William H. Frist: “on another issue, an issue that was discussed by several of my colleagues, most notably Senator Stevens, our…”

“on another issue, an issue that was discussed by several of my colleagues, most notably Senator Stevens, our distinguished colleague from Alaska, the President pro tempore, I rise to honor now a very special day in the life of one of our most respected and venerable colleagues. On Sunday, the distinguished senior Senator, Robert Byrd, celebrates his 68th wedding anniversary with his beloved wife and high school sweetheart Erma Ora James. The courtship is well known to our colleagues. It is hard to do it full justice, but I will give it a try. The two met in Raleigh County over 7 decades ago, where Erma's father had been transferred from Virginia to work in the coal mines. Senator Byrd had a friend who brought pocketfuls of gum and candy to school, and each day the young Robert Byrd would wait at the schoolhouse door and ask his friend for a few pieces of candy. He put them in his pocket and at the first opportunity he would present the candies to Erma as a love offering. Senator Byrd has said he wasn't really sure if his Erma knew that she was his sweetheart, but she must have found out because the couple ultimately was married in 1937. The day after their wedding, Senator Byrd gave his new bride his wallet which contained several hundred dollars that, over the days and weeks and months, he had saved. He told her that she would be the head of their family finances forever. To this day, Senator Byrd doesn't carry a wallet.…”