The Yellowstone journal. [volume] (Miles City, Mont.) 1893-1901, 1894-02-27
Tuesday. February y, 1894.
TOM REEDS VINDICATION.

speaker OF the house OF representatives.
gained for himself the title of Gear"
together with the unbridled abused of the
democrats because of his famous ruling
that when a member of the house was
personally present at a session he was
present, and though he might remain as
dumb os dumb as an oyster. he was one
of a certain number that was required
to make up a quorum for the transac-
ton of business. The ruling wac so
simple and common sense, so utterly de-
void Of any confusing side-lights that it
at once commended itself to the fair
minded people of the country without
regard to politics. and by way of a
clincher. its constitutionality was af-
firmed by the supreme court of the ma
ton. But Notwithstanding all this, the
democrats kicked and howled at being
enumerated as present when they were
~present. and one southern gentleman
blackburn. we believe strobe down the
aisle of the house. and defied Speaker
Reed to count him as present, sab. when
he was not. sab! But big Tom Reed
laughed in his face. and counted him
Just the same. To read the Congress
sional record of those days. not four
years ago. one would think that this
counting business introduced by Reed
was the eliminating atrocity" of all
partisan indignities that could be heaped
upon a helpless minority by a brutal
majority. When in the next congress
the democrats came into power. a rule
was adopted which was intended TO be
just as arbitrary as the Reed rule. and
with infinitely less common sense be-
hind it. By this rule it was and is in
the power of the committee on rules. TO
report at any time when they deem hit. a
rule or order closing sebate. Relyingon
the overwhelming majority of eighty in
the house. the managers Of the demo
cratic party in the house thought II safe
to prepare this gag rule to choke of
the opposition. feeling sure that they
could at all times have a quorum to vote
upon its enforcement, and a majority 10
carry it. but these be troublous times
for the party in power. and with their
excessive membership in the house.
some thirty or forty more than is needed
for a quorum. the speaker finds himself
day after day without this necessary
prerequisite for transacting business:
and yet day after day there sit before
him, in plain sight and touch. many
more than enough to make a quorum. if
fhe speaker were only permitted to hum
BILE democratic pride enough to adopt
the Reed custom. and declare a quorum
present on the ~indisputable evidence of
his senses. Day after day the valuable
time of this body Of lawmakers is frit-
tered away by a repetition OF roll calls
and other proceedings attendant upon
the search for a quorum, and only a few
days ago a wholesale arrest of absentees
was ordered. resulting in a series OF per-
sonal i~ndignities being offered to MEM
beers never before equalled in the history
II the country, in the shadow of which
Tom Reed sits and smiles, and says,
You can arrest them and compel their
attendance here, but you car make
them vote or answer to roll calls, and If
they refuse to do these things then
under your rules. they are as effectually
absent as if they were in Siberia. But
the absurdity of the democratic position
in this matter is fast coming home to
the leaders of the party in the house.
and it will not be many days before
Speaker Crisp will be ascertaining the
presence Of a quorum in the same way
that Gear" Reed did. OF course they
will not surrender literally and absolute
ly to the Reed idea. but they will get
around it in this way: At a caucus,
which has probably been called ere this.
q rule will be adopted by which any
member present at a roll call who re-
fuses te answer to his name, may be re-
ported to the speaker by some other
member, as one who is present and re-
fuses to answer to the roll call. On be-
ing 90 reported the recalcitant member
10 escorted to the bar Of the house-the
one in front Of the speaker, not the one
in the basement-bv the sergeant-at-
arms, and being thus exposed in a strong
fi&nt, the spcohci oCco"os sosishou eho'
the member who refused to answer to
the roll call is actually present. and di-
reefs the clerk Of the house to enter his
presence Of record. This proceeding is
repeated ad Iibitum until a quorum is
obtained. The only difference between
this new rule and Tom Reeds old one is
that the new one is the retail way, -hie
the old one was wholesale, and conse.
quently more expeditions. 1t is entirely
in line with the traditions Of the demo
cratic party to be several years behind
the times. but il IL continues to make