent.
We are told that all pain, sickness, weariness, distress, and agony of body is to be treated reverently. Every sorrow is a billow in the world's
troublesome sea, which we must pass over on the cross to bear us nearer home. The cloud forms, drops its rain, and passes away for the sun to shine and the flower to bloom. The storm gathers, purifies the air, and passes away for the fragrant and healthful calm to settle like a benediction on the land. Affliction comes, and passes away for peace, joy, and glory to appear. When one passes under the shadow of the Cross of Calvary, he knows that through this shadow lies the passage to the great white throne. It is said of Michelangelo, as he hewed away at his marble, he would watch the chips fall under the heavy strokes of his mallet, and would say “As the marble wastes the image grows.” God's ways in His providences are incomprehensible, but through affliction and sorrow we may exclaim, “God is making us.”
And may we say of our friend whose memory we honor that it is our fervent prayer that in the evening of his life, when the golden clouds rested sweetly and invitingly upon the golden mountains, and the light of heaven streamed down through the gathering mists of death, that he had a peaceful and abundant entrance into the world of blessedness, where the great riddle of life unfolded to him in the quick consciousness of a redeemed and purified existence.
Address by Representative Garrett
Of Tennessee
Mr. SPEAKER: I am very grateful to my friends from North Carolina for the honor they do me in inviting me to be present and participate in these memorial exercises in honor of our departed colleague, who those of us who knew him generally respected so highly and those who knew him intimately loved so much. It is not improper that some Representative from Tennessee should participate in these exercises because the history of Tennessee is inseparably intertwined with that of North Carolina. The territory which is embraced in the State of Tennessee was embraced in the grant by Queen Elizabeth to Sir Walter Raleigh and in the subsequent grants by Charles II to the Lords Proprietary of the Carolinas.
As early as 1772 the people of what is known in history as the Watauga Settlement met and drew up certain articles of government, which were the first articles drawn by any body west of the Alleghenies that might be denominated self-governing articles. But the State of North Carolina subsequently asserted and maintained, by peaceful methods, its sovereignty over that section. I do not know just why the Watauga articles were drawn, except perhaps that it was due to the fact that the settlers at Watauga came from other States in the main rather than from North Carolina. At any rate, in 1784, North Carolina passed
an act of cession, anticipating the act of Virginia. By this act what is now Tennessee was ceded to Virginia, but for some reason the Federal Government did not accept it; and some two years later there was formed the State of Franklin.
This had a stormy career. It was never recognized by North Carolina and of course was never recognized by the Federal Government; and in 1790 North Carolina passed a second act of cession, ceding what is now Tennessee to the Federal Government, and this cession was accepted. So that Tennessee comes from North Carolina.
There are other reasons why a Tennesseean should be invited to participate in this memorial service. Two, at least, of the Presidents of the United States who were citizens of Tennessee were natives of North Carolina. Polk was born in Mecklenburg County, and Johnson was born in the county in which Raleigh is situated. Where Jackson was born, of course, we do not know. There has always been a contest between gentlemen from North Carolina and gentlemen from South Carolina over that question. If he was born in North Carolina, then North Carolina has furnished three Presidents by way of Tennessee. If he was born in South Carolina, then South Carolina is in the happy condition of being able to quote the words put in the mouth of a lioness by some writer on natural history, in the story with which you are familiar. During a truce among the animals the mothers met in order to show their progeny. The fox showed a number of babies. Other animals showed a number, and finally the fox said to the
lioness, “How many can you show?” And the lioness said, “I can show only one, but look you well at it; it is a lion's cub.”
Another reason why perhaps it is not improper that I was invited to participate is the extremely friendly relation always existing between the North Carolina delegation and myself. Ever since I have been here North Carolina has had a leading place in the affairs of the Nation. It was true long before I came here; it will be true long after I am gone from here. Among those from North Carolina with whom I have been associated was our departed colleague, Mr. BRINSON.
I can not say that I knew him intimately, but I knew him most pleasantly. He was in ill health during much of the time that he served here. He was unable to give to his service all the activity that he would have liked to give, but within the limits of his work he maintained in highest degree the fine traditions and splendid spirit of North Carolina; and that is saying much.
He was a well-educated man. He made one address here which I remember very well indeed, which was notable in character. When the reapportionment bill was presented from the Committee on the Census, of which he was a member, he felt that in a way the institutions and practices of his State had been attacked, and he made a speech which was exhaustive from the legal standpoint and from the broader standpoint of social necessity and of the rights of a sovereign State.
He was a very loyal man. He was loyal to duty; he was loyal to his State. He was proud of the
honor that had been conferred upon him. He did all that he could to measure up to his responsibilities, and he measured well. He was an educator before he came here. He had a well-trained mind. His diction was clean and clear always. His impulses were fine. He was of gentle spirit, tender in heart. He rendered great service.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from North Carolina [Mr. Ward] is recognized.
Address by Representative Ward
Of North Carolina
Mr. SPEAKER: The beautiful custom which the Congress has followed through all its history of convening in special session, the public business laid aside, to give the Members an opportunity to say a word to the memory of those of their friends and favorites of the membership who may have been called away forever by the death angel during the term, has been called into exercise with fearful, almost shocking, frequency during the Sixty-seventh Congress. My State has been called to share with the others and our thoughts are now turned to the fondly cherished recollections of the late SAMUEL M. BRINSON, late a Representative from the third district of North Carolina. He came first to the Sixty-sixth Congress with but little experience of the larger affairs, so called, of public life and politics, coming first into public notice for valued and conspicuous service in the cause of public education in North Carolina 20 years ago, as soon as political peace was restored from the struggle that brought forth the suffrage amendment to the constitution of that State, and its activities were embraced with a strong and universal enthusiasm throughout the State.
Mr. BRINSON lived in a large county whose suffering had been long and patient, and in the revival of its activities and the putting on of its new labors he was called to its support and continued
to serve as the chief officer and leading proponent of that work in his county until his election to Congress in 1918. His heart and head and hand were enlisted as one who loved his work, for he loved humanity and sought always to lift it up. He loved children and loved to contemplate their possibilities, and saw in education the only hope and chance for the fullness of those possibilities.
