The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 90, July 1986 - April, 1987 Page: 377
492 p. : ill. (some col.), maps, ports. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
Sam Rayburn
In early October of 1934, Rayburn was away from Washington, but
his friend Cecil B. Dickson, a news reporter, was keeping an eye on
things in Washington for him. Dickson noted that Jones was interested
in the speakership, but he doubted Jones could get sufficient support.
He was particularly concerned over a conversation he had had with
Byrns, who had told him that "he had more pledges than Rainey had
before the deal was made in 1932." Dickson described Byrns as being
"very jittery on one hand and apparently very confident on the other."
He and one of his supporters were writing letters asking for support
and were talking with all the congressmen who were in Washington
during the Congressional recess.' Dickson reported that the big prob-
lem for Byrns would be administration backing of Rayburn:
Byrns is scared of the White House angle as far as it affects you. A lot of the
people around here say that it is in the bag for Byrns. . . . I understand he put
Farley on the spot about the White House attitude and that Farley assured him
that the White House was not going to interfere. I asked Farley the other day
about the speakership and he said that he was not going to get into that because
he was having enough trouble on his own.'0
Dickson wanted Garner to return to Washington and get behind
Rayburn. He reported that Congressman Tuck Milligan had been talk-
ing to administration officials and urging Rayburn for the speakership.
Dickson thought it likely that Byrns was "running scared" and was
working hard to sew up enough votes for victory. That was evident
from Byrns's claim that he already had more votes for the speakership
than Rainey did before Rainey and Byrns joined forces in 1933. "The
White House angle" was the extent to which Byrns might be hurt by
White House support for Rayburn. Byrns claimed, however, that Post-
master General James A. Farley, one of the administration's top political
operatives, was not going to get involved. By reading between the lines,
one can see Dickson's politely telling Rayburn that unless Garner and
the White House started supporting him for Speaker very quickly, he
would be defeated by Byrns."
Walter Chamblin, Jr., a friend of Rayburn's who did public relations
work for the C & O Railroad, was also in Washington working on
Rayburn's behalf. Chamblin felt that the Virginia delegation would be
uncommitted on the speakership race until Harry F. Byrd made a deci-
ida; and JohnJ. O'Connor of New York. John McDuffie did not run for Speaker; instead he
endorsed William Bankhead for the position. Heacock, "William Brockman Bankhead," 198.
9Cecil B. Dickson to Rayburn, Oct. 6, 1934 (SRL).
1oIbid.
" Ibid.377
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Periodical.
Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 90, July 1986 - April, 1987, periodical, 1986/1987; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth117152/m1/443/: accessed May 2, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.