The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1889-01-17
REVOLUTION BY MINORITY.

REVOLUTION BY MINORITY.
The long continued filibustering on
the Democratic side of the House has
reached a point where it may compel a
revision of the rules. Mr.. Reed spoke
very moderately Thursday when he said
that "the contest going on demonstrates
to the country what we have known for
long time, that tie rules of the House
are such as no sensible body of men
ought to BE- governed by" Mr.. Taylor's
lrcastic resolution, implOring that par
cularly obstructive Weaver, the Green-
hacker, to allow the House to proceed
with the appropriation bl,ls, did not ex-
aggerate the absurdIty of the situation.
In order to make 1t clear what the pecu-
liar situation is, we shall refer to the be-
ginnings of this present deadlock.
The history of the recent filibustering
throws a strong light on the practice,
aud is especially interesting because it
has led its chief apostle to give what
may be called the philosophy of the
theory. Mr.. Randall asserts, as he has
asserted before, that the rules of the
House are intended for the protection of
the minority against the entertainments
of majority. In other words, he holds
that it Is the province and the duty of
minority of the House, however small,
to prevent by parliamentary tactics the
consideration and enactment of any bill
which the majority favors, and that
there are occasions. under our institu-
tions, when the powers of government
and the functions of legislation may be
properly transferred from the maj Jrity
10 the minority.
In the first place, these obstructive
parliamentary tactics involve Il subver-
sion, or at least an evasion, of the rules
of the order Mr.. Randall's argument
that these rules are made for the pro-
lection of the minority is not sustained
by the acts of filibusterlng, because they
compel a perversion Of the rules. For
example The minority of the House for
several days prevented the adoption of
demand for the previous question by
dlsobeying the rule and refusing to vote.
The previous question is demanded on
the passage OF new rule, reported by
the Committee on Rules, which is in
tended to prevent another perversiOn of
the rules, On Mondays there is a call of
the States and Territories for the intro
duction of bills and resolu ions for refer
ence to committees. This order of bust
ness has been greatly abused by mem.
bers of Congress, whose sole claim to the
title of statesmen comes from the ability
as Mr., Cox properly said, to trundle up
to to the clerks desk thousands OF bills
that can by no possibility secure consid-
Grafton. The Congressman who are
most eagerly demanding that bill day
shall not be interfered with are mainly
the men who depend upon their dill
gence in introducing bills to convince
their constituents of their industrious
| fidelity to the interests that have been
committed to them.
The particular evil for which a RENE
dy is sought in the proposed new rule is
met with on the first and third Mondays
of each month, when motions to suspend
the rules are in order. There is a rule
under which any member may demand
the reading of a bill on its introduc ion.
This is for the information and prUtec-
ton of the House. Ii has been recently
used by a very small minority, who are
opposed to the passage of the Oklahoma
bill. This bill ls pending on suspension
day, and more than twO-thirds of the
of the members of the House are in ia
vor of it. No matter what may be the
merits of the measure, 50 long as ma
| jOrity favor it, under our sys EN- of gov
erDmeut 1t should be permitted to go
through. The tiilibusters, however fol-
lowing Mr.. Randall's theory that the
minority is entitled to rule the legisla-
tive body, pervert the rule which we
have last mentioned, introduce the lar
gest bills of former Congresses that can
be found among the lumber of the Doc
ument Room.an demand their reading
In this way the time of Suspension day
wasted. and no business is transacted.
In this very instance, therefore, we
have an answer to Mr.. Randalrs pr po-
stion, because the minority is not pow
erful by reason Of the rules, but by their
violation. As Mr.. Reed said, in his ad-
mirable speech last Friday, there is no
intelligent friend of human liberty who
can agree with Mr.. Randall, and there i,
nothing in the Constitution and laws of
the country, or in the writings of those
who have exp, unded and defended our
institutions, to warrant such an argu-
ment. 1t is contrary to every piilciple
of our government and our race. The
majority may not be always right. but
in our legislative bodies, il must always
Tult, Ut tue Cultl lea ule VI OuT lDSlllu"
tions will be defeated. Mr.. Reed. and
not Mr.. Kendall, is right. The rules of
the House are to promote the orderly
transaction OF legislative business. Any
other theory ia incorrect, willie Mr..
Randall's view of the functions of the
minority is revolutionary. He assumes
that all virtue resides in the minority no
matter how small it may be, or Of whom
it may be composed. 1t was Mr.. Ran
dalIs custom when he was Speaker to
act as Censor for the House, and to de-
termine for the body over which ne pre-
sided what was or was ntt for the best
interests Of the country. He il, there
fore, doubtless honest in assuming that
virture increases as the membership of
Legislative body dIminishes. The log
ical result of his position is that the best
form of government is autOcratic, and
that the United States could not do bet
ter than to make him Dictator. B the
United States have decided to attempt a
Repub lean form of government in
which the majority must rule, and in
which Mr.. RandPll's theories are entirely
out of place.
II bill is wrong, the manner IN which
those opposed to it shall express them
selves Is pointed out IN the laws. All
that can be demanded of them, all that
they have the right to do, is to vote
against the measure. The people have
right to demand that the bill shall pass
il the House favors it, and it is against
that theory that Mr.. Randall's filibuster-
ing principles make. II is one of the
healthful signs Of the times that the
democratic doctrine receives less and
less support as occasions arise for con-
tending against it. This revolutionary
practice of defeating the will of the ma
jorlty by the obstinacy Of the minority
has struck its roots deep into the tradi-
tions Of TIE Hou'e OF Representative,
and it will be hard to overcome it
Nevertheless there is yet no reason to
~AHM