His devotion to this service and unstinted qualifications produced efficiency that attracted attention from a distance, and he was called into service as an advocate to other parts of the State. The people saw in this service and this advocacy his unselfish nature, his freedom from demagogy, his high degree of capacity, and his genuine broadgauged devotion to them and their children, and for these qualities and these causes they called him to a supposed higher service and more conspicuous honors, a service in the Congress of the Nation.
This call, coming as it did for this cause and in recognition of such an order of public service, may, I think, be said to be a larger compliment, so to speak, than that which frequently comes on account of political service and party zeal. Many calls to high public service come as expressions of necessary recognition to partisan activities and sacrifice. This probably is as it should be, but when an intelligent and patriotic electorate turn away from the active fields of politics and look for servants whose merit is tested by their closer touch with the fundamentals of life, the hearthstone cares and hopes and aspirations of homes where fathers
and mothers pray and struggle and children are born and reared and take on the duties of life, it is, I think, a stronger expression of public confidence and affection and a prouder monument, a happier heritage—
A heritage it seems to meA king might wish to hold in fee.This is exactly what Mr. BRINSON'S election to Congress meant, and he well deserved it. Yet, by that, I do not mean to indicate that he was lacking in party interest and loyalty, for he was not. He believed in his party as the best agency for the service of the people whose interests and welfare he loved, but he had not been as active as many men in his district in its behalf.
Firm as adamant in his party alignment and in all his connections, he had no heart for hate and no spirit narrow enough for intolerance. In the short time I served with him in the House I many times sat by him among the thin ranks of the Democratic side and heard him comment on the Members of the opposite side of the House, then strangers to me, as they rose to speak, and he always reserved something kind, complimentary, and generous to say—indeed he had the habit and disposition of speaking kindly of everybody.
And this, Mr. Speaker, I think is the delicate, accurate, and supreme test of human character—to speak generously of others in their absence. One who speaks generously thinks generously, and one who thinks generously of others has the fullness of
human excellence, so far as it is given to human character to possess it.
I heard one of his campaign speeches in 1920, when he had a sharp campaign on for his nomination. Truth, candor, and absence of self-laudation, and a sincere interest in the public welfare were manifest in every utterance of his plain honest speech. He was as free from demagogy as a saint from heresy. It was not in him to deceive or mislead anybody for any cause or end, and the people as they stood round about him seemed so to estimate him. He would have made them a devoted and most valuable public servant in the Congress if he had been longer spared, for he “came out from among them,” knew their needs, felt their impulses, shared their difficulties, bore with them their burdens, and rejoiced with them in their successes. In their churches and schools he was their faithful helper and leader, and his election to Congress was his direct reward from them of this devotion and service. In his death a splendid, useful, noble life has come to its lamented end. As the forest puts on its brightest robe to die in, so does such a life robe itself in its tints of eternal beauty as its sunset hour approaches.
When he last left these Halls he knew he was going, not to return, but his bearing plainly showed that the shadows as they gathered brought no terror to his peaceful, quiet soul, but rather a glow of promise, pointing toward the dawn of the eternal morning. He went undisturbed to his home, where first he met his pastor as he fell back on his wearied couch and said, “It is all right.”
A delegation of Members of the Congress from both Houses attended the funeral. I was among them. His friends packed the beautiful, spacious church, and as I marked their deep emotion, their wonderful floral tributes, and moved among them around the open grave and on the streets, I knew their affection would better guard his tomb and longer preserve his memory than the cold shaft of marble that stands above his grave. His beloved minister, the Rev. W. A. Ayers, spoke with deep emotion and striking eloquence. They were affectionate friends, but he spoke as knowing he had lost him but for a while.
Knowing that I would be doing Mr. BRINSON'S will and pleasure, if the dead could know the action of the living, I sought lately to obtain from Mr. Ayers a copy of his remarks, but he had not preserved them, and all I have is an extract taken from a local newspaper. I ask, Mr. Speaker, that it be printed as an extension of my own remarks.
THE FUNERAL SERVICE HELD OVER THE REMAINS OF HON. S. M. BRINSON, AT THE FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH, NEW BERN, N. C.—HUNDREDS ASSEMBLE TO PAY CONGRESSMAN BRINSON TRIBUTE—FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH WAS CROWDED WITH FRIENDS OF MR. BRINSON—SCORES WERE UNABLE TO GAIN ADMISSION TO THE CHURCH WHEN THE SERVICES STARTED—SPLENDID TRIBUTE—EULOGY DELIVERED BY REV. W. A. AYERS WAS AN IMPRESSIVE TESTIMONIAL
Mr. Ayers began by saying:
“Our text to-day is Psalms xxxvii, 37:
“Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace.
“I find myself unable to pay fitting tribute to our departed brother, first, because his death has been such a shock to me personally. My own heart is filled with uncontrollable emotion. And second, because no man could hope to do justice to this splendid character who has passed to the great beyond. Hence, in this hour we must turn to the word of Divine inspiration to find a fitting tribute. ‘Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace.’
“S. M. BRINSON was marked for distinction from his birth, coming of a long line of noble ancestry. His mother belonged to the South's old-time aristocracy. She was the very soul of honor and the law of kindness was on her lips. Yielding himself to Christ and the ideals of Christianity early in life, S. M. BRINSON translated his religion into terms of daily conduct. His religion came first. He was never too busy to give time to the work of his church. For 20 years he served as our church clerk. He also served as a member of the board of deacons and as Sunday school superintendent. He never slighted any duty placed on him by the church. As an educator S. M. BRINSON was competent, efficient, and faithful. It was in this field that the greatest work of his life was performed.
“For 17 years he was superintendent of public instruction in Craven County. It was through his efforts that our schools have gained a state-wide reputation for excellence; yes, a reputation that has extended throughout the entire Southland. A movement is now on among the school children of the county to raise funds for the erection of a monument to the memory of him who loved them so well and labored for them so faithfully.
“As a statesman S. M. BRINSON was the embodiment of integrity and honor. His broad information gave him a wonderful grasp on the needs of the hour, and with unsoiled hands he stood only for the things of righteousness. His soul loathed double-dealing as a thing of darkness. I have talked with many of his colleagues in Washington on various occasions, and on every hand I have heard
nothing but the highest praise for him. He was recognized as one of the most promising younger Members of the House.
