The Daily Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Or.) 1876-1883, 1882-02-07
Committee Despots.

SOhS tcsSlhah 4IChOi Vs. VI SOlOI-
ado very sensibly takes issue with
the custom that has given auto
CRATIC power in cases Of debate to
the heads of committees. and with
aA-the+ippressiveness of deeply
injured man he says: "The fault
is not in the speaker; it is in the
system by which the House is
governed. The House of Repre-
sentatives instead of being the
council of the nation, is simply an
aggregation of committees. A
few men who seem to be favorites
of fortune, have constituted them
selves into Pretorian guard, and
arrogated to themselves the right
to declare who shall and who shall
not, mount the throne. A mem
Der outside. of a committee, who
represents state as large and i'm
portant as New York, can. not be
heard in virtue of his right as a
Representative. but is compelled
to beg the poor privilege from
some lordling of that committee,
who has been elevated through
the fayoritism Of the Speaker or
through the active influence of
other gentlemen who burnt in
cense at the altar of the court. If
Massachusetts were represented
on the floor of the House to-day
by Webster, Kentucky by Clay,
Missouri by Benton, Michigan by
Cass, South Carolina by Calhoun,
and these gentlemen had failed to
secure places on important com
mittees they could not be heard
Oh questions of national Import
ance, unless they secured that
right through the kindly partiality
of the Hon. John Jones, or the
Hon. William Smith, who hap
pened to Remembers of the COM
mittees having these important
matters in charge. We boast that
we are citizens OF a representative
government, wherein the spirit Of
Democracy is dominant, but the
world cannot point TO such an oil
garchy as that which controls the
debates in the House of Repre-.
sentatwes. Last session my state
was, deeply interested in the ques-
ton of the removal of the Utes.
The property of our citizens had
been destroyed, our women out
ragged, a war between the whites
and the Indians seemed to be in
evitable, and yet, because l was
not member of the committee on
Indian Affairs, l could not address
the House, even for FIVE minutes.
1 do not think that member of a
committee has any more rights on
the floor of the House than one
who is not a member of such COM
mittee, and for one, l propose
hereafter to make war on that sys-
tenn, especially when it stands be-
tweeHlne and the rights of the
people whom | have been sent
here to represent. ] don't pro-
pose that any Pretorian guard
shall deprive me or my state OF
the rights accorded us by the Con
stitution of this country. | didn't
know that l could say anything at
any time that would interest the
House, but no man shall deprive
me ofthat right If desire to ex-
ercise it, whether he is on one
committee or another. My rights
are equal to the rights of any 9TH
er member and the voice of my
state is. entitled to be heard,
whether the Speaker assigns me
to one committee or another. Il
is time that somebody should re-
bel against the despotism of these
committees, and when the oppor-
tpnity arrives, | propose to ascer-
tain just how securely are en-.
throned the committee despots.
-.
SENAToR-GRovER has introduced
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