The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1897-02-24

iiO "0uoo oEouIy ANU iIdukly3 btfikluE
from the shoulder. without descending
to subterranean intrigues or deoeitful
back billings. So at times it happens that
he becomes a respected terror in the
House.
Now there are parties in Worcester who
have claim of about $50, 000 against
the government. Mr.. Walker is very
anxious for this claim to bepaid, but has
not been able to get any action from this
House. He does not feel well about it,
and has not concealed his feelings. He
has never blamed the Speaker directly,
for he is friendly to him, but he has con-
demned the leaders of the House gener-
ally In a way that leaves no doubt that
he does not intend t. let personal friend
ship swerve him from his purpose to
make it hot until the claim is passed.
He has had the comfort and applause of
many others who have been unable to
get their pet measures passed.
In the debate the last week Mr.. Say
ers, of Texas, and MI. Grosvenor. Of
Ohio, both old and experienced members
showed very oonolusively that Mr. Walk
er was unreasonable. They did not ex-
plain for the benefit of those unacquaint-
ed with the rules wherein he was unrea-
sonable, however. To understand the
situation fully one must keep oontinu-
ally. in mind that about Is, 900 measures
press upon each House of Representa-
tives for action. 1t is by no means pos
sible for ono thousand of them to be ao-
ted on by the House, az they have to be
taken one alta time and some of them
are great measures, like appropriation
bi lis, which take days for consideration.
The method by which the rules of the
House provide for maintaining the g.
quill brium between the desires and rights
of the individual .and the rights of the
whole number may be shown by a
homely illustration. Suppose a very de-
sirable entertainment should be given in
a hall that would hold one thousand peo-
pile, and suppose 10, 600 people should
try to. attend. The problem of the man
who sold tickets would be to get his
tickets sold to one fifteenth Of the crowd
without getting up such apress and riot
as to overturn his ticket booth and stop
the performance. He would on no con-
dition allow all the people to crowd I'D
indiscriminately around the booth, but
would make them form in single file,
and get their tickets one at time.
This Is just what the rules of the House
do with the bills, whioh are put upon
lists called the calendar, and the regular
order is to begin At the beginning of the
lists and work down through them, just
as the ticket seller begins with the head
of the procession. But the rules of the
House recognize that this order of first
measures ahead of peritorious ones so
two or three plans are afforded. for giving
right of way to important public bills
and meritorious private ones. 1t is as If
the ticket seller should discover in his
long line far down towards the end a
great poet or historian or philanthropist
who ought to be honored with the chance
to get ticket So the ticket seller might
say to the line, 'fIf majority of you
consent will break the regular order
and stop selling to the head of the line in
order to sell to thesspoet" OF coursessome
fellows who. feared that they would lose
their chances would vote nay, but the
ma jority would probably vote yea. Now
great measures like the appropriation
bills get before the House in way very
like this. Of course after the poet has
got his, ticket, it willsnot be rlong before
anotherkman shouts out that he is also
poet and claims the privilege of having
ticket out of the regular order. The
tioket..seller will then very properly say
81 Gave never heard Of you as poet, bat