The Portland daily press., 1875-12-22
Speaker Kerr's Committees.

The Washington specials of the Boston Her.
aid says respecting Speaker Kerr's committees:
1t is said by everybody of the COMMITTEES on
Pacific Railroads, that it is made up in the in
terest of Tom Scott, Here, for instance, is lit
tie Charlie O'Neill, the Republican member
from Philadelphia, who was on the COMMITTEES
on Appropriations in the last Congress, and
who is perfectly satisfied with his new situation
on "Mr. Scotts committee" Tho other Repuh.
lican members are Garfield of Ohio, Kasson Of
Iowa, and Blair, the new Republican member
from New Hampshire, neither of whom is like
ly to stand very much in the way of the South
ern Democrats on the committee. It is known
that at least eight members of this committea
are IN favor m OF subsdizing the Texas Pacific
Railroad. The only explanation of this arrapge-
ment is that the Speaker wished to make a
committee so openly in favor of the scheme
that nobody should have chance to say that it
was bought up or sold out to the Scott interest
Mr.. Kerr has evidently no intention of allow.
ing anybody to say that the committees of the
House are made up in the interest of the
East, or even of the South.
messing of chairmanships in few states
was never before known in the House. There
are twenty states from which no chairman Of
any committee is taken. The new members
who are appointed chairmen, of whom there
are ABOUT dozen, are generally chairmen of
important committees. Some of the appoint
ments are evidently unwise and unfair. Thus
it would have been much more creditable to
the Speaker to have given one of the new
members from Massachusetts the chairmanship
OF the Committee on Education. instead Of
Walker of Virginia, who is an ex-governor AID
man of not much strength.
A member who has good reason to be dis
pleased with the Speakers action is Mr. Bell
OF New Hampshire. He is one of the abest
9en on the Democratic side, but he is placed
tnfrd on the Committee on the Revision on the
Laws. One thing which Mr.. Kerr's action en-
sqres Is thtss a~Iaall is to be the leader of the
House, position whicn~ ~.~a ~.saa,Iv heen az az,
corded to the chairman of Ways and nfu-.r
Mr.. Morrison of Illinois, who takes the latter
important position, is quiet, unpretending
gentleman, who is hardly known in the report
ers gallery. Against Blaine or Garfield he
could carry not hing. Probably there will be
nobody on the Democrats side who will hold
the same relations to the majority that Mr..
Blaine will hold to the minority.
The Ways and Means Committee is unSoubt-
edly made up in the interest of a lower tariff:
but it is not expected that any important legis.
lation on this subject will be proposed. Nor
is it at all certain that the Banxing and Cur
rency Committee will do ANYTHING 1t is GER
tainly hard money committee, but Cox, the
chairman, is in state of disgust, ard il Is
doubtful whether more than two or three mem.
bers will be willing to report bill for refund
ing greenbacks.
The special of the Boston Journal of last
evening says:
The New York and Eastern Democratic Rep.
resentatives who remain here speak more an
grily about the appointment of committees
than they did yesterday, and threaten an open
revolt if Morrison does not retire leaving Wood
chairman of the Committee on Ways and
Means. The appointment of the jocose Proctor
Knott to be chairman of the Committee on the
Judiciary is anything but acceptable to the old
Democratic lawyers here, and Mr.. Herford of
the interior state of West Virginia, is curious
selection for the Craftsmanship of the Commit.
tee on Commerce. Fifteen of the chairmen
are new members, unacquainted with legisla-
tion, but they all voted for MIR. Kerr for snAai--