The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-05-23
WITH REED AS GAOFLX
Tho Next Speaker of the House Will
not Have a Happy
Time.
Nevertheless There are Plenty of
Gentlemen Aspiring for
tho Place.
The Post VIII he Ono of Honor and OF
Danger-0ualities or the
Candidates.

WASHINGTON. May CIT il not strang'
that there should have been a good deal o
gossip about the speakership contest sen
out from Warrington even this early, fol
all the speakership candidates except Mill
and Crisp lave been here more or lesl
since Congress adjourned. Springer, who
IL the only one owning a house here, has beer
here most of the time, for he had q severe
attack Of the grip, from which hi
10 only nov sufficiently recovered tt
walk ont very slowly with = cane, looking
thin and weak. Bat a few hot days viii
make him himself again, under the eood
care Of his devoted wife, one of the lowell.
est and most accomplished women in
Washington.
Springer is one Of the northern csndi-
dates, and therein lies his chief strength.
All the candidates are perfectly compe-
tent to fill the Office in point of ability and
knowledge Of parliamentary law. 1t is
idle for tho special friends Of any one OF
them to exalt his candidate at the expense
Of the others, for everybody here knows
better, and all the newcomers will be
duly informed upon arrival. Nor is
there anything to choose in point of princi-
pies. They all believe alike in the demo-
cratic party. Mills is no more Of a tariff
rsformer than Crisp, nor Crisp than
Springer. The only important point of
difference is in the matter of temperament,
and here there is room. for difference, for
they all differ one from another. All
democrats elected to the next congress are
aware that the discretion and tact of the
speaker will be severely taxed, especially
during the long session, and that the
mirable qualities.
Reed, fresh from taking lessons in the
gadHy business from Signor Crispi, Rome,
Italy. will devote his ingenuity to making
life miserable for the other side of the
house.and especially for the speaker. Be
ing with his eighty-six followers in a COM
paratively small majority of 15S, he will ell
deavor to have as much fun as possible
with the presiding officer, who will need the
prudence of = sage and the diplomacy of q
statesman to prevent Reed from making
him more or less ridiculous. The demo-
Gratis do not propose to adopt Reeds rules.
They propose to revive the Carlisle code.
But they realize that Reed will take advan-
tage of their fairness and justice to en-
barrass the business of the house as much as
possible. Reed, having nothing to do but
object, will, you may be sure, do that as it
has never been done before. and 10 one de-
neunced his tyrrany as ne will denounce
any attempt on the part of the speaker to
stop him. The speaker of the next house
will have the most difficult task any speak
or ever had. Reeds opposition would be
enough of itself to keep him on a constant
strain.
But besides Reed sitting with his fat
arms covering his desk and his fat chin
resting on his clasped hands watching his
chance to make u point, there will be the
amiable alliance men, willing, some of them,
TO help Reed if they oannot have their own
way, as, of course, they cannot, to say moth
ing of those disappointed men always to be
found in a majority in the house, but Ger
tain to DO twice as numerous in this unu-
suslly large majority as they have ever been
before.
The speakership will be emphatically the
post of honor. being SO emphatically the
hardest kind of hard work The speaker of
the next house will earn his $4,000 a year
twice over. All this does not decrease the
number of candidates, but it does decrease
the prospects of some of them, for it makes
the electors unusually cautious. This is
doubtful.
The one thing which all the candidates
agree in saying, is that all estimates of
strength are of little or nc value, be-
cause very few members-elect have as yet
committed themselves and very few are ex-
pected to do SO until the week of the eau
Gus. ''It will be Il long contest" said one
of the candidates the other day, land
the outcome is all uncertain and this
sums up all the positive information
there is.
The fact that of the 237 votes in the eau
Gus the north will have 12l is the chief ar
GuMent for putting a northern man in the
chair, for it is well understood that if q
southern man is elected speaker the south
ern men will be given the preponderance in
the committees, so that the south cannot be
held responsible for shaping legisla-
speaker is not strong. If the
southern members-elect could mite
on a candidate he would be elected, although
they only have 1l6 votes. The fact that
Mills anu Crisp, who are undoubtedly the
leading candidates, are both from the south,
shows the trend. Springer and Bynum,
who are the chief il, not the only candidates
from the north, coming though they do
from doubtful states, do not begin to be 80
much considered as Crisp and Mills.
If these things could be determined III
caucus without regard to sentiment or pref
udice. l have no doubt that Crisp would be
the next speaker, for, while hs is excelled in
this, that and the other respect by one OF
another of the other candidates, he IL adj
mittedly the best "all-around' man in the
race. But these things are determined just
by prejudice and sentiment, and SO | feal
Crisp will not be the successful man-Blount
and Turner, of his own state, elder, il
not better. soldiers, are not supporting
him., and Watson, the alliance man, who
succeeds acknowledgements Barnes,
of Augusta, is out in another letter saving
he cannot vote for Crisp, and the Other
Georgia alliance men may find his ad cap
tandum arguments hard to answer and ma,
also refuse to vote for Crisp. And withou'
his own state delegation a speakership can
didate is weak.
Mills will have his state delegation, blu
he has personal jealousies to contend with
too. and the alliance men do not love hin
any better than Crisp. 1t looks as vel
as one can see SO far in advance and through
80 thick a haze. as though this would be
dark horses race.
The dark horses are McMillin, of Tennes
see. and Wilson, of West Virginia, VIII
have been quietly travelling, the former il
the east and the latter in the west, an,
making friends right and left, but sayinI
nothing about the speakership publicly.
But l am hearing about them CONSTANT
chiefly al SECOND choices.'' And just her
Is their strength. After the first two o
three ballots, if one of the leaders is moi
chosen. the second choice will begin to tel
and GcMillin or Wilson will come to tn