“This was the man, my friends, to whom we would pay honor to-day. How well he bears out those words of David: ‘Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace.’ Peace has come to S. M. BRINSON; a peace that surpasses all understanding.”
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Texas [Mr. Briggs] is recognized.
Address by Representative BriggsOf Texas
Mr. SPEAKER: The invitation of the North Carolina delegation to participate in these memorial exercises is deeply appreciated and is one I sincerely welcome.
Throughout the service in Congress of our late colleague, SAMUEL M. BRINSON, Representative from the third district of North Carolina, I was rather closely associated with him, both in the House and particularly on the Committee on Coinage, Weights, and Measures, of which he was the ranking minority member at the time of his death, April 13, 1922. An uncompromising Democrat, a man of high principles, a faithful and devoted public servant, he won for himself in his brief congressional career the friendship, confidence, and esteem of his associates, and gave to his constituency a full measure of splendid and honorable service.
Unassuming and gentle in manner, but unswerving and positive in character, he brought to his labors not only a deep interest in national problems which he was called upon to face and help solve for the best interests of all, but also knowledge and ability, with a conscientious consideration and appreciation of the views and opinions of others.
A fidelity and loyalty to the highest ideals and standards of duty characterized and made conspicuous his congressional service in spite of the long and discouraging illness which prevented him in the latter part of his second term from the same degree of active participation in congressional work which had previously marked his comparatively brief career.
Those of his colleagues who knew him even longer and more intimately than I did have given a recital of how he rose, through successive steps in public office, to representation of his constituency and the State of North Carolina in the Congress of the United States.
The story of his success will no doubt furnish inspiration to many another patriotic and ambitious young American, and will contribute its share of encouragement to those who are also faced with difficulties and obstacles, but whose courage and determination prove sufficient to the accomplishment which they seek.
SAMUEL M. BRINSON has left to those of his family who survive a rich heritage. And in this expression of regard and esteem for our late colleague and associate I tender to his family and loved ones the sympathy of the membership of the House of Representatives and a sincere and devout wish for their welfare.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from North Carolina [Mr. Doughton] is recognized.
Address by Representative DoughtonOf North Carolina
Mr. SPEAKER: Our late colleague, Hon. SAMUEL M. BRINSON, whose life and public services we today commemorate, was elected as a Representative in Congress from the third district of North Carolina at the November election, 1918, and reelected in the November election, 1920, serving through the Sixty-sixth Congress and during the Sixty-seventh Congress until his death on April 13, 1922, making a little more than three years that he was an honored and useful Member of this body.
Before his election to Congress he was a practicing attorney in his home town of New Bern, N. C., and also served as superintendent of public instruction of his native county of Craven for 17 years, from March, 1902, to March 4, 1919, the date on which he began his services as a Member of Congress. As head of the educational forces of his county he rendered a most useful service and made a reputation which doubtless had much to do with his being called to a wider field of usefulness and service.
My personal acquaintance with Mr. BRINSON began with the opening session of the Sixty-sixth Congress and soon grew into a strong and binding friendship which extended until the day of his death.
I was honored by the Speaker of the House in being appointed a member of the committee to accompany the remains of our friend and colleague to his home, the place where he was born and had spent his useful life—New Bern, N. C. It was an ideal spring day on April 14 when the last formal services were held in the church of which he was a faithful and consecrated member. A large concourse of people coming from all over North Carolina attended the funeral, showing the very high esteem in which Mr. BRINSON was held by the people of his native State.
The church of which he was a member was packed with sorrowing friends to pay a tribute of regard and love to their deceased friend. His pastor chose for a text the following words from the Thirty-seventh Psalm, thirty-seventh verse: “Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace,” from which he delivered a very adequate and appropriate discourse, portraying beautifully the life work and noble character of the deceased.
As a Member of Congress Mr. BRINSON rose rapidly, and early in his first term gave definite promise of becoming one of its most useful Members. However, early in his service here in Congress it became apparent to his colleagues that he was suffering from a serious and what soon proved to be an incurable malady. He bore his affliction patiently and uncomplainingly. He was taken off by the mysterious hand of death when it seemed a still brighter career of usefulness was just opening and his life's work was but partly done. Why
he was thus caught by the strange hand of fate and his life's work suddenly ended is more than we are able to comprehend.
The high ideals, the noble deeds, and the pure, upright life of SAMUEL M. BRINSON speak more eloquently of his great service to his State and Nation than any words that can be uttered or written by his admiring, sorrowing friends. A truly great man, a faithful servant of the people, has passed to the realm of the beyond. Of such as was our worthy deceased colleague it has been truly said by the inspired writer:
Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord, from henceforth; yea, saith the spirit, that they may rest from their labors and their works do follow them.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Georgia [Mr. Larsen] is recognized.
Address by Representative Larsen
Of Georgia
Mr. SPEAKER: The roll of the Sixty-sixth Congress contained for the first time the name of SAMUEL MITCHELL BRINSON, whose life and public service we commemorate to-day.
At the beginning of the session he was assigned to a committee of which I was already a member. We served together on the committee until the date of his death; were intimate friends almost from the date of our acquaintance; and hence my opportunity for judging as to his capacity, disposition, and character. Mr. Speaker, I am therefore pleased to have the opportunity of speaking a few words of eulogy on this occasion.
He had served the people of his native State in public capacity for many years before he became a Member of Congress, and it was upon the efficiency of this service that he became a Member of this House. He was both by temperament and mental training well equipped for service here. While he died in the meridian of manhood, yet his life was filled with achievements. His native ability and genial nature made many warm friends for him in this House, but the condition of his health and his short duration of service may have prevented opportunity for making that lasting impress upon the country at large which his capacity warranted and most surely would have resulted had he lived and enjoyed a reasonable degree of health.
He was a positive character and possessed an analytical mind; hence he usually reached a correct conclusion easily and quickly. He was tolerant and respected the opinions of others, yet the course which he pursued was always the result of his own judgment. While he was modest in disposition he never hesitated to express his opinion when necessary.
