St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1892-04-01
BLAND ON "CLoTURE RULE"
He Explains the Misunderstand-
ing of the Speakers Report.

He Explains the MiSunderStand-
ing of the Speakers Report.
WASHINGTON, March 81. = Repre-
sentative Bland, the champion of free
silver in the house, in conversation
with reporter today expressed the
opinion that considerable misunder-
standing existed throughout the coun-
try on the subject of the proposed
"cloture rule" which large number of
the Democratic members of the house
asked to have adopted to expedite ac-
ton on the silver bill. Mr.. Bland said:
'The difficulty we have had with the
silver bill is an apparent miSunder-
standing as to the real nature of the
rule that the speaker had intended to
report to the house. 1t is not cloture
rule, further than it is aid of the pre-
yious question.
The previous question is the cloture
rule of the house. We have had it for
over fifty years. There is no cloture
rule in lhe senate. The rule proposed
to be reported to pass the silver bill was
simply rule to prevent filibustering
by declaring it to be out of order for the
speaker to entertain filibuSterlng mo
tons. The standing rule that we have
adopted gives to the committee on rules
the power in this way to stop filibuster-
ing. That is to say, the committee on
rules reports rule to the house pr0vid
ing that pending proposition on which
the house wishes to come to vote. the
speaker is absolutely prohibited from
entertaining filibusterlng motions.
When this rule is reported, the house
itself must adopt it or reject it, so that
it is the house that must determine
whether or not the house wishes to
stop fillbustering. The difference be-
tween this rule and the rules Of the
last congress is that the rules of the
Fifty-first congress gave to the speaker
himself the absolute power to refuse to
entertain any dilat0rY motions. The
rules of the Fifty-first congress vested
this power in the speaker. The rules
of this congress vest this power in the
house itself, but the house cannot act
upon it without the report from the
committee on rules. 1t seems that the
enemies of the silver bill, after ascer-
tanning that the speaker intended TO re-
port a rule to prevent tilibustering,
raised a hue and cry against cloture. A
great many of our members being new
members, were misled as to its actual
nature. Since the matter is over have
learned to my satisfaction that the
speaker was Deset by q good many
members who had voted for free coin
age, and they told him they would not
vote for such rule. Consequently he
was apprehensive that the majority of
his, own party would vote against him.
1ilview of this fact, he changed his
mind and refused to report cl0ture
rule until majority asked for it.
az II criticised his action very severely,
but did SO without full information as
to the true situation. | do not censure
him at this time for his action.
During Mr. Carlise'S administration
as speaker, filibuStering became 90 com
mon that IL was impossible to pass bill
where a few active opponents filibuS-
tered against it, and nearly every bill OF
Importance was flibustered against. 1t
was notable fact that Gen. Weaver,
of Iowa, then member of the house,
acting alone, prevented the transaction
of the business in the house for two or
three days until the speaker, the house
and the country were disguised with
the scene. The Democrats then real
lied the necessity of some rule by which
filibuStering could he prevented by the
house, and had the Republicans in the
Fifty-tirSt congress gone no further than
our rules go now. the Democrats could
not have reasonably objected to them u