Louis A. Coolidge

2116 An Old-Fashioned Senator: Orville H. Platt Of Connecticut The Story of a Life Unselfishly Devoted to the Public Service, by Louis A. Coolidge (read 3 Jan 1988) This is a 1910 biography of Senator Platt, who was born in Washington, Conn., on July 19, 1827, and was a Senator from Connecticut from Mar 4, 1879, till he died Apr 21, 1905. The book is unfailingly complimentary but otherwise reads well enough. It is organized in an old-fashioned way, but it has its moments, nonetheless. He seems to have been a power in the Senate of his days, and meant well. It is amazing that he was elected Senator five times, but in some elections spent nothing on his campaign. How times have changed. No man before him was ever elected Senator from Connecticut five times, and I'm quite sure no person (in Connecticut) ever has been elected such five times since except Chris Dodd. (But of course Platt only had to convince the Legislature to vote for him.) This is an impressive book, well worth reading.… (mehr)