The Commoner.
VOLUME 8 NUMBER H
6
The Commoner.
ISSUED WEEKLY.
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THE COMMONER, Lincoln, Neb.
It is presumed that Public Printer Leech
,vill stick.
Speaking of successful Hying machines, how
about tho beef trust?
Tho beof trust has revised its price, schedule
Just like tho friends of tho tariff would revise
the tariff if allowed to go aljead.
Recent remarks by William Allen White
Indicate that tlie Cannon presidential boom is
scarcely visiblo to the naked Emporia eye.
It will bo noted that none of those foreign
gentlemen of title over happen to fall in love
with beautiful American girls who are not
heiresses. .
Judge Newcomer of Chicago has ruled that
A now spring 'bonnet is not a household neces
sity. A great many mon will hope that Judge
Nowcomor will stay longer.
After studying it over for eight or ten
years General Stoessol will doubtless come to
tho conclusion that it is better to use discretion
and live than to die foolishly. .
Recent executive orders, when compared
With formor executive orders are calculated to
mako tho people wonder if after all there really
was any rioting at Brownsville.
If tho San Francisco authorities want some
expert advice on "rat extermination" thoy
should apply to tho boys in the composing rooms
of tho San Francisco daily papers.
The Now York elephant that was scared
into a fit by tho sight of a mouse wasn't a bit
worse frightened than the republican elephant
is at the mere thought of tariff revision.
With 100,000 idle men reported the Phila
delphia city council is preparing to appropriate
$50,000 to tide them over. Fifty cents per man
will not keep a dinner pail full very long.
Mr. Ogdon Armour is re;orted as taking
an optimistic view of the business outlook. Per
haps ho views it from the altitude of his beef
prices and can therefore see more than most
of us.
Washington Letter
.M - "
Tho town of Boozy, West Virginia, went
"dry," and the city of Coldwater, Michigan, went
wot. This is mentioned merely as an excuse
tor quoting that old saying about "there's noth
ing in a name," etc.
Washington, D. C, April 13. It is un
fortunate that the democratic national commit
tee does not begin the work of the campaign
until after tho national convention has been
held, and this year that convention has been
put at a Bingularly late date. But the demo
cratic congressional committee is already at
work, It has organized under the chairmanship
of Representative James T. Lloyd of Missouri
and IS sending out documents to every section
in which they are needed or from which they
are requested. Mr. Lloyd and his associates
on the committee are progressive democrats,
thoroughly in touch with the party in its pres
ent position. Tho election of a democratic house
Is almost as important as the election of a
democratic president. Mr. Lloyd asks .that I
should request through this correspondence
such contributions to the work of the congres
sional committee as individuals may feel them
selves justified in making. A thousand small
contributions would mean to the work of the
committee more than three or four large ones.
To every contributor 'will be sent a copy of the
democratic hand book as soon as it is ready for
distribution. Contributions should be sent to
Hon. James T. Lloyd, chairman of the demo
cratic congressional committee, Washington
D. C.
While there is much talk concerning the
democratic filibuster, the real fact of the matter
is that the systematic filibuster has been con
ducted by the republican majority in the houso
of representatives and aided by Speaker Can
non. They are talking now of adjourning on
the 20th of May, and yet not one committee
has reported any legislation of general impor
tance. What the democrats in the house are
trying to do now, and what they are being de
nounced by ignorant critics for doing, is to stop
trivial legislaton by the majority and to compel
important legislation. John Sharp Williams has
offered to the republican majority the support
of the democratic side of the house to put into
effect the presdent's program for legislation.
Receiving no response, he and his associates
have declared that unless important legislation
shall be effected nothing shall be done.
What is the answer? Not that the repub
licans under the leadership of Speaker Cannon
and Messrs. Payne and Dalzell will bring in
any important measures, but that by their con
trol of the house they will bring- in a rule of
order which will prevent the democrats from
interfering with the trivial business the repub
licans are willing to transact. ' That is a very
insufficient response. As Mr. Williams said this
morning: "Why, if they do not wish delay, do
they not discharge business? In house and
senate the republicans have a majority which
would make it absolutely impossible for the
minority to impede any public business. The
minority will not fittempt to delay such bills
as the employers' liability bill, the bill for the
reduction or the abolition of the duty on wood
pulp, the measure to correct the recent labor
decisions by the United States supreme court,
the national publicity bill and other measures
of national importance. But as it seems to be
the program of the majority to set these impor
tant national measures aside, while they pass
upon trivialities the democrats in the minority
have determined to fight all action until the
greater things .are attended to.
