Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-01-09
Written for The Evening star.


TIME SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE IS LIKE
Il the man you see at the circus, with the
arms and thighs of q Samson, clad in the pink
tights OF a coryphee, who rides three or four
horses at once and drives thirty or forty more.
Besides being the presiding officer of the House
he is chairman of the important little COM
mittee on rules and has to keep in hand and
guide the fifty or sixty other committees
which do the work of the House. The circus
mans performance calls for nerve, strength
and skill, but a large part Of the feat depends
upon his horses, who must look as merry and
unmRnageabie possible and yet keep their
places. attend to business and cut up no pranks.
So it is with the speaker; his chairmen of COM
mittees play big and important part in the
performance that the Speaker seems to be
doing.
POWER OF THE CHAIRMES.
The men who get the chairmanships WELD
large powers Each in his line of work con-
trois interests that other men just as infuen-
tial desire to advance. Thus influence ex-
changes and multiplies itself, and you may also
saw that dozen members usually control
and run the House to suit themselves In this
way the record of the majority party is made
and the output of legislation IL determined
There can be no doubt that such a system Of
founders of the government. Committees there
hal been almost innumerable in the Cont
mental Congress. but they were for special
purpose and short lived Such thing as a
standing legislative committee was slow and
gradual growth in the Federal Congress.
There but one in the First Con-
Rress-that on elections. In the First and
Third Congresses there were temporary ways
and means committees, in the former to arrange
the revenues, IN the latter to provide money to
put down the Agerine pirates. In the Third
Congress the standing committees on claims,
commerce and manufactures were established.
In the sixth. ways and means was made stand
ing committee. During all the earlier Con-
crosses both Senate and House were In the
habit OF asking the executive departments to
draft bills, furnish reports and do much OF the
work now done by the committees. Frequent
resolutions appear on the journal calling Tor
reports from the Secretary of the Treasury on
ways and means. to do this, that and the other
thing. Jefferson alludes frequently to this
practice and TO the informal way that chair
men OF committees for various purposes had of
going directly to the President or his secreta-
ries to formulate legislation. He also points
out that it took good deal OF time for our
Senators and Congressmen 10 realize one i'm
Portant difference between the British parila-
ment and Congress. and this was that the
former was "a legislature, inquest and a
COUNSEL for the king" while the latter ''was by
the Constitution a legislature and an inquest,
but not council" In other words Congress
eminent.
Tow THE SYSTEM HAS GROWN.
The convenience of standing committee
undoubtedly suggested the system. and it has
grown with the growth of the country and the
consequent increase OF necessity for legisla-
ton. 1t seems strange that there was no
standing committee on Judiciary until 1918,
tventy-four years after the meeting Of the
First Congress, none on foreign affairs or
al NTarr hal
the now very important committee on coinage
was first established in 1904 while that on ap-
preparations was not set up until 1865. OF
course We know that the work of the present
appropriations committee had been done for
three-qUarters of century by ways and means, |
as that OF rivers and harOors now gigantic |
IL its far-reaching effect on the commerce of
the country, was, until 1883, done by the COM
mittee on commerce.
1t is also interesting to observe that down to
1850 the committees were appointed anew every
session For time they were appointed by
ballot OF the House; then the Speaker was
formally authorized to appoint them; now he
does 80 without such authorization. The stand
ing committees are authorized by the rules. as
well as the number OF members to be ap-
pointed on each and the character of legisla-
tion 10 DE referred TO them. There are always
Q number of select COMMITTEES that run along
from Congress to Congress. whose existence
depends simply upon resolution and not upon
the regular rules. These are created to meet
some temporary necessity. Such select COM
mIt;ees at this time those census, reform
IN the civil service, Indian depreciation claims.
hquor traffic, irrigation. immigration and the
world fair. Some select committees finally
become standing committees; others obviously
disappear when the occasion for them passes
away. The Speaker has the power to put an
eEd TO a select committee by failing to ap-
point. For instance, select committee on
ballot box Purcba was allowed to lapse the
other lay when Speaker Crisp failed to appoint
anybody TO 1t; at the same time several other
select committees authorized by previous Con-
gresses were appointed.
survey OF the various chairmen of the
House committees at this time before this
Congress has settled down to work, Is worth
while as means of getting some idea Of what
the session will bring forth. The Speaker has
dlsreSarded many presidents and struck out
into new highways Of parliamentary organiZa-
tion. The men in whom he has expressed con-
hdence are for the most part old members
whose reputation is already made. Neverthe-
less all sorts of speculative processes have so
lar failed TO discover in the composition of the
committees what party policy the Speaker may
have sketched in for this Congress to i'll out
with color and substance.
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