Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-09-05


Mr.. Reed said: ''Parties have their
depressions and their years of exaltation,
| just as individuals have their moments
| of depression and good cheer. Parties
have periods when they do great work 4,
! and periods when they seem to have DO
| other hope than the mere
PRESERVATION OF THEIR EXISTENCE.
! Since 1874, when the Republican
party first faltered in its
| great duty of preserving liberty
and equality before the law for all citl-
Eens Of the United States, Republican
house OF Representatives has been rare.
| This has not been because there Is no
longer Republican majority, because
by frauds too apparent to be denied, by
ballot box stnffinR too notorious TO be
! disputed twenty-five seats in the house
have been wrestled from US under the
open and defiant declaration that
the Southern Democratic white man
shall not only rule the black
| man of the South, but the white man of
the North. Two years ago under the
tremendous stress used in the battle set
in array by free traders the Republican
party SO signally
DEFEATED THE DEMOCRATS
that even cries of fraud were ruled out
Of order, and after few Intellectual
struggles to count US out we had the
house by a small majority OF five in
stead of our real majority.
The speaker then referred TO the fill
clustering tactics, as he called them, of
the Democrats of the house which had
defeated his ruling quorum. Continu-
ing, he said: Now the house of repre-
| sentstiyes is not a body quick to do
nj
Its large numbers and the
| diverse interests they represent will
always make it slow and cumbersome,
but the system which enabled one MEM
| Der to hold the whole house until the 60
ing down of the sun, and then hold it
until physical exhaustion set it free, and
one-ftth TO hold it forever, was
evidently the system which rendered
ELECTIONS USELESS
and called a halt to civilization itself.
OF what use was 1t to summon into the
field an army of orators TO explain ques-
tions of party policy? OF what use was
an election, itself that grand culmina-
ton of the power of the citizen, if after
all nothing could be doL1 without
the sanction of the beaten party?
What statesman could there be
so foolish as to battle for
power with responsibility when he could
have the same power without RESPONSE
bility? Are elections farces, and is the
government of the people juggle? So
we marshall our tens of millions to the
polls for sport? If there be anything in
POPULAR GOVERNMENT
II means than whenever the people
have elected one party to take
control of the house or senate that party
shall have the power and responsibility.
If this is not not the effect,
what is the use of an election?
1t was for other ideas of public duty
that the minority met us at
the opening OF the session. Not only
were no measures to pass which did not
have their approval, but no rules, even
of procedure, were to be per-
mitted except those which seemed
So we begin life without any rules The
constitution says the house may deter
mine the rule of its procedure, and does
not say that it must. After two months
time the opposition found that under par
liamentary law the public business
vas going on every day without
their consent, and they began to clamor
for the very rules they had denounced.
1t is enough to say that good work was
done, and the house of representatives
has taken large stride towards business.
THE PERFORMANCE OF DUTY.
VIII you, my old friends and neigh
bors, permit me just one word, which is
purely personal? If at any time these
last eight months have been
the subject of much indiscriminate
praise, and mucn indiscriminate blame,
one is just as much deserved as the other.
Great events DO not turn upon one man.
The house of representatives was
ready and ripe for change,
and the people stood ready to approve of
what all the world wanted and was easy
to do. l am not greatly proud to be
speaker of the house, but L am proud with
all my heart 10 be one of that
magnificent majority of the house
of representatives of the Fifty-ti first
congress, which for nine long months has
never for one moment
FALTERED IN ITS DUTY.
The speaker then rehearsed the meas
ures passed by the present house, the
tariff bill, the force bill, the silver bill,
etc. He then spoke of the time lost by
the house in organization, the call
ing of the roll, and in respect
due TO departed comrades. In regard to
the loss OF time Will be q surprise,
perhaps. to the community at large.
No man would regret more than
1 to be thought wanting in all
proper respect for the dead, aud all
proper reverence for departed comrades,
and for feelings of surviving friends; yet
the method by which the house
shows this respect and pays this
reverence is very costly TO the nation.
since the election of the present house
ten members have died and one senator.
Among them which have been the most
famous of the house was William D.
Kelley, the great champion of protec-
ton; Samuel J. Randall, heart of oak
aud will of iron, the strongest in
half the country; Samuel Sullivan,
Cox, once brilliant Iaborer. When we
have paid due reverence and spoken the
proper eulogy over these and their COM
panions, not less than twenty-one work.
ing days will have to be counted. This
means almost an
ENTIRE MONTH OF TINE.
When John Bright died the English
house thought it could best honor his
memory by going on with the bust
ness of the country.
in closing what have to say, it would
not be just to rest the claims