Mr. Speaker, to me both life and death are mysteries; but, after all, it is not the fact that a man has lived or that a man is dead that counts. It is, rather, How did he live? How did he die? Of SAMUEL BRINSON we may always truly say he played his part in the world of men, and the Great Critic will hold it good.
The night dew that falls,Though in silence it weeps,Shall brighten with verdureThe grave where he sleeps;And the tear that we shed,Though in silence it rolls,Shall long keep his memoryGreen in our souls.The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from North Carolina [Mr. Lyon] is recognized.
Address by Representative Lyon
Of North Carolina
Mr. SPEAKER: It is a beautiful custom that makes it possible for the colleagues of a deceased Member to meet together and hold memorial services for their departed friend, thereby placing on permanent record their testimonial of the worth of him who has crossed over the river. It may be that in some services of this kind the dead Member's past life was not such as to merit all of the spoken eulogies, but those who knew SAMUEL M. BRINSON know that his life was so clean, his character so beautiful, as to justify anything we can say here to-day.
I did not meet “SAM” BRINSON until I came to Washington in April, 1921. At that time he was a great sufferer from the disease that finally resulted in his death, but in spite of his suffering, which he bore with patience and resignation, he was companionable, anxious to advise and counsel with his friends, and remained, so far as his strength would permit, at his post of duty, serving with ability the people of his district, whom he loved so well.
Mr. Speaker, those of us who attended his funeral in the city of New Bern were everlastingly impressed with the fact that the entire city joined in sincerely mourning their friend. I have never seen such genuine sorrow over the death of any man as was depicted on the faces of the thousands
who attended his funeral. No man can win and hold the love, honor, and respect of the entire community in which he lived like “SAM” BRINSON did, who had not lived a life of service and self-sacrifice. And this he did, for he was a generous, warmhearted, Christian gentleman, and we, his friends and colleagues, feel keenly his loss.
Mr. Speaker, our hearts go out in sympathy to his young daughter, who is left motherless and fatherless. May the Great Architect of the Universe comfort her and watch over her in the years to come.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from North Carolina [Mr. Hammer] is recognized.
Address by Representative Hammer
Of North Carolina
Mr. SPEAKER: SAMUEL M. BRINSON possessed in an unusual degree those principles and virtues essential to the most useful career. With a hatred for all kinds of shams, hypocrisy, fraud, and deceit and a love of truth and loyalty to convictions, with courage that never permitted him to swerve from his devotion to the highest ideals which were part and parcel of his very nature, he was a prince among men. His studious and industrious habits with a well-trained and educated mind equipped him well for a successful field of endeavor in the learned professions, statecraft, and politics.
There was none of the dramatic in his make-up. His was a modest and retiring disposition, with a firmness of character and with a fixed purpose to do the right thing in all his actions and dealings with his fellow man, with no effort at sparkling wit, humor, or repartee. He was good-natured, kind, and gentle, possessing the calm demeanor of the scholarly gentleman without the slightest air of pedantry or superiority which sometimes is associated with those superior minds who control the destiny of communities and States and dominate in various fields of human endeavor.
The political history of North Carolina might be written without a great deal about the activities of our lamented departed colleague, but the educational
history of the State would lack much in completeness without a record of his achievements in the great battle for the education of all the people at public expense, first led by Aycock, McIver, Alderman, and others.
Mr. BRINSON was one of those who aided greatly in placing his State in the forefront in its public institutions of learning and the elevation of its public schools to the place they occupy to-day, for last year there were expended for public education nearly $30,000,000, and approximately the same amount for the building and improvements of a State system of hard-surfaced roads, in addition to the very large expenditures by counties in this southern Commonwealth of which he was one of the builders in its educational rejuvenation and reconstruction.
While I knew nothing of Mr. BRINSON until he left college and was an active force in the educational affairs of the State, living as I do some 200 miles from his home, nor do I know whether his early life was one in which he had to contend with a thorny, rough, and rocky pathway, as did most men in my State born, as he was, near the close of the Civil War and for several years thereafter, for in North Carolina, as in other Southern States, there were in those days bitter years of stress and turmoil, hardships, and difficulties well-nigh insurmountable across the pathway of those who fought to get an education and climb the road which leads to usefulness and at times to fame and fortune.
Mr. Speaker, it matters not what his opportunities were in the formative period of early life, we
pause not to inquire, for the fact is that his life demonstrates that he was one of the finest types of southern civilization.
He had those virtues which distinguish the truly great.
After the first session of the Sixty-seventh Congress convened it was my good fortune to know Mr. BRINSON intimately, for his apartment was next to mine and I saw him and conversed with him daily. In addition to a well-trained, clear, analytical mind, stored with almost inexhaustible information on various subjects and a grasp of public questions which he discussed most intelligently, he was a most interesting and valuable friend and associate.
In conclusion permit me to state that the outstanding characteristic of this good man, in my opinion, was that he could be depended upon. He was truthful and honest in all things. He could be measured by the same yardstick in his private as well as in his public life. He regarded not only a money promise as sacred but a political promise as well.
Stronger and stronger each day SAMUEL M. BRINSON grew in the confidence of his friends and the public. His death was a distinctive loss to the State and to the country which he loved so devotedly.
Address by Representative BankheadOf Alabama
Mr. SPEAKER: We have set apart this hour to pay fitting tribute to the life, character, and services of SAMUEL M. BRINSON, late a Representative from North Carolina. I did not have the privilege of becoming as closely acquainted with our late colleague as did some of his associates in service, and therefore can not extol as well as they the many intimate excellencies of his nature and sweetness of his life outside of this Chamber. My contact with him and my observation of his qualities were confined to his activities on this floor, and of that, in just candor, I am restrained to speak.
Mr. BRINSON was the Representative of a fine constituency. I say this because soon after his death I had occasion to visit among them. Not possessing unusual attributes either of virtue or distinction, but all of the sturdy, dependable, and amiable qualities of a fine cross section of the American people—and that is as high an eulogy as can be pronounced. Among these people SAMUEL M. BRINSON had his origin, and in the midst of them he was nurtured. By their high standards of probity and duty his character was molded and his ambition fired, and by them he was honored with a high station in public life, and at its end was mingled back again with his ancestral soil amidst the lamentations of his bereaved constituency.
