Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1873-12-09
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Oe)-fTeeluent OF congress oSCause hS pre-
sides over the lowest branch of the govern
ment? know that before the present consti-
tuition was formed, viz, in the old confedera-
ton, there was but one representative body,
and John Hancock was President Of it.
Really Mr. Blaine is Speaker or President of
the XIII House of Representatives, and II
that body f. to be designated by its number,
why not employ style that conforms to the
fact?
Another thing. Can you tell me why the
presiding officer of the House is called the
Speaker, while the presiding officer of the
Senate is called the President thereof? What
constitutes the difference in their powers and
dutiess Can you tellf Is this all "a distinction
without difference" IL it not a misnoruer
to call that member Speaker, who is the
only man In the House that is not allowed to
speak, excepting as he vacates his chair and
for the time being, is out of his office?
1t strikes me that in our American legisla-
ton we have borrowed style from the Brit
ish Parliament and tortured its significance
The presiding officer of the popular branch,
the House of Commons, is the Speaker of that
body, not because he goes upon the floor and
addresses his fellow members, but as the organ
of that body he alone has the prerogative OF
speaking TO the throne. But we have no
throne here. Even in addressing the Presi-
dent. the presiding officer Of the house has 10
more right to speak to Gen. Grant, than any
one else The significance of the title there
fore is tortured and is misnomer. At least
so it seems to your correspondent. CIvIs.
Our correspondent is mistaken in as
suming that the body over which Mr.
Blaine presides is called the XLIII Con-
gress. Mr.. Blaine presides over the House
of Representatives, which is but one branch
of Congress. The Senate and House con-
stitute Congress, and to these bodies as
now organized is applied the term-XLIII
Congress. The House alone is not Con-
gress, neither is the Senate the Congress,
nor will our correspondent find in any
"official proceedings either the one
branch or the other in its distinct and sep
arate organization called-the Congress.
BY the terms of the constitution Congress
must be composed Of Senate and House
to designate either branch disassociated
from the other as Congress, is as manifest
ly improper as to call one county of q
State-thc State. The counties taken to-
gether form the State, the Senate and
House united as provided in the constitu-
ton are Congress. So Mr.. Blaine does
not preside over Congress but over the
House
If our correspondent will keep in mind
the proper distinction between Congress
and the parts of which it is composed,
his difficulty in regard to numbering it
will vanish. Congress is made up of n
Senate and House, the Executive is no
part of Congress-no more part of it
than the Judiciary is. Now to have a
Congress there must be House, and as
the House dies every two years. Congress
, of course dies with it. When new
House is organized new Congress is
numbering is correct-things are called by
their right names. 1t is true the Senate
never dies, but the Senate alone is not
Congress; losing sight of this is what
leads our correspondent into error. His
reference to the Executive is foreign to
the question, since the Executive does not
enter into the composition of Congress,
but is a distinct and separate department
of the government, as much as the Judi
dietary. This being the XLIII House of
Representatives, it follows that this Con-
gress must be the XLlII, for as Congress
necessarily dies at the expiration of every
House, so new Congress appears with
every new House, and their numbers must
be the same.
As to the title of the presiding officer Of
the House, it is undoubtedly borrowed
from the House of Commons. Its fitness
is found in the fact that the Speaker is the
mouth piece Of the House. He speaks for
the House, he declares its acts, he an
nounces its decisions. The office has lost
some of its original peculiarities since ii
was adopted by our government, but yet
there is a pertnency in the name to the
office even when the latter is shorn of its
English and some of its original character
istics and adaptedto our republican institu-
tons. The duties of the President of the
Senate are similar to those of the Speaker.
but whether President or Speaker be the
best term for such officers is not perhaps
Il subject of special Importance. Its we'll
that their titles are different however,
since for that reason we can readily dis
tinguish the one presiding officer from the
other, and thus avoid confounding them
as we very likely should in many cases
were the titles of both the same.
SPEAKER BLAINE.
The following remarks from the Boston
Post, make very handsome compliment for