The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1894-03-04
REEDS VINDICATION
The Ex-Speaker One of the Best
\ Pleased Men in Congress.
He Has Lived to See His Famous Rul-
ings Endorsed by Democrats-Ques-
tiOnable Acts of Cabinet Officers.
Staff Correspondence of the Indianapolis


Journal.
WASHINGTON, March 3-About the
best pleased man in Washington these days
is ex-Speaker Thomas Bracket Reed. of
Maine. He is not only the most absolute
power on the Republican side of .e House,
whom all of the minority follows with great
respect and no hesitation, but he is the best
debater and the finest tactician in Con-
gress. Mr. Reed has never felt or appre-
ciated his power so much as now, and he
never has had so much respect for the
fidence given him. Above all this, however
which makes the big, bald-headed Repub-
lican from Maine most happy is the fact
that every one of the precedents estab-
lished by him during the Fifty-first Con-
gress and so roundly denounced by the
Democrats has been fully INDICATED by the
proceedings in the Fifty-third Congress.
1T only takes time for horse sense to
get it's vindication," said Mr. Reed, the
other day, when complmented by a COL
league for having lived to see his complete
vindication at the hands of Democrats, and
vindication so early upon the establish
| ment CT his action. Mr.. Reed never takes
any JUNCTION to himself in private CONVEX
sation about the wisdom of his rulings and
the subsequent action of the Democrats in
being compelled to resort to his procedures
in order to do business, even with ma
| jority Of nearly one hundred.
In celebrating upon the decision of the
Supreme Court, which upheld his counting
Of quorum, Mr. Reed observed that the
common horse sense of any man fit to occu-
by public position would suggest the fact
that constitutional quorum comprised
| majority of a legislative body present; that
| the fact that the majority of the men,
| bership were present was sufficient to prove
| the presence of q quorum, and the only
| question there was about the point made
| against him and which went to the Su-
| preme Court was how that quorum known
| to be in the presence of the presiding Off
| Ger should be ascertained when members
refused to vote on roll call. why" said
| Mr.. Reed, "a schoolboy presiding over a
mock court would catch the idea that il
| was the duty of the presiding officer to
count those present when they refused TO
| respond TO their names in order to establish
| the record fact that a quorum was present
| 1t is the primary function of the officer pre-
| siding to ascertain at the very outset of
proceeding whether quorum M is present In IN
| proceeded with. When a meeting of di-
| reotors of body is called the chairman or
majority is present, and you know that
officer learns whether there Is a quorum
| present by counting them That is the way
| the Supreme Court Of the United States
regarded my action when 1 counted quor-
| UNI"
The Judgment of authority by the ma
| tority in this Congress with the three men
who constitute the control of the commit
| tee on rules to bring in a rule, which Is
not debatable and must be voted upon i'm
mediately fixing an hour when debate upon
| a subject will close, arbitrarily curtailing
| discussion, and the same power in the
Speaker to arrest absent members and can
eel leaves of absence, is looked upon by
Mr.. Reed as the most arbitrary power ever
given a presiding officer. If the Fifty-fourth
| n elected November.
Republican, we all know who will be Speak
err MIR. Reed will have no opposition on the
| Republican side. His nomination will be by
reclamation in the Republican caucus. He
| is about the only man in the House now
| whom the Democrats fear and respect with
one accord.
| Readers of current news must have taken
| notice of the fact that politicians have
| about quit the practice of denying newspa-
| per rumors derogatory to their reputation.
| A Senator explains this by repeating a lit
| tie conversation he recently had with ex-
| Senator Sanders of Montana. Sitting in
| the Office of Sanders one day the latter
| picked up a newspaper containing a very
| vigorous and serious attack upon him, a
| reflection upon his personal character AIT
er reading it, Sanders observed:
That ATS is cb pretty Tt ssh sharp attack and
yes" replied the visiting Senator, land
if l were you / would deny it."
Why deny it, queried Sanders. s.,o,,a
| "a man of your good reputation and char
acter should not let such charge stand
THAT is true" said Sanders, "but I shall
not deny it: L know it is a serious thing
and it is lie out of whole CLOTH. Further
more, 1 could deny it in very few words
and could clear up, the impression 1t has
| created against me-.
Then l cannot see why you don't deny
simply because" said Sanders, con-
| temptuously, 'if l should deny this the
| ohar in mi
| be true, and 1 would not want to try TO
deny that. smart politician ought never
| to deny lies published against him, as he
would have no place to stop when a truth
was published without exciting suspicion
and emphasizing that truth"
The publication of the fact that Secretary
Hoke Smith had brought from Atlanta a
colored woman to make pastry or prepare
'possum in his private house, and in order
TO induce her to leave her Georgia home had
placed her Republican husband upon the
pay rolls Of the Interior Department, there
by making much Indignation and trouble
among the Democratic darkies In Georgia,
has caused the Paul Prys of Washington to
some of President Cleveland's Cabinet house,
holds
The other day a Chicago newspaper pub
lished special from its Washington corre-
spondent to the effect that there were main
tanned at the expense of the government a
pair of handsome Kentucky horses, double
| IL,
| footman and other accoutrements. for the
social benefit of Mrs. Carlisle, wife of the
Secretary of the Treasury; that beside there
was employed at the Carlisle residence a
colored man borne upon the pay rolls of
the Treasury Department who looked after
the social engagements of the wife of the
Secretary, and that the of the Secretary
who is the gentlemanly and popular chief
clerk of the department, was supporting
for his private benefit saddle horse and
| coupe and coachman. ali at the expense of
| the government. Your correspondent be-
| lieving that the punctiliousness and ScrlIpu-
| lous character of Secretary Carlisle would
| not permit OF such proceeding, made ex-
| tensive inquiry into the fact of these asser-
| blunt admission of every statement. 1t is
all true. The defense is that these things
have been customary with Cabinet officers
| and the government is put to no extra eX-
pense by these things"
| An officer who has been in the employ
| conspicuously, Of one of the departments
for nearly quarter of a century tells me
1 that there are more men and women borne
| upon the pay rolls of the eight executive
departments now doing domestic and soci-
ETY. work at the houses of Cabinet officers
| three times over than at any other period
| within his knowledge. He saws that in the
| Treasury Department alone there are eight
| or ten horses owned and fed by the gov.
| eminent and as many coachmen and foot.
men borne upon the pay rolls who do moth
Of the officers of that department: that
four or five men and many women who
draw their pay from the government ere
| doing service at the private houses of off
| Gals of that department Furthermore he
says that he knows of women who are