He practiced the great profession of the law for a few years, but the greater portion of his life was devoted to the still greater duties of public instruction. The man who during a long reach of years, with fidelity and consecration assumes as the champion of the youth of his community to battle against ignorance, and sloth, and error, and superstition, and impiety—to set burning in the hearts of the young the flames of higher aspirations and more exalted virtues—has performed a public service which happily does not die when he expires, but extends on and ever on in the widening cycles of the lives and characters of those who endure after he has departed.
His service in Congress was brief. His advent to his duties here was shadowed with a great sorrow, for only a few weeks before assuming his place here as the culmination of his life's ambition, his devoted wife “was beckoned by the pallid messenger with the inverted torch to depart.” In the pall of so great a grief SAM BRINSON, although about to sit in the councils of state, no doubt exclaimed, “Vanitas, vanitatum, omnia vanitas.”
Mr. BRINSON was an earnest man, but not austere. Frivolity had no part in his nature, but he was nevertheless amiable and generous in his emotions.
He was meticulous in reaching conclusions upon public questions because his desire was to be a wise and conservative legislator. He sought always to reflect the good of his people in his public expression. Not given to much declamation, he was rather a listener, as most wise men are, hoping to garner some truth and some philosophy out of
the millions of platitudes uttered in this Chamber. But his vote always registered his judgment, for he was no panderer amongst men. Our late colleague acquired, as he deserved, the universal respect and admiration of his associates in service, and his untimely death was to all of us a source of very sincere regret.
I know nothing of the spiritual side of his nature, but remembering as I do the resolute goodness of his countenance, the calm light that lay in his eye, I can well believe that as the twilight shadows of the last hour fell upon him, even as an honest plowman of the field, when his day's work is done, can reflect that he has paid to toil its full toll, so did this man of whom we speak look back upon his career among men and find it in his heart to say: “I have done my work; I have plowed a straight furrow.”
Address by Representative Siegel
Of New York
Mr. SPEAKER: The average reader of the daily newspaper gets the impression that service in Congress is simply one of ease and personal comfort. The contrary is the fact. In most cases the services rendered are of the most strenuous kind, taxing the physical strength of the Members to its greatest limit. Few realize the number of matters to which each individual Member must give his personal attention and careful consideration. Constituents expect favorable results. Members endeavor in every possible way to make anticipations become realizations. Nearly every Member of the House finds that when his term has expired that he is richer in experience but poorer in the pocket. He has made many sacrifices for the honor of being a Member of Congress and he appreciates having had the great privilege of having served in the greatest legislative body on the face of the earth. No wonder, then, that since the Great War, with its heavy strain on the mental and physical strength of the membership of Congress, the toll which it has had to pay has been exceptionally large. The colleagues of a departed Member know these facts better than the outside world. They know very well that the hardest work in Congress is performed in committee rooms. Mr. BRINSON was a member of the Committee on the Census, of which I have the honor to be chairman.
In considering the number of Representatives to make up the future House the question of relationship of the white and the negro in the State of North Carolina frequently came up for discussion. Mr. BRINSON took keen delight in telling his colleagues how his State was making a Herculean effort to educate the negro and at the same time giving him the opportunity of exercising his suffrage. He was always courteous in his treatment of his fellow Members on the committee and at all times was ready and willing to carefully listen to what others had to say. He had served his State and country well. He had taught in the public schools.
In that way he had done his full share toward helping the little acorns learn how to become the future oaks of the Republic. He had endeavored in every way to instill in the minds of the youngsters under his charge that not only must patriotic service be rendered in times of war, but an equal service must be rendered during the times of peace. He recognized, as all of us know, that the future of the Republic depended upon the rising generation being taught that with all the benefits and opportunities of American citizenship there came the duty and obligation to serve it at all times to the best of one's ability. Had he been spared, he undoubtedly in time would have become one of the most influential Members of the House. The custom has been established in Congress of setting aside a day on which Members pay their last tributes to those of their Members who have passed to the far beyond while in the service.
Men of faith do not fear death. They are firm in their belief in immortality. They know that when the infant is born he comes into this world usually with a cry. He is passing from darkness into light. We all know that tender hands are ready to receive him and give him every care. With this knowledge in mind men go to meet their Maker, realizing that they will receive at His hands the same tender care and consideration which the infant receives when he first arrives at the hands of those who are near and dear to him. So, while we pay this tribute to our dear departed friend and Member, we do so more for the sake of the living rather than for the honored dead, for his record of loyal and devoted patriotic public service to his State and Nation needs no tribute at the hands of man. Well may we repeat the words of the Psalmist—
Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him:I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.He shall call upon me, and I will answer him;I will be with him in trouble;I will deliver him, and honor him.With long life will I satisfy him,And show him my salvation.The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from North Carolina [Mr. Weaver] is recognized.
Address by Representative WeaverOf North Carolina
Mr. SPEAKER: We have come to-day to speak of the life, character, and service of a most distinguished son of North Carolina. At the time of his death he was one of our beloved colleagues in this House. It is not my purpose to attempt any fulsome flattery of him, but only to express in a few words, and as best I can, something of his great service to his State as well as my own personal regard and esteem for the man.
SAMUEL M. BRINSON was a native son of North Carolina. He was born at New Bern, in that State, and continuously resided there until his death. In church affiliations he was a Baptist. He graduated from Wake Forest College with distinction in 1891. He then taught school in the city of New Bern. In 1895 he studied law at the University of North Carolina and in 1896 was admitted to the bar of that State. He practiced his profession with ability and much success. His intellectual grasp early and easily ranked him among the best lawyers of his section.
In 1902, having become interested in public education, he became superintendent of public instruction of Craven County, in which the city of New Bern is situated. This office he filled with singular fidelity and acknowledged ability for a period of 17 years. During those years of his young manhood, with great energy and enthusiastic
love of his work, he applied himself to the duties of this office. It brought him in close contact with the schools. It engendered a great interest in the young men and women of his county and his State, and he became endeared to the people of every class and of all conditions of life.
