The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1888-04-18
THE HOUSE DEADLOCK.
Speaker Csriisls's Responsibility for
+. tho Obstruction Of Lsgis-
lation.
Filibustering Against the Passage Of
the Direct Tax Bill-The Point
ct Issue.

Washington special 10 Chicago News.l
The whole Of last week was wasted In
the House Of Representatives, and 1t looks
90 II the coming week would also be thrown
away. An attempt was made at the Demo-
cratic caucus. last night to reconcile the
Northern and Southern wings of the De-
mocracy, but the feeling is very bitter, and
the flibusters gave notice that any attempt
to crack the party whip over them would be
resisted and resented. There have been .
good many such deadloaks in the House,
but none more determined or desperate
than this. Twenty eight men, under the
skillful leadership of Mr.. Oates, of Ala
bama, are holding nearly three hundred at
bay and blocking business entirely. 1t is,
as Mr.. Reed said yesterday, much more
important for the House to determine
whether small minority shall be allowed
to rule than it is TO pass the direct-tax bill,
over which the struggle is now going on.
II it shall be decided chat 10 per cent. OF
the members Of the House may determine
what bills shall be passed and what bills
shall not be passed, it is about time that
the rules were revised. BY adopting these
tactics the Republicans may at any time
stop the wheels Of legislation and nullify
the will Of the majority.
There is no great point Mt issue In this
contest. Less than two OF men who
were engaged in the rebellion and represent
the States that tried TO secede are simply
attempting by creating Legislative anarchy,
10 prevent the passage of a bill to refund
to the Northern States the ST., 600, 900 that
was collected from those States in 1861 to
carry on the war. As the Southern States
paid nothing they will get nothing. and
these tilibusters do not propose to have
ST., 000,0 900 paid out of the treasury of
which the South can have no share. They
demand that the cotton tax, which amount
ed to over $50, 000, 900, be refunded to the
South il the direct tax is repaid TO the
North. Speaker Carlisle might stop the
flibustering if he would, but think he is
in sympathy with the anarchists. He Is not
compelled to recognize Mr.. Oates every
time that gentleman yells Mr.. Speaker"
and when Mr.. Breckenridge rises to make
q dilatory motion the Chair is under no
obligations to give him the floor, but Car
Isle has no sand and no nerve, and permits
time to be wasted and legislation delayed
for fear of hurting the feelings of some
Southern friend.
Representative Oates said tonight that
continue their obstruction tactics indefinite
~, and would not give up until the major
ity had withdrawn the bill from considera-
ton. No compromise was possible. He
says that he has personal pledges from fifty
members that they will stand by him in
the flibustering movement, and that he
will have seventy five votes before to- NOR
row night.
In the last days of the XLIvth Congress.
when Springer and others were trying to
prevent the count of the electoral vote by
the use Of similar tactics, Mr.. Randall,
then Speaker, taught the House a lesson.
The flibusters yelled and shouted; they
denounced and maligned him; they climbed
to the top of the clerks desk and stood
where the Chaplain stands when he prays,
demanding recognition. But Mr.. Ran
dali was unable to see any one but
Fernando Wood of New York, then
the leader of the Democracy. Mr..
Wood, with his tall, slender, and
stately figure, his rudy face and white
hair and mustache, always q conspicuous
figure and O cool-headed leader, stood in
the center Of the Democratic side, near
where Cox sits now, and made his mo-
tons, one after the other, never leaving
that spot for more than forty eight hours,
and during all this time Randall was in the
chair. Their meals were brought to them,
and they had no sleep. An examination
of the record for that date will show that
no man but Fernando Wood made mo-
ton; and the reader would infer that he
was the only member present at the ses-
sion. 1t was arbitrary, but it was just.
Two days only remained of the session,
and if the hour of II o'clock came on the
4th OF March without the electoral vote
having been counted and the result de-
clared there would have been no Presi-
dent-elect, the White House would have
been empty, and Gen. Grant would have
been dictator of the United States.
The exigency is of course not so serious
now as it was then, but Carlisle might stop
the filibustering if he wanted to. The
leader of the flibusterers is Representative
Oates of Alabama, a tall, heavily built
man Of dignified and distinguished pres
ence. He was Colonel in the Confeder-
ate service, and the empty sleeve upon his
right side tells Of the arm that he left on
the field in front Of Richmond in his
twenty seventh battle. His large, finely
.ormed head is covered with silvery white
hair, and he looks older than the 50 years
with which he is credited. His face is full
and smooth except for a gray moustache.
He is deliberate talker, but does not pos
sess the gifts Of an orator. He is skilled,
However. in parliamentary tactics and
rather enjoys q skirmish, whether IL be
on the battle field or on the floor Of
the House. He il assisted in this struggle
by Representatives Breckenridge Of Ar
kansas and McMillin Of Tennessee.
The leader of tie majority in this con-
test, as the representative of the Judiciary
Committee which reported the bill, is Mr..
Ezra b. Taylor, of Ohio, the successor Of
Garfield. He il one of the oldest men in
the House. being over 40, but bears his
years well, and looks twenty years younger.
He is tall and erect in figure, and wears q
Prince Albert coat closely buttoned around
his spare form. His beard is long, pointed,
and always neatly trimmed. In color 1t is
sandy gray, and his hair is but slightly
streaked with white. There are some deep
burrows in his face, however, due to Attic
ton rather than age.
Although being in charge of the bill
gives Mr.. Taylor prominence in the fight,
the man who stands beside him and guides
his movements is Mr.. Reed, of Maine, who
is recognized by every one as the leader on
the Republican side, and his orders are
promptly obeyed.
GUESS they must be rich folks to
want IN anend 81 IN Oet n cant eaid an