The morning call., 1891-12-12
THE SPEAKER.

The real business OF Congress will not be-
Gia until Speaker Crisp has appointed his
committees, which can hardly take place
mach before the holidays. Assuming that
Mr. Crisp represents the moderate Demo-
Gratis who profess devotion to tariff reform
without committing themselves to free trade
pure and simple, he will be embarrassed in
diSposng of tue leaders of the party who,
like Nj. Mills, are uncompromisingly opposed
even u incidental protection. This may
make the composition of such committees
as the Ways and Means more difficult than
Mills would have found il had he been
elected Speaker, and may retard the COM
mencement of real work till after Christ
mas. 1t is fortunate that the public inter-
ests do not require immediate action on any
Of the issues Of the day. Nothing Will be
lost by deliberate procedure.
The shape which our legislative machin-
cry has now assumed transfers power from
Congress 10 the committees. Ofthe thousands
OF bills introduced into each Congress it Is
obvious that body of three hundred odd
members caunot undertake TO digest so vast
a mass Of proposed legislation. The duty
Of deciding what bills shall pass, what
bills shall be postponed and what bills
shall be killed outright must devolve
upon the committees, which divide the
work between them. To become a law a
hill must get favorable report from the ap-
propriate committee; aud though Congress
IS not bound to sustain its committees, it
does so, as a matter of practice, simply for
the reason that if it did not the wheels of
legislation would be blocked. As members
congressman exhaust their power when
they elect their Speaker. To him belongs
the duty Of naming the men who shall con-
troll legislation; these men, some fifteen or
twenty in number, really make the laws of
the nation.
They not only frame the laws; they con-
troll the debates ia Congress. Each Congress
Is expected TO pass from 400 to 800 bills. Its
life IS limited, in its two sessions, to not
over 30 working days. Thus, to accomplish
its work, Unjust pass an average of two bills
every day that it is in session. To achieve
this result, no time must be wasted In
speech-making; and consequently, when
the committees begin to report bills for
passage, the committeeman in charge sets a
limit to debate. So many hours can be af-
forded for the discussion Of the committees
report; these hours are divided between the
friends and the antagonists Of the report,
and before Congress rises tho vote is taken.
All this seems arbitrary; it acts as a re-
straint upGn the freedom of debate which
Is an essential element of free government :;
but experience has taught that it is only
through the aid of such restrictions that
business can be transacted.
Whenever a new rule is adopted to expe-
dite business, the party in opposition gen.
orally denounces it as an invasion of the
rights Of the representatives of the people.
But ii usually happens that the critics of
the new rule adopt it cheerfuly whom thew
assume power and its responsibilities.
Thus Speaker Reeds device for defeat
ing the nO-quorum obstruction can hardly
fail to be adopted by the new Committee
on Rules 1t was, at bottom, nothing more
than a rule that a member OF Congress
should not shirk the duty which he was sent
TO Congress to perform; a regulation for
bidding the use of revolutionary methods
in. non-revolutionary times. 1t is likely to
become as settled a rule of parliamentary
law as the rule which declares that motion
to lay on the table is not debatable.
The power Of the Speaker of the House of
Representatives is greater shan that of any
other citizen of the country except the Pres-
dent, and in regard to law-making it over
tops his. By virtue Of the patronage he
wields a President exercises wider influ-
eHce thdH cptdheT DuI ne cannot shape
legislation, while the Speaker may. 1t rests
within the discretion of a Speaker to recog-
nze whom he pieases On the floor; no man
can open his mouth without his permission,
nor can ever a committee secure favor
able action by the House on a bill unless
he is willing to assign them a day. and to
give their spokesman control of the debate
1t has been the good fortune of the Ameri-
can people that this tremendous power has
never been intrusted to unworthy hands
Tho nation has had some bad Presidents,
bot Congress never had a Speaker who
the people failed to honor. MIR. Crisp will
be fortunate if he can enroll his name on
the list which contains such illustrfous
names as Henry Clay, Andrew Stevenson,
James X. Polk, Robert C. Winthrop.
Nathaniel Banks, James G. Blaine aud John
q. Carlisle.