Recognizing the splendid talents and character of this man, realizing his force of character and intellect, the people of the congressional district in which he resided in 1918 elected him to the House of Representatives for the Sixty-sixth Congress. In him they had a Representative who was attentive to their wants, industrious in his habits, and who had a grasp of all great public questions.
He was reelected in November, 1920, to the Sixty-seventh Congress, and it was during the period of this Congress that, after a long and tedious illness, death came to him. It brought sorrow to his colleagues and to all who knew him here and at home. It has always seemed to me especially sad that death should have come to him just as he was beginning what undoubtedly would have been a splendid career in Congress. But we realize that for all of us somewhere along the path of life the shadow sits and waits.
This brief statement of his life does not express the intellectual and moral power of Mr. BRINSON. It does, however, most clearly point to the fact that he was at all times, from early manhood, a power, a factor, and a vital force in the life and progress of his community and State. He brought to his duties as a Representative in Congress a ripe experience and a high order of intellect, and, what is
more than this, a character and texture of soul so splendid and so fine that he immediately impressed himself upon all of those who came in personal contact with him. He early demonstrated his ability to become a most useful and highly esteemed Member of this House.
His appointment as a member of the great Committee on Education was a most fitting one. Mr. BRINSON was an enthusiast in this great cause. He had given of the best years of his life to promoting education in his county and his State. His heart was there. He had served his home people for years in extending the operation of their schools. He had fought and worked for education throughout North Carolina and he had lived to see his beloved State, with unparalleled progress, moved forward in this great cause. He had seen the light of knowledge come to quicken the lives and strengthen the character of the children and young men and young women of his section and State. Much of this progress was due to his ability and his untiring energy. He had followed the course of education and had seen its advantages exemplified from the district country schools to the high schools and the great universities and colleges, and had seen that from thorough education power would come into the life of his State.
He had been promoted, at the time of his death, to services in a wider field and to a theater of broader action. He was eager to take his part in promoting education from a national standpoint and to the fullest extent that the National Government might justly and properly cooperate with
the States in this great enterprise. He was much interested in pending legislation that would dignify the cause of education and that would guarantee more fully, as he thought, to every child of the Nation the right to become an educated and helpful man or woman. I know that this matter was engaging the attention of this splendid man when for some strange and unfathomable reason he was called to the great beyond. To lose him was to lose much in this great work.
He is gone from the field,He is lost to the forest,Like a summer dried fount,When our need was the sorest.During his brief service in Congress he had, however, given much attention to other important matters. As a member of the Committee on the Census he labored long and hard over the details of a reapportionment bill. He was always active and earnest and filled with a desire for true accomplishment.
Mr. BRINSON was of a very solid texture. He wished to do things that were worth while, and he did them. He lived in an exceptionally clear moral atmosphere. Life to him was more than a mere playing to the galleries. His desire was “To be, rather than to seem.” In whatever capacity he touched the lives of his fellow men he was always helpful and wholesome. No sense of egotism directed his heart and brain. His convictions, when formed, were strong and enduring, and yet he was by no means intolerant of the opinion of those with whom he might find himself in opposition.
He was ready to contend for what he thought was right, without condemnation, however, of others with whom he disagreed.
He was married in 1901 to Miss Ruth M. Scales, of Salisbury, N. C. They lived most happily together and were blessed with one splendid daughter. It was to me one of the saddest of incidents that, after the people of his section had chosen him to represent them in Congress—in November, 1918—that a few months later his wife should have been taken from him by death. She had shared with him their many trials and had helped him to grow into a splendid manhood. Eager for his future advancement, it was particularly sad that she was not to enjoy his further honors with him. To him the death of his wife was a crushing blow.
It was my sad privilege to attend his funeral at New Bern in April, 1922. I noted that he had erected a beautiful monument above the last resting place of her who had been his earliest mate. He now sleeps beside her. I have been told by one who knew him that in the days immediately preceding his death he was often seen rereading the letters she had sent him. He knew that she was waiting for his coming, and I doubt not that a feeling of nearness to her was resting upon him and that he had, indeed, said within himself:
I can not feel that thou art far,Since near at hand the angels are;And when the sunset gates unbar,Shall I not see thee waiting stand,And, white against the evening star,The welcome of thy beckoning hand?He made a noble fight against the disease that was to terminate his useful life. At times he thought he had won, and in his conversation with his colleagues he was most hopeful; but at last he began to feel that it was a losing fight, but he believed in the resurrection and the life beyond, and as he drew nearer to the great and final event he saw the welcome of the beckoning hand of his beloved wife. All that is mortal of him sleeps by her side in the beautiful cemetery at New Bern, but I doubt not the immortal reunion that has taken place upon the silent and everlasting shores of the great beyond.
Mr. Doughton took the chair as Speaker pro tempore.
Address by Representative StedmanOf North Carolina
Mr. SPEAKER: The life of every man exerts an influence either for good or evil upon those with whom he associates. This truth has often been impressed upon me during the long life vouchsafed me by the kindness of Providence. Notably so, and markedly distinct, was this evident in connection with the life of our late friend, SAMUEL MITCHELL BRINSON.
The first time I met Mr. BRINSON I realized that he was a man of rare and unusual attributes. He possessed two of the great qualities essential to high achievement in life—courage, both moral and physical, and a love for truth.
A lofty and generous patriotism, forgetfulness of self, absolute sincerity in word, in thought, and in deed, these, with an intense love for humanity, constituted the basis of his character. He ever stood for one principle—unchanging and imperishable—a supreme sense of duty.
Ability to endure suffering is a marked virtue of courage, and this quality was manifested to an eminent degree by our late colleague.
Suffering is necessary to make up a great character to its fullness. No man or woman, unless by the special providence of God, can live in the unbroken sunshine of plenty and prosperity without developing to a greater or less degree selfishness in some of its many hideous forms and being
debarred from reaching the high state of excellence to which their nature might aspire. Suffering is needed to purify nations as well as individuals. It is from sacrificial flames that have arisen the noblest and grandest spirits which have shed a halo around humanity.
One trait of Mr. BRINSON'S character which was predominant and contributed largely to his usefulness was his faith in the providence of God; no misfortune or disaster could shake his fortitude; it mattered not what had happened or how severe the trials to which he was subjected.
