Huntsville gazette., 1894-09-08
WHAT OF THE HOUSE ?
Future Forecast of the Fifty
Fourth Congress.
THE SOUTH STILL STANDS SOLID.

The Majority Will BE Much Less but the
Estimates Encourage the Democrats to
Believe They VIII BE Safely Ahead.
Senator Faulkner Believes They Will
Have a Good Working Maj jority.
WASHINGTON, Sept 7.-Estimates az
to the political complexion of the Fifty
fourth congress are now being made by
the politicians Of both parties.
1t is significant that neither side is
making extravagant claims and that
careful, conservative calculations made
by both do not insist Oh much more than
bare majority.
The officials i'll charge of the con-
gressional campaign work refuse to give
out speculative figures, but, from other
sources, it has been possible to gain an
idea of Democratic claims concerning
the coming congress.
Naturally, the recent political drift is
against any such overwhelming Demo-
cratic victory as surprised the country
in 1892. There We're landslides in the
like Indiana, Illinois, Ohio and Penn
sylvania, which gave to the Democrats
a phenomenally large majority i'll the
Fifty third congress. Even Democrats
admit that many districts carried two
years ago are normally Republican and
will return to normal conditions in No
vember. Yet, allowing such a return,
the Democrats have no reason to fear
that the house Will pass from their con-
trol. Only Republican landslide,
similar to that which favored the De
mocracy in national campaign, can
wrest the popular branch Of congress
from the Democrats. But there are Re
publicans who look for that landslide.
The present house consists of 21S
Democrats, 1876 Republicans and an
even dozen of Populists. A liberal yet
close calculation Of the next congress
will give the Democrats 1872 members,
the Republicans l3l, the Populists IL,
and leave 81 districts doubtful. Even
allowing the Republicans to carry the
81 doubtful districts, there would yet
be small majority in favor of the
Democrats, as 119 votes are necessary
for organization.
A running review Of political situa-
tions in the several states gives no cause
for disturbance of Democratic conf
dence of controlling the houSa The
southern states will keep i'll the Demo
cratic procession with hardly break iii
their congressional representation. Som
socalled and selfstyled Populists may be
chosen in the south, but souther,
Populist is always a Democrat when
+,,l II
Senator Faulkner, chairman of the
Democratic congressional com aittea,
said:
II believe that the next house will DC
Democratic by fair working major ty.
! am frank to admit that month ago
the political horizon was rath II elondy,
and our confident hope o. maintaining
the Democrat supremacy i'll congress
was in somewhat of an eclipse. Th re-
action during the last two weeks, how
ever, throughout the whole country has
simply been marvellous Report from
all sections of the country indicate al
ready to a great extent that the party
has thrown off it; lethargy aud indiffer-
ence, and is arousing itself for ene of
the most earnest, aggressive and gltllu
siastic campaigns that we have had iii
the country for some time. Tnii IS in
dicated by the very large primaries an
enthusiastic conventions that are Icing
held in almost every congressional dis
trict.
81 do not mean by this that the party
is over confident 1t realizes that it has
to fight an astute, able and earnest or
ganiZation, which has so long fatt,tled
upon the results of power and been IN
trenched SO firmly behind the protective
barriers of legislation that nothing but
unity in the Democratic organization
will enable the latter to maintain its
supremacy
Notwithstanding the senator's conf
dence, his opponents think he vii be
surprised when election day closes.
They expect that the country is gong
back to McKinleyisIn with a rush md
that the senate bill viii be the list