The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-03-07
eERmAn DEPUTIES WANT rAY.


~ - nAhIFto u my WE'VE NNouEu n
crease the Attendance In the Rcichstsg.
Germany Is agitated again by the movement
in favor Of q sslsriod Parliament. At present
the members Of the Reichstag are not paid for
attending its sessions and most OF them stay
away. Almost every report Of parliamentary
proceedings In Berlin Ia introduced with the re-
mark; "No quorum was present"
Tho Reichstag has 3o7 members. When ns
many as 100 arc present the newspapers emark
the unusual number. The average attendance
is about thirty.ivc or forty; fifty is a good
house, before which the stars OF parliamentary
oratory do not hesitate to shine. Efforts OF all
sorts have been made to remedy tho chronic alb
senteolsm. Semi-ofHcial dailies havo thundored
tho Emporor's displossure at the absentoes, but
these gentlemen have remained us Indifferent to
tho somi-oilcial big type as they are to the black
marks on the roll OF tho house. Tho newspapers
have printed the names Of tho worst offenders,
and assailed them with accusations OF laziness,
disloyolty, neglect Of pledges, and general cal.
lousncss to the duties OF citizenship. The social
roformcrs have pointed the finger OF scorn at tho
vacant Rcichstag benches as proof OF unworthi-
ness in high places. But all this has worked no
change. The Isei,hstag remains almost de-
serted week In and week out.
Tho Radicals soy that salaries alone will bet
tor the condition Of tho Reichstag. They adyo-
cate the repeal OF Article XXXII Of tho impe-
rial Constitution, which says that Deputies shall
not receive compensation OF any kind for thor
services. They think that most OF tho absentoos
are too poor to abandon business entirely for q
whole parliamentary session. and that thoy aro
kept away by the necessity Of earning u living.
and not by tho pursuit OF pleasure. They wish.
therefore, that every Deputy receive pay by the
day, say IS or -. The Radicals have boon harp
Ing on this for nearly thirty years now. They
were met and sllencod repeatedly by Bismarck
during the first twenty years of the empire.
Since Bismarck fell tho Federal Council has
buried the proposals that the Reichstag has bcen
The Federal Council is composed OF ENJOYS
from the individual German States or sover.
snytSinK SsieaIStao dd'u to- Increase se,t the iufin ra,e Of
ne hs,,. German IN P,. noor on lesisissti9 on, The Snv9Ss
Deputies would open the doors OF the Reichstag
70 the poorest and most democratic OF The popu.
lstion. The Radicals say however. that wha.
has already come TO pass, and that the forty
eigh, Social Democrsts in the Rsiehsi9g give
raey has " fund devoted to supporting in Berlin
those Social Democratic Deputies who are too
poor to pay their own expenses; IT. Is perhaps
the present Social Democratic system, the Social
Democracy has suffered less In Parliament from
hbsonteeism than any other party.
men Of the Roic6stae has been noteworthy for
the HUMOROUS SITUATIONS tnht IL nus PRODUCED.
Once the Deputies had passes on all the Prussian
railways, and not a few tried TO use these passes
often enough to render them equivalent TO small
salaries. A Social Democrat from Ssxony. for
Instance. would enter a sccond-clnss compart.
ment on a train for Leipzig every evening and
s'eep on the broad cushions until o o'clock the
next morning, being nconvcnicnced only by the
necessity OF changing cars In Leipzig for the re-
turn trip to Berlin. Thus for three years he
made his pass pay for his lodgings and spared
the expense Of keeping a room in the capital.
Tho election campaigns, moreover, always
brought to the railways about $50 deal.hcad
Deputies, who travelled free from meeting to
meeting throughout the election 'cring weeks.
Such deNelopil, MS VI the pass 81 stcm seemed
TO the German Government to be too advan-
tageous TO tho Social Democrats. The rich
Conservatives and National Liberals could pay
their way; they would electioncer Just as en-
ergcticalIy without passes ne with them, and
would return just as many Government support
ers; the Socialists and Radicals, however, would
feel keCnly a revocation OF the passes, would he
badly crippled in their camp ign work, and
probably would be unable to ndd their full
strength to tho opposition to the Government.
Consequently. the Government argued, tho pass
system should be abolished: and II was abo,.
ished. although without benefit Ia the Crown. as
the Socialists pay the expenses of their election
agents IA do the members vi ANY other party.
view OF the failure OF the existing system, n
schedule OF annual salaries or day wages may
ind favor In the eyes OF tho Federal Council
lors. This 10 not likely. The Federal Council.
lors are too close to the allied sovereign, OF the
empire 10 change in a generation their views
and methods in cases where the revolutionary
and tho republican forces are concerned.