Courage and gentleness are closely allied. One rarely meets a man of high order of courage who is not also distinguished by his kindness and gentleness. His tender watchfulness and care for his daughter was beautiful, and attracted the attention of all who love and admire this moral trait of character.
Mr. BRINSON'S political views were very decided. He made no compromise with those who would traffic in the honor of his State, or the best interests of its citizens, but he was ever their uncompromising foe.
He was passionately devoted to the good name of North Carolina, its fame and renown. He was worthy of any position to which his fellow citizens might have elevated him, but he was never envious of the political promotion of others. He was always satisfied if truth and justice prevailed, regardless of to whom the honors were given. It would have been difficult to have found a more
unselfish and patriotic man living within the confines of his native State.
He was a very citadel of strength; all turned for help to him when the cause of morality was in danger. He never hesitated to espouse cordially what he believed to be the cause of right. If he erred, as all of us must do at times, it was on the side of humanity and morality. One always felt stronger and better for his companionship and advice.
The memory of Mr. BRINSON will live through many generations, and many a father and mother will bless his name for the example he has left to their children to point them the way to usefulness to their fellow citizens and honor to their State.
He died in the triumph and faith of the Christian religion and left a name without blemish and without reproach—a heritage of honor to his daughter, to his State, and to our common country.
Mr. Stedman resumed the chair as Speaker pro tempore.
Address by Representative Lowrey
Of Mississippi
Mr. SPEAKER: It is not my purpose to speak much of the political life of my lamented colleague. I shall speak more of his personal character and of service rendered outside his political career. In committee meetings, in this House, and wherever I met him, I was impressed that S. M. BRINSON was a man of information and ability, a man of clearness of thought and definiteness of action. Yet information and ability can not alone make a useful and effective life. A man may have large intellectuality, broad culture, and extensive influence, and yet his life may be worse than a failure. If a man's talents be not used to the real service of his fellow men and to the honor of the River of Life, then his life is not a success. England's poet laureate said:
Howe'er it be, it seems to me,’Tis only noble to be good;Kind hearts are more than coronets,And simple faith than Norman blood.The greatest tribute than can be paid to the memory of S. M. BRINSON is not that he was a man of intellectuality—though he was intellectual—nor that he was a man of influence, though the attainment of influence is abundantly worth while. But my tribute to SAMUEL BRINSON is higher still. He was a man of high Christian character, who dedicated
his powers to the betterment of his fellow men and to the advancement of the Kingdom of God. To a former Chaplain of this House the rugged old Carlyle of England said late in life:
Tell my friend in America that after a long and stormy life, I still believe “The chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.”
In other words, the rugged old Carlyle, though called a cynic and by some called a skeptic, still held to the simple faith which in his childhood he had learned from his catechism. So with SAMUEL BRINSON.
It was my privilege to be one of the congressional party who went to his home town to attend his funeral. There I saw the devotion of the people among whom he had lived and loved and labored, and who clearly realized that they had lost a genuine friend and a strong champion of their rights and their best interests.
Before entering the arena of politics he had given his life largely to work in the fields of education and religion.
As superintendent of education he had done a tireless and effective work. Not only the schools of his own city and county, but those of the surrounding counties are better and more efficient because of his energy, ingenuity, and devotion. And boys and girls yet unborn will have happier school days and better opportunities and will live bigger and broader lives because of the official service of SAMUEL M. BRINSON.
As an active and earnest Christian layman he gave much of his time and energy to the work of his church and the religious activities of his community and to efforts to lead the young people especially into the discipleship of Jesus Christ. And I feel sure that in the brighter and better life to which he has gone he will yet receive the gratitude of those who by his influence were brought to the joys of Christian faith.
What higher achievement can any man attain than that of leading large numbers of his fellows into the light of education and into the still brighter light of Christian faith?
Mr. ABERNETHY. Mr. Speaker, in view of the fact that a number of my colleagues have expressed a desire to extend their remarks in the Record, I ask unanimous consent that those who may desire to do so may have the privilege of extending their remarks in the Record concerning the life, character, and services of Mr. BRINSON.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from North Carolina asks unanimous consent that those Members who desire to do so may extend their remarks in the Record on the life and character and services of Mr. BRINSON. Is there objection?
There was no objection.
Address by Representative TownerOf Iowa
Mr. SPEAKER: The service of SAMUEL MITCHELL BRINSON in the House of Representatives of the United States was all too brief. It continued from March 4, 1919, to April 13, 1922, a period of only a little over three years. During that short period I had the opportunity and privilege of knowing personally Mr. BRINSON well, for we served together on two committees of the House. It is on these committees in the close contact and almost intimate relations of our work there that the character and qualifications of our associates become best known. It soon became apparent from such acquaintance with Mr. BRINSON that his nature was a rare combination of clear mind, pure heart, and high ideals. Any appeal based on justice, fair dealing, and, what Theodore Roosevelt used to call “civic righteousness,” met with a ready response from him and enlisted his earnest support.
The life of Mr. BRINSON may be divided into three periods: That portion covered by his practice of law; that by his public service in education; and that by his service as a legislator in the Congress of the United States. To my mind, there could have been no more valuable preparation for his work as a legislator than his experience as a lawyer and as an educator.
I know that much prejudice exists against lawyers in public service. I know that there is a
feeling at least somewhat prevalent that there are too many lawyers in Congress. But lawyers have been both numerous and prominent in Congress throughout our history. For more than a century the people of the United States had continued to act on the belief that those were qualified to make laws who knew the law, and I indulge the belief that the reasoned, matured judgment of the people is of more value than the criticisms of the envious. I think it well to recall that from the formation of the Constitution down to the present day almost every step of progress, almost every guaranty of freedom, almost every beneficent law adopted has been formulated, advocated, and supported to final passage by the lawyer-statesmen who have served in the Congress of the United States.
And so I am satisfied that our colleague was strengthened and aided in his service here by reason of his study and practice of the law.
