oar like the eagle but he has the wings
of the sparrow and whatever exertion he has made has ended in a
feeble and futile fluttering.

I doubt if any man in public life has had so many honors thrust
upon him. He has held three great offices of the Republic without
so much as raising a hand for any of them. Unlike most men he did
not travel the mucky road of politics to reach Washington nor
compromise with circumstance to gain distinction. Three Presidents
invited him to sit at their cabinet tables. Three times the
Republican machine in Pennsylvania invited him to sit in the
Senate. With graceful dignity he accepted all of these invitations
not, indeed, unconscious of the fact that the selection in each
case was a very happy one.

I do not mean by this that he is conceited. He is merely conscious
of the fact that intellectually he is somewhat superior to his
colleagues, most of whom, strangely enough, quite agree with him.
They consult him and accept his counsel with almost childlike
faith. To the mediocre politicians and provincial lawyers who
constitute the bulk of the Senate and House of Representatives, he
is a figure apart, who looks upon their antics with a kindly, but
never amused, tolerance.

"I know nothing of politics," he said to me a short time ago. "I
have never been interested in politics as such."

This remark is rather enigmatical to the average member, who would,
ordinarily, look upon the author as a dolt or pretender. They do
not dare to do either in the case of Mr. Knox; therefore, the
conclusion that he is indifferent. Never have the men associated
with Mr. Knox questioned his capacity.

Robert Lansing, when he was Secretary of State, said of him;
"Senator Lodge will not understand the treaty but he will fight for
it for political reasons. Senator Knox will understand it
thoroughly."

The observation seems almost prophetic in the light of what has
since been disclosed. Mr. Lansing's faith in Mr. Knox's judgment
seems to have been fully justified. I know of no one who has held
more steadfastly the respect of colleagues in the Senate or at the
Cabinet table, nor who has been more easily successful up to a
certain point or so singularly unsuccessful beyond it. He has done
valiant service for his country but he has failed lamentably to
reach the heights from which he could look upon broader horizons.

In the early days of his career no one strove more whole heartedly.
Destiny smiled upon him an