, 1892-02-02
oNG NEWS.
House.

tnat the presence OF q majority OF mem-
bers constitutes a quorum has had the
sanction OF every court to which it has
been referred and think it ought to have
the sanction of this house" This was
was the reply of ex-Speaker Reed today
in defending himself against denuncla-
tions by Democrats of his official actions
IN last congress. The new rules are still
the subject of narrowing discussion in the
house. There is a general Discrimination
on both sides of the house to regard them
as a party question, and Bourke Cochran,
a well known Tammany congressman, this
evening surprised bis colleagues by elo.
quently approving the principle of recog-
nizing the ocular evidence of a quorum,
aud his speech was enthusiastically ap-
plauded by Republicans as an able de-
tense of Speaker Reeds rulings.
Immediately after the meeting OF the
house this morning there was a tilt be-
tween Hoar of Massachusetts and Morse
of Massachusetts,.
Hoar charged Morse with revising his
speech made the other day and inter-
polatiug his remarks, etc., putting
in Laughter on the Republican side,'
etc. This greatly amused the house.
Hoar. continuing, said the only applause
tho Republican party would ever give to
Morse's remarks would be to those which
we're never delivered.
Morse replied that Hoar's statement
was largely and substantially false. He
(Morse) had aYailed himself of the
privilege granted every member to re-
wise his remarks and added: my young
friend from Massachusetts will be wiser
when he's older. He is reported, Mr..
Speaker. to have shed tears over your
election"
He is reported to have wet his couch
with tears because his candidate for
speaker was defeated. He had a son in
the distance; a Craftsmanship and a clerk;
also honor, fame and celebrity through
out the country, aud especially in his dis
trict In Massachusetts. Those fond hopes
were dashed to the ground by the defeat
of his candidate. The young man be-
lGreat laughter on the Republican side. |
BY the time this congress has closed he
will understand the position OF the Demo-
cratic party in regard to the free and un-
limited coinage of silver. free raw material
and other great economic questions.
Among pending amendments to the
rules was one by Oates providing for a
committee of fifteen members on the
order OF business.
Picker OF South Dakota wished to
offer an amendment giving the committee
on invalid pensions the right 1t had dur
ing the hfty-first congress to report at an =
time on general pension Legislation, but a
demand for the previous question by
Catchings cut him off. Picker de-
manded a veriication of the vote but
would not assert an error had been made,
whereupon the speaker declared the pre-
vious question ordered-150 to go Pick
Ter then moved an adjournment. Lost
% to 100.
The vote recurring on Oates amend
ment of no quorum was voted upon and
Pickler raised that point and endeavored
to speak for his amendment, holding the
floor until the services OF the s~ergeant-at.
arms was called into requisition. Oates
amendment was rejected.
On motion of MoCreary OF Kentucky,
an amendment was agreed to requiring
that general appropriation bills be re.
ported within eighty DAYS of the appoint
ment of the committees in a long session
or forty days in a short session.
AT this juncture Bryan of Nebraska
aroused the enthusiasm of the Democl ats
by taking advantage of a little motion"
to convey to them notice of the supreme
courts decision in the Boyd-Thayer case.
The amendment by Enloe of Tennessee
providing the committees in reporting
private bills shall file them with the clerk
to be placed upon the appropriate calen-
dar, was agreed to
Burrows of Michigan offered an amend
ment re establishing the rule of last con-
gress empowering the speaker to count a
quorum.
Anderson of West Virginia moved to
add a clause providing that in no case
shall the hat, cloak, or umbrella of a
member in the cloak room be counted.
[Storms OF laughter.
Reed replied that his impression was
that the officers of the house elected by
whatever partly were quite capable OF
honestly carrying out the rules of the
house as they understood them; and it
seemed to him 1t would be a great mis-
take for the presiding officer to omit to
take notice of what he (Reed) believed to
be a quorum under the constitution. OF
course if any gentleman believed sincerely
it was necessary that a majority of the
members should participate In the bust
ness, it would be his duty to stand by the
ancient method. but if he believed as he
Nl.eeuJ uiu tnRt Tue presence OF q majority
of the members constituted a quorum, he
should take the proper means of ascer-
tanning it. There was no method of
counting the presence of members that
was not liable to error. There had been
repeated instances under the rules of the
present house when not only we're mem
bers recorded who had not voted but
members who had voted were recorded
enormously. These errors would exist
under any system.
1t was not the actual presence OF mem
bers but their judgments and votes that
the constitution called for. He (Dockery)
simply wished to let the house know the
gentleman from Maine had changed his
opIninion.
Anderson said an amendment was not
intended as a reflection upon the present
speaker or upon the committee on rules
but as a reflection on the doings of and the
actions and tyranny and the arbitrary will
OF the speaker of the last house and his
Republican brethren who had stood at his
back.
The people had passed upon these do
ings and had said by an overwhelming vote
n -