For more than 15 years Mr. BRINSON served as superintendent of public instruction for Craven County in North Carolina. This service was so distinguished that in large measure it resulted in his being called to the larger field of service here in Congress. This educational work also prepared and aided him in his work here. Education not only forms character in the individual but it also forms the character of the State or Nation. A State is but an association of individuals for their protection and betterment. It can not rise higher than the character and intelligence of the individuals who compose it. For this reason free governments especially must depend for their security
and progress on the character and intelligence of their people. It must be evident that one who devotes thought and energy to enlarging the knowledge and elevating the character of the people can not but be himself increased in knowledge and strengthened in character for a larger field of public service.
And so our associate came to us well equipped for a career of great usefulness in the service of his country. His loss we deeply deplore. It is not only a breaking of the ties of fellowship, but it comes to us as a sad reflection that we have lost a distinct and potent force for good from the public service. Such losses are as much more serious than material losses as human worth is greater than sordid wealth. Men make and must preserve the State. More and more it is realized that most political ills can be cured by the simple method of electing good men to office. Perhaps we depend too much on forms of government. Too often, it is certain, we are indifferent as to the qualifications and character of those who serve and represent it. A form of democracy will not suffice unless we make it in fact representative of the common good. It follows that in a democracy there is no one thing so valuable, so indispensable, as good men in its service. There is no nobler ambition than worthily to serve the State. But no service can be worthy or of value to the people unless it be devoid of self-seeking and selfish purpose.
SAMUEL MITCHELL BRINSON was a good man, unselfish, devoted, a man of character, ability, and of
high and noble purpose. His untimely death is a source of deep regret to his associates and a great loss to the people and the Nation he so faithfully served. It is a privilege for me, who only knew him for a few brief years but who respected and admired him greatly, to add this tribute to his memory.
Address by Representative DrewryOf Virginia
Mr. SPEAKER: My service in the House of Representatives of the United States with Mr. BRINSON was very short, but it was long enough for me in my association with him to recognize in him the fine qualities of head and heart which he possessed and to appreciate the faithful service he rendered as a Representative of his State, and further to know that his death was a loss to the country which he loved so well and served so patriotically.
He came to the House of Representatives a little more than a year before I was sworn in, and we served together only about two years, and not all of that time was Congress in session. In that time, however, I saw a great deal of him, as our offices were not far apart, and we were together frequently.
Coming in personal and social contact with him I became very much impressed with the soundness and solidity of thought of the man. I gathered from his conversation that he had not only been trained as a lawyer, but that he had served his State in the educational field. I recall that he stated to me that he had been a superintendent of education in his Commonwealth. He was imbued with a desire to be of service to his fellow men, and with that desire in mind he faithfully and conscientiously gave his service without stint. I
do not know when I have ever met a man who impressed me as being more earnest and conscientious in his public labors than Mr. BRINSON.
He was unusually well equipped for service as a legislator. While not possessing the showy qualities of the ephemeral publicity seeker, who strives to gain publicity through some sensational speech or work, he took great pains with all that he did and posted himself thoroughly on every question that came before him. Others have spoken of his work on the committees on which he served and have told how zealously and faithfully he labored. I did not have the pleasure of serving with him on any committees, but did observe the faithfulness with which he watched carefully all matters of public interest that arose as the subject of legislation in Congress. He was a man of splendid judgment, and I came to rely very much on his opinions regarding matters that were in debate.
Mr. BRINSON realized how hampering inexperience with the parliamentary procedure was to a newly elected Member of the House, and with his kindness and unfailing courtesy it was always his pleasure to advise with me on matters upon which I consulted him. He pointed out to me the difficulties that a newly elected Representative would have, and he gave advice always cheerfully and most courteously. It is a great advantage to an inexperienced man in Congress to have the advice of such a man as Mr. BRINSON.
During a great part of the time he was evidently suffering a great deal, but I never heard him complain. He bore his illness with great fortitude and
continued his labors when many a man of less determination would not have attempted to carry on his work.
There is a great place in the affairs of our country for such men, who do their work cheerfully and uncomplainingly and with fidelity and zeal in the public service. The rewards for public service come late to such men, but they always come in the course of time as their fidelity and honesty and earnestness impress more and more the men with whom they serve and the people for whom they work.
It is a sad duty to have to voice the regret at the death of a colleague and friend, but I felt, Mr. Speaker, that I desired to lay my humble tribute before you in behalf of this very devoted public servant.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. As a further mark of respect to the memory of the deceased Representative, the House will stand adjourned until 12 o'clock noon to-morrow.
Accordingly (at 3 o'clock and 35 minutes p. m.) the House adjourned until to-morrow, Monday, February 12, 1923, at 12 o'clock noon.
Proceedings in the United States Senate
Proceedings in the Senate
THURSDAY, April 13, 1922.
A message from the House of Representatives, by Mr. Overhue, its enrolling clerk, communicated to the Senate the intelligence of the death of Hon. SAMUEL M. BRINSON, late a Representative from the State of North Carolina, and transmitted the resolutions of the House thereon.
The VICE PRESIDENT. The Chair lays before the Senate resolutions of the House of Representatives, which will be read.
The Assistant Secretary read the resolutions of the House, as follows:
Resolved, That the House has heard with profound sorrow of the death of Hon. SAMUEL M. BRINSON, a Representative from the State of North Carolina.
Resolved, That a committee of 15 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 connected 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.
Resolved, That as a further mark of respect this House do now adjourn.
Mr. SIMMONS, Mr. President, I submit the resolutions which I send to the desk and ask for their adoption.
The resolutions (S. Res. 275) were read, considered by unanimous consent, and unanimously agreed to, as follows:
Resolved, That the Senate has heard with profound sorrow the announcement of the death of Hon. SAMUEL M. BRINSON, late a Representative from the State of North Carolina.
Resolved, That a committee of six Senators be appointed by the Vice President to join the committee appointed by the House of Representatives to attend the funeral.
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 as the committee on the part of the Senate, under the second resolution, Mr. Simmons, Mr. Overman, Mr. Ashurst, Mr. Caraway, Mr. Ladd, and Mr. Harreld.
Mr. SIMMONS, Mr. President, I move as a further mark of respect to the memory of the deceased Representative that the Senate do now adjourn.
The motion was unanimously agreed to; and (at 4 o'clock and 57 minutes p. m.) the Senate adjourned until to-morrow, Friday, April 14, 1922, at 12 o'clock meridian.
