Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1890-02-11
MIR. Wilson's Sarcasm and Rid
ics1le.


its report of the previous days pro-
ceedings in the House of Representa-
tiyes, when the Smith, ackson CON
tested election case was up for CON
sideration, says:
Mr.. Wilson, w. Va, , while not
addressing himself especially to the
consideration of the election case,
made an entirelygood- humored speech
in criticism of the recent rulings of
the Speaker, which elected great APP
plause and laughter as well from
his political enemies as from his polit-
ical friends, and the Speaker could
not himself repress an occasional
smile. His references to the rules
of general parliamentary law were
fully appreciated. He ridiculed the
expressions which had been made by
members on the other side of the
House in regard to their conversion
from the belief that the methods of
fillibustering were admissible by the
minority. The tyranny OF majority
he said, was more dangerous than the
tyranny of an individual man; and
so the constitution WAS full of checks
upon the power of the majority
= Thou shalt not' was used more than
Thou shalt. lie had had an idea
that the rifles of the House embodied
the experience of past Congresses,
and were intended to allow the House
to do such things as it was bound to
do and to prevent il from doing any
thing else. He had had SUPPOSE
ton that nc matter what subject came
up, If it had public sentiment behind
it, it would be agreed TO without diff
ticulty or without serious objection.
He had supposed that the speaker
ship was judicial position. He had
had an idea that the Speaker was
judge. He had had an idea that the
Speaker was nota partisan, but would
come up to the old traditions and be-
come worthy of his great position.
Applause on Democratic side. u
When the Speaker had entered the
chair he (Mr. Wilson, had hoped
that he would make great and hon
orable Speaker and leave a great name
behind him. In this fatal blindness
he bad supposed that chastity was no
more the virtue of a woman than inn
partially was the virtue of Speaker,
laughter and applause on the Dem
ocratic side, and that whatever
graces she possessed, whatever ac-
complishments she might be endowed
with, lacking that, she fell from the
estimation of men. He had also sup
posed that the rules built up by the
experience of the past were almost
the sole bulwarS to protect the treas
ury of the United States, to stop the
spoliation of the people and to OBJ
struct tue schemes that came in by
the carload. But this had been when
he sat in darkness and in ignorance,
and before he had learned the i'm
mensc advantage of general parlia-
mentary law. Laughter. He
could now tell what parliamentary
law was. The essential was that each
ruling of the Speaker should be pla-
carded in advance as theatrical bills
were, as the first and only appear
ance.' Laughter. 1t seemed that
general parliamentary law has made
it possible not only for a one-eyed
man to be Speaker, but for him to be
at an advantage especially if the blind
eye happened to be towards the side
of the House where the minority
sat. That was the meaning of parlta-
mentarY law. Laughter. That
was the meaning of the new dispen-
sation which was to do away with the
rules of the House. Hereafter, so
members we're told, Representative
were to come here and legislate. In
the good time soon to come the Con-
gressional Record would shrink into
the size of volume of the statutes,
and the statutes assume the size of
the Congressional Record. The House
would appropriate it would leg islate.
it would irritate, daughter, and
whatever it did it would never hest
tate nor cogitate. Laughter. 1t
would refund taxes to those who
wanted them refunded; it would sub
sidize whomever wanted to be subsi-
died. All members would go home
with their public buildings and incl
dentally he notified the House that in
his district was the most meritorious
place in the country for the erection
of such an edifice. Laughter. L
They would legislate there were no
rules to impede them. Proceeding,
he said that in this new era, acting
under general parliamentary law, the
lobbyist would not be obliged to 90
around and give checks to Individual
members. What had members to do
with legislation? Laughter. The
Speaker passed the bills, the Speaker
approved the journal. The lobbyist
would have to come here not to both
er with members, but to 'tsee' the
Speaker as a much more effective
and cheaper way of lobbying. Let
no gentleman on the other side hest
tate to go on. Let them press the
advantage they had got. In the Ian
guage of finance, they had caught the
Democrats short on the market
Laughter. Let them press their
advantage while they had it. Let
them not stop because there was
good-natured action on the Demo-
cratic side, nor let them be alarmed
by the angry ebullitions of the gen
tleman from Illinois, (NIr. Springer.)
1t was only little jealousy on his
(Mr. Springer's part. He had done
little in the parliamentary law him
self. Laughter. Like Moses fly
ing from the rod which he had flung