Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-02-20
AT TER A QUORUM
Absentees Arrested by Deputy Ser
geants-at-Arms.
TALK OF COMPULSORY MEASURES
To Compel the Attendance Of Men,
bers of the House.
P ROPOS SITIONS TO FINE

PROP SITIONS TO FINE
/ Deputy sergeants-at-arms were going
around with carriages before 8 o'clock this
| morning arresting members of the House,
| who, being in the city, have absented them
selves from the House Many were arrested
before they had their breakfast and some
were captured in bed These were put upon
honor to be in the hall of the House to hear
prayer and were left to make their toilets
and get their breakfasts. The large attend
| ance at the caucus yesterday afternoon and
the unanimity of sentiment displayed is an
! indication of the determination on the part
| of the democrats to adopt vigorous methods.
/ The fact that the democrats who are break
ing the quorum by refusing to vote one way
or the other are those who have stood be-
hind Mr. Cleveland in his legislative policy
is especially irritating to the silver demo-
Gratis and makes them more eager to do
something radical.
Talk of Compulsory Measures.
After four monotonous legislative days
wasted in futile roll calls to gather a quo
rum on the Bland seigniorage bill, demo-
Gratis are beginning to talk of compulsory
measures to compel voting. Throughout
most of this time there has been more than
the needful 179 members within sight of the
Speakers desk, but many of them refusing
to answer to their names when called. Out
side of the hall. but in the city, there have
been enough more members in favor of the
bill so that if its friends had all rallied they
could have put ii through last week. 1t
was said today that there were fifteen free
silver members in the city who were absent
from the Capitol
1t is not strange that under these cir
cumstances the democrats, and particularly
the supporters of the Bland bill, have been
chatting under the rules which permit al
most endless filibusterng, particularly as
they know from past experience that so
long as the present rules remain unamended
the republicans will continue to compel
them to muster a quorum for the Passage
of any measure distasteful to the minority.
With eX-Speaker Reed in the chair the
tactics which now obstruct legislation were
impossible. because of his method of record
ing the members present but not voting
The logic of events, think the republi-
cans, is forcing the democrats toward the
alternat tive of resorting to the Reed rules
or acknowledging their helplessness.
Propositions to Fine Members.
The refuge toward which democrats are
turning seems to be the adoption of the
rule for ining members who refuse to vote
when they are present. There are two pro-
posals before the House. One is that of
Journal Clerk Crutchfeld. who has drafted
rule for finiug members the amount of
one days pay. The other was embodied in
the resolution which Represent h tive De
Almond of Missouri introduced today for
calling the names of delinquents three
times. then summoning them before the bar
of the House and imposing fine of $50.
The more thoroughly the proposition for
fining members is discussed the less favor
does it find because of it's lack of practica.
bility. The weak point in this plan lies in
even the bitterest political enemies are
warm personal friends. There is a strong
feeling of comradeship among the MEM
bers of the House which makes it unpop-
ular and difficult to enforce any penalties.
Judge Holman of Indiana, the father of
the House, said of the proposal. Il would
| like to a rule adopted for fning MEM
bers who refuse to vote. but / am afraid it
is impracticable. l have seen hundreds and
hundreds Of members fined but the fines
are never collected. The House always re-
! lents after the heat of the particular battle
is over and RENTS the fines, so that these
rules are dead letters"
There is standing rule on the hooks re-
quiring the sergeant-at-arns to deduct from
| the pay of absent members, but this rule
has never been enforced. One member slg-
gests that it shall be amended 50 that when
a member! has failed to respond to his
name a certain number Of times the ser
geant-at-arms shall be instructed to with
hold one days pay from his salary. Without
II
! carry out the rule, he has 10 official
knowledge of the absence Of members. A
resolution was introduced in former Con-
gress by MIR. Bailey of Texas for fininS alb
sentees but ii was referred to some COM
mittee from which it never saw the light.
Ex-spea1.er Reeds Views.
Republicans are pleased with the s:tua-
| ton, because they consider 1t Il vindica zion
of the famous Reed rulings. When cx-
Speaker Reed was asked what he thought
of the de Armond resolution, ne replied in
his usual terse manner: That is impractic-
able for two reasons, if not more. it would
be rather humiliating spectacle to be fin
ing members when the only object desired
to be attained was to lea IN that Ihay were
present and not votiag, information winch
| the Speaker could obtain if he woull open
his eyes. Moreover, a roll call would be q
matter of a week, more less if the name
of every member not voting was called
three times. And in the end nobody would
pay his fine. Members would go from the
bar of the House not with a sense of loss
OF pocket, but Of personal humiliation"
Even those democrats who ere opposed to
! the Bland bill recognize the need of COM
pulso-y measures to compel members to
vote.
Representatives Rayner, Cochran, Tracey
and others said that they would f2vor Il
rule to fine delinquentS, but they realize the
difficulties in the waV of the enforcement,
and wished some more effective means could
be devised.