[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 147 (Tuesday, October 26, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Page S13119]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    IN HONOR OF SENATOR JOHN CHAFEE

  Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, the Senate today is a sadder, lesser place. 
Like many others, I am shocked and saddened by the sudden loss of 
Senator John Chafee. My thoughts, and my wife Erma's, go out to his 
family--to his wife, Virginia; his sons, Zechariah; Lincoln; John, Jr.; 
and Quentin; and his daughter, Georgia.
  I understand the funeral will take place this coming Saturday in 
Providence. Senator John Chafee is the eighth Senator from Rhode Island 
to die in office, the second in this century, since Senator LeBaron B. 
Colt on August 18, 1924.
  Since his first election to the Senate in 1976, Senator Chafee was 
the kind of Senator upon which the smooth running of the Congress has 
always depended. He was a man of great humor, gentleness, 
thoughtfulness, and compromise--none of which detracted from his clear 
views and opinions as to what the best course of action was for the 
nation. He could disagree with his colleagues and still find a way to 
move forward on issues that were important to him.
  This was a man devoted to the well-being of his country, in war and 
in peace. As others have stated, Senator Chafee served in World War II 
and in Korea. He also served as Secretary of the Navy. He served in the 
state legislature and as Governor of Rhode Island before his election 
to the Senate. He is a man who heard the clear call of duty and of love 
for his country and its people like a church bell ringing over the 
gentle hills of his beloved Rhode Island. His acts of faith came daily 
in his service to that calling bell.

     His golden locks time hath to silver turn'd;
     O time too swift, O swiftness never ceasing!
     His youth 'gainst time and age hath ever spurn'd
     But spurn'd in vain; youth waneth by increasing:
     Beauty, strength, youth, are flowers but fading seen;
     Duty, faith, love, are roots, and ever green.

  So wrote poet George Peele in the 16th century. But surely John 
Chafee's sense of duty and his faithful service to the nation will 
prove equally evergreen, living beyond his untimely demise in laws and 
legislation that bear his stamp of compromise and caring for even our 
smallest and most helpless citizens.

     We live in deeds, not years; in thoughts, not breaths;
     In feelings, not in figures on a dial.
     We should count time by heart-throbs. He most lives
     Who thinks most--feels the most--acts the best.

  Senator Chafee was consistent in his feelings, in his outlook, and in 
his actions. He always looked out for children in the health care 
debates that have consumed the Senate. His love of nature and his 
championing of environmental causes is well known, but tempered by his 
sense of fairness and practicality. He supported the Clean Air Act and 
the Rio treaties on global climate change and biodiversity, but he also 
supported requiring cost-benefit analyses of Environmental Protection 
Agency regulations and voted in support of the Byrd-Hagel Resolution 
requiring developing nation participation and a cost-benefit analysis 
of the Kyoto Protocol on global warming before the Senate would 
consider that treaty. Senator Chafee was a principled man. He was true 
to his bedrock beliefs, but he was not so idealistic that he would 
sacrifice success for unyielding principle. In doing so, he advanced 
his causes most effectively.
  For a man as battle-tested as his history suggests, Senator Chafee 
was known for his civility and his ability to seek a gentler, more 
civil path in the often strife-torn and partisan Senate. I have not 
served on any committees with Senator Chafee, but I was well aware of 
his ability to work with colleagues from both sides of the aisle to 
ensure the success of his legislative agenda. This talent ensured that 
he would be sorely missed upon his retirement from the Senate next 
year. Upon announcing his retirement plans last March, he made it clear 
that he was not ``going away mad or disillusioned or upset with the 
Senate. I think it's a great place,'' he said. I think it was a greater 
place for his presence. It is merely unlucky chance that he is gone 
before we could all savor our last months in his company.
  Now, we must instead hold close our best last memories of this kind 
and gentle man, crusty New Englander that he was. We must measure the 
legacy that he leaves in legislation and in the fine example that he 
set with his life. Only thus can we, in the poet William Wordsworth's 
words, aspire to ``Intimations of Immortality:''

     Though nothing can bring back the hour
     Of splendor in the grass, of glory in the flower;
     We will grieve not, rather find
     Strength in what remains behind;
     In the primal sympathy
     Which having been must ever be;
     In the soothing thoughts that spring
     Out of human suffering;
     In the faith that looks through death,
     In years that bring the philosophic mind.

  Senator John Chafee leaves behind a rich legacy that honors his name, 
his State, and the United States Senate.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Florida.
  Mr. GRAHAM. Mr. President, this sad and somber day, we recall our 
wonderful friend John Chafee and begin to appreciate how much he will 
be missed. We extend our love and respect to his family. I suspect John 
would like us to move forward with the business of the Senate. As 
Senator Byrd has just said, he was a crusty New Englander, and I 
believe John would be very happy with that description. One of the many 
admirable traits of crusty New Englanders is that they like to get down 
to business.

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