June 30, 1973
Page 22588
MARGARET CHASE SMITH
Mr. MUSKIE. Mr. President, today is the last day of Margaret Chase Smith's official association with the U.S. Senate after a distinguished 24-year term of service. She has taken this opportunity to contact her friends and associates, and I ask unanimous consent that her letter be printed in the RECORD. Senator Smith encloses a letter about her recent activities written by her long-time aide, Maj. Gee. William C. Lewis, Jr., which I think will be of great interest to my colleagues. I ask unanimous consent that General Lewis' letter also be printed in the RECORD.
There being no objection, the letters were ordered to be printed en the RECORD, as follows:
SKOWHEGAN, MAINE,
June 30, 1973.
DEAR FRIEND: Today marks my last day of any official association with the United States Senate after 24 years. While my status as a Senator terminated on January 3, 1973, there were certain privileges that extended for six months after that until June 30,1973 for the purpose of permitting me assistance in closing up my Senate affairs, including the extension of mailing privileges.
So in my final act and exercise of those cleaning up and closing out activities, I am writing you to thank you for the very thoughtful expression that you made about my service in the Senate. I shall always remember your kind words and thoughts. Your kindness has done much to sustain my spirit and courage.
In the thought that you might be interested in what I have been doing since my Senate days came to an end and in what I plan for the future, I am sending the enclosed copy of a letter written by Mayor General William C. Lewis, Jr., my long time aide. I hope you find it of interest.
Gratefully yours,
MARGARET CHASE SMITH.
SILVER SPRING, MD.
June 28,1973.
Mr. WILLIAM J. CALDWELL,
Piper's Bend
Damariscotta, Maine.
DEAR BILL: I promised you that I would write later about what Senator Smith was doing after her more than 32 years in Congress. I write now as the first six months of transition have transpired. As you will recall following her defeat she was faced with three phases of decision and action. The first was an orderly evacuation from her Senate suite and handling of her records and papers. This was completed prior to the eviction date of January 3, 1973 only by exclusive attention to the task and refraining from other time consuming activities such as news media interviews but at the price of severely condemnatory and erroneous news articles.
The second was the disposition of her papers, which had been requested by universities and colleges throughout the country. A group of prominent Americans proposed that she turn over her home in Skowhegan to let them convert it into a Margaret Chase Smith Library. She agreed to this on the condition that the project be very modest and unpretentious. Jim Webb (former NASA head, Budget Director and Under Secretary of State) was elected President of the nonprofit Margaret Chase Smith Library and I was elected Treasurer in strictly non-paid positions. Contributions (which are tax deductible) are most welcome.
The third decision phase is that which has just terminated – what would Senator Smith do? After six months, it is fairly clear that she will not retire to the rocking chair to which some critics would sentence her but instead become an academician. This started developing in March when she spent three days of residency at the University of Alabama Law School, followed by lectures, speeches and rap sessions at universities and colleges in Michigan, Indiana, Massachusetts and Virginia. And it was recently culminated by her affirmative response to the request of the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation to be a Visiting Professor in residency at universities and colleges throughout the country at periods varying from a few days to several weeks at each institution.
Senator Smith ruled out a government appointment very early. She was flattered by such proposals that she be Secretary of Defense or Chief of the SALT team but viewed them as unrealistic because of the inconsistency of the President appointing someone who had been rejected by the voters. In that connection, while she appreciates the press credit given her for the Kittery Naval Shipyard not being closed, she again says this is unwarranted and unrealistic. For if as the Democrats in Massachusetts and Rhode Island claim that in political reprisal the Boston Naval Shipyard was ordered closed because Massachusetts was the only state President Nixon lost and the naval facilities in Rhode Island were ordered closed because Republican Navy Secretary Chafee was defeated in his Senate bid, then by the same political reasoning it is far more plausible that President Nixon kept Kittery open as a political reward to the Maine voters for overwhelmingly supporting him while rejecting her.
She has taken on other activities such as member of the Board of Governors of a national insurance company, advisory councilor to the American Home Economics Association, and a fourth term as Chairman of the Board of Freedom House.
Perhaps you saw her on the Ladies Home Journal "Women of the Year" Award telecast. With mistress of ceremonies, actress Rosalind Russell, she opened that program when she presented the Public Affairs Award to Representative Shirley Chisholm. In asking Senator Smith to do this, Lenore Hershey, Managing Editor of the Ladies Home Journal, told her that a two-day deadlock of the Awards Jury between Representative Chisholm and Senator Smith had been broken only when some Republican members of the jury absented themselves from the voting.
Her vibrant smile, youthful appearance and jaunty walk to the microphone in that presentation triggered two interesting developments. One was a flurry of letters wondering if this could be the same bitter recluse Margaret Chase Smith in a wheel chair as previously characterized by A.P. reporter Mike Shanahan and asking for information and advice on her successful hip surgery. The other was a flurry of feelers on TV participation.
After receiving her third honorary doctorate this year (bringing the total to 74 doctorates and one masters), she and I drove to Skowhegan where she has spent the last month at her home working on her papers and records for the Library. During this time she sandwiched in four commencement addresses in Maine. I spent two intensive weeks opening 175 crates of records that had been mailed from her Senate office in November and December, before returning to Washington to be the Senior Moderator at the National War College Defense Strategy Seminar. We made very gratifying progress on getting the records and papers categorized, positioned and catalogued.
This brings us up to date. Now for the rest of the foreseeable year. The middle of next month Senator Smith will take a pleasure trip to an area to which she has longed to return – Scandinavia, specifically Denmark and Norway. In August she tentatively plans to visit my place in the mountains of Red River, New Mexico. After that she will return to Skowhegan preparatory to "hostessing" the next Library Board meeting on September 8 and 9 there.
Following that, she will embark on her activity as Visiting Professor of the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation taking her to universities and colleges throughout the country for the rest of the Fall and into the Spring of 1974.
Thus, the Senate's one lone woman member for so many years, after opposition by the political arm of the Maine Teachers Association and rejection by the Maine voters because of her age, ironically has been called to a new career of teaching and close association with young people.
But if there is irony in teacher opposition and voter rejection for being too old and yet subsequently being drafted by the academic world for a career of association with young people, there is some consistency in becoming a teacher.
For Margaret Chase Smith's first job after graduating from the Skowhegan High School was teacher in a one-room rural grade school. Now she is returning to her first role as teacher but this time as a Visiting Professor at the college level nationally through she never attended college – and most gratifyingly, being warmly and enthusiastically welcomed by the students.
The November election result was keenly disappointing – but if it led to this, it was a blessing in disguise.
Sincerely,
WILLIAM C. LEWIS, Jr.