Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-03-02

nave mentioned, Is prODSDlV GumclenL TO
suggest that in order to have a congress
there must be men to compose 1t, even if
the distinction between senators and
representatives is still unknown. Yet,
at the same time, if all that can be SAID
about the house of representatives is a
twice-told tale, it is a tale that will
always bear telling again, for 1t carries
with it not only the practical familiarity
with our methods of government which
every American boy and girl should
have, but also the knowledge of the
principle of government, which has,
above all others, secured the success of
our race in founding great states and
establishing successful governments.
The history of the English-speaking
race, in fact, hardly reaches back to
time when the representatives of the peo-
pie did not assemble under one name or
another to consider and settle the affairs
of the commonwealth. The "meeting
of the wise menu of our Teutonic ances-
| tors, rechristened by their conquerors
with Norman name, has come down
through the centuries, and has followed
the fortunes of the race to the North
American continent and to the distant
islands of the South seas, until it would
rightly be called by everybody the most
English-speaking government. Yet the
house Of representatives of the United
States, which naturally typifies and
stands for this great principle. was dis
tinct innovation when it was established,
and one which in that partic-
ular connection met with 10 little
resistance. Every state and every colony,
of course, had had almost from its incep-
ton popular representative body, but
until the constitution of 1889 was formed
these states or colonies had never had
one in their united capacity. The con-
tinental congress which declared indie
pendence, and the congress of the con-
federation which succeeded it, recog-
niZed nothing but the states and admitted
no other representation. In those bodies
the vote was taken by states, majority
of the delegates determining the vote of
each state, and the voice of Delaware or
Rhode Island was as potent in deciding
the policy ofithe Union as that of Virginia
or Massachusetts. In this arrangement
is TO be found the chief source of
the hopeless weakness OF the Confed-
GRAFTON for a body which represented
nothing but states and had no power over
the people direct, and which could leg
islate for states that Obeyed or dlsobeyed
its DEGREES at pleasure, constituted a
feeble league and not q government.
The main purpose, indeed, of the great
men who promoted the convention of
1899 was to devise q government which
should rec oh the individual citizen, and
in which the will of the people OF the
whole country should not be nulliffed by
confinement within the state boundaries.
The result of this determination in the
convention was the tablishment of the
10 ,A,ki
ton was met at the outset with q strong
opposition, not only on the ground that
it was too democratic and 100 popular
but that it would make the small states
subject to the will of their larger asso-
ciates. AS the convention, like the pre-
oeding congress, voted by states this OPP
position was only overcome through the
great compromise which secured the in
teIests of the small states by equal rep
reseutation in the senate while it gave
direct popular representation in the
house.
To the congress thus formed were
granted all the great powers of govern
ment set forth in the constitution and
which are familiar to every one. But
to the house of representatives was given
also the exclusive power OF originating
all bills to raise revenue. This arrange
ment was direct Inheritance from the
mother country. The power of orlginat-
ing "money bills, as they were called,
had been the great bulwark of English
liberty in the commons against the en-
croachmeut of the crown It was with
this weapon that the Puritan party in
parliament met and defeated the efforts
of the Stuart kings to establish arbitrary
authority, and every man of the English
fhArefnrP St
century cherished this power of original
ing money bills or bills to raise revenue
as the principal defense OF freedom, and
could hardly conceive of vesting 1t any
where but in q body of representatives
elected directly by the people. In gov
eminent where both branches of the leg
islature derive their authority directly or
indirectly from the same source there is
no logical reason for combining the power
of origining bills to raise revenue to the
popular branch, but, as so often hap
pens, especially with the EnglIsh-speak-
ing people, habit was stronger than logic,
and the result of this clinging to old land
marks has certainly not been harmful.
Moreover, there can be little doubt that
in comforting this power the trainers of
the constitution not only desired to follow
the precedents with which they were IA
miliar, but to make the popular branch
of the national legislature the body to
initiate legislation, while the senate's
chief legislative function vas to act as a
check and balance. In this view they
were not only in accordance with their
political habits and precedents, but they
wero also acting perfectly logically and
wisely.
Such, then, were the circumstances
and such the theories under which the
house of representatives of the United
States came into beng. To attempt to
trace the history of the house and the
development of the powers of congress
would be little less than. to write the
political and constitutional history of
the country, which is, of course, fer
beyond the scope Of such an article as
this. All that is necessary here Is to try
to describe the workings of the house
of representatives as it exists to-day.
Each congress comes into being on
March of every alternate year. When
the elections have been held the certif-
Gates of members are forwarded by the
state authorities to the clerk of the pre-
cedtng house, who from these eertif-
Gates makes up the list of members Of
the new house. Unless the president