The democratic party, and particularly its
leader in the house of representatives, John
Sharp Williams, are to be congratulated upon
their success in forcing through the house the
omployers' liability bill which the president
urged, but which the party he is supposed to
belong to, ignored until democrats compelled
its attention. The bill languished in committee
a committee controlled by the republicans until
tho democratic refusal to permit any business
to be done in the house until it was reported
compelled its sudden removal from the commit
tee pigeon hole. Every democrat in the house
voted for it. The only vote against it came
from a republican. The bill was urged originally
by representatives of organized labor and has
been up to the last moment antagonized by the
republican party. It was put through under
pressure from the president aided by a united
democratic minority. No doubt, however, the
fact that it was passed by this congress will
receive prominent attention in the republican
campaign book of this year, without any men
tion of the fact that its passage was effected only
by democratic insistence and democratic aid.
It is a time-honored rule in the house of
representatives that what has been done in a
committee is never formally repeated on tho
floor of tho house. Of course individual mem
bers of the committees kindly and confidentially
tell everything that happens to the newspaper
correspondents, just as all that has been dono
in an executive session leaks. But on Tuesday
of this week five members of the committee on
the president, vice president and representatives
in congress, constituting the democratic minority
of that committee were so outraged by the
action of the chairman of the committee, Joseph
H. Gaines of West Virginia, that they revolted
against the rule and issued a formal statement
of the way in which the chairman had treated
them.
"The subject for discussion was the campaign
contribution publicity bill. The five were pres
ent and two republicans, Mr. Burke of Penn
sylvania and Mr. Diekema of Michigan both
somewhat famous for' the size of the campaign
funds that enable them to hold their districts
were also on hand. That made a quorum of
the committee with the democrats in the ma
jority. One of the democratic members moved
that the bill be favorably reported. There was
a short colloquy on a point of order.. A signed
statement issued by all the democratic members
goes on to say:
"About this time the chairman engaged in
a whispered conversation with Mr. Diekema and
Mr. Burke, the two republican members present,
after which they immediately left the room.
The chair then announced to the democratic
members, all of whom were present, that no
quorum was present and that he would not put
the motion to report the bill. One of the demo
cratic members asked the chairman if, upon a
roll call within five minutes a quorum had not
answered present, to which he responded, 'yes.'
Then he was asked if the two republican mem
bers who had just retired from the room did
not absent themselves at his suggestion and
he replied to this query: 'The chair does not
like to have to answer that question.' The chair
man expressed himself as being opposed to tho
McCall bill referred to, however, and said he
did not feel like maintaining a quorum to re
port out a bill to which he was opposed. The
five democratic members of the committee ..were
in favor of reporting the McCall bill and it would
have been favorably reported but for the fili
bustering tactics of the republicans in breaking
the quorum."
The fact that for the first time almost in
congressional procedure the secrets of the com
mittee room have been divulged by a formal
signed statement entered into by all the minority
members of the committee shows how thorough
ly they were outraged by the action taken.
And the character of the action taken by
the chairman of the committee indicates how
apprehensive the republicans are lest the char
acter of the campaign fund which they are al
ready planning to collect should be given pub
licity. . Their frank assertions that however
Wall Street may feel toward Roosevelt, it is
friendly to Mr. Taft, their scheme for a tariff
commission which will be nothing more than a
touching commission during the campaign, and
Mr. Taft's enormous expenditures of money al
ready, indicate the lines on which they hope
to fight the coming presidential campaign. If
they are not willing to plead guilty to this
charge, it is their duty to discontinue factious
and filibustering opposition to the national pub
licity law which hlis recoived the approval of
the best unprejudiced observers of politics in
the nation.
WILLIS J. ABBOT. .
'
PUT YOUR SHOULDERS TO THE
WHEEL
. ,
'J. B. Gray, Shirleysburg, Pa. En-
closed please find money order for $6, GO
in full payment for eleven yearly sub-
scriptions at club rates. Never since
I860 were the prospects so bright
for democratic victory. I would like
some republican to explain on what pre-
text the republican party is going 'to go
before the American people in this year
of our Lord, one thousand nine Ir-ndred
and eight, and claim their suffrage.
Will some one please answer? Demo-
crats put your shoulders to the wheel
and make it a two million army. ""