The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1898-12-02
our WASHINGTON LETTER.

there VIII OF course be quorum OF both
Senate and House present when Vice
President Hobart and Speaker Reed call
the respective bodies over which they
preside to order on next Monday The
main reason why members of Congress
are slow to reach here this year is that
there is neither Speaker nor any officer
of the House to be elected. AT the be-
ginning of term of Congress, when a
Speaker and all the elective officers of
the House are to be chosen, members
flock here days in advance of the date of
assembling to logroll and be logrolled in
respect to the Speaker and chief officers
of the House, but once the organization
IS effected as a rule it remains undis-
turbed throughout the term. There
have been exceptions, however. Henry
Clay resigned the Speakership twice, at
the second session of the Thirteenth Con-
gress, January 10, 1914, to go as one Of
the peace commissioners who brought the
war OF 1912 to close by the treaty of
Client, and again during the Sixteenth
Congress in 1920. Clay was succeeded
the first time he resigned by Langdon
Cheves of South Carolina, and the
second time by John w. Taylor of New
York. Andrew Stevenson Of Virginia,
who was chosen Speaker in four success
sive Congresses, resigned at tae first ses-
sion of his last term in the Twenty third
Congress, June 2, 1884, and was succeed
ed by John Bell of Tennessee. No
| Speaker since Stevenson has resigned.
When the Democrats in 1874 elected a
majority of the House for the first time
after 1S56-in the Fifty-fourth Congress
they chose Michael Kerr of Indiana
as Speaker. He was in bad health and
unable to preside good deal of the time,
finally dying on August 10, 1876, four
days after the first session of the Forty
fourth Congress had expired. During
Mr.. Kerr's enforced absences Samuel S.
Cox of New York was elected as Speaker
pro tempore part Of the time and Mil
ton Sayler of Ohio a part of the time, but
at the beginning of the second session
Samuel J. Randall of Pennsylvania was
elected Speaker. Randall was elected
Speaker in the Forty-fifth and Forty
sixth Congresses also.
| New Jersey, by the way, has had two
Speakers of the House. Jonathan Day
ton during the Fourth and Fifth Con-
crosses and William Pennington during
the Thirty-sixth Congress. This was
Mr.. Pennington's only term in Congress.
He was chosen as a compromise candi-
date after the Republicans had struggled
for two months to elect John Sherman,
who was their caucus nominee. A hand
full of Southern Wings held the balance
of power and they refused to support
Sherman because he had without knowl-
edge of its contents subscribed for Hin
ton Rowan Helpers celebrated book,
'sThe Impending Crisis, which was an
industrial attack upon slavery. Besides
Frederick A. Muhlenberg of Pennsyl-
vania, who was Speaker of the First Con-
gress, and Henry Clay, Mr.. Pennington
is the only man who ever was elected
Speaker of the House during his first
term in that body.
Occasionally one of the elective Off
GERS of the House has resigned. Back in
the Twenty eighth Congress the clerk,
Caleb J. McNulty of Ohio, was dis
missed January 10, 1845. In the Forty
fourth Congress the Democrats elected as
doorkeeper Lafayette H. Fitzhugh of
Texas. Fitzhugh lost his head when the
Democrats came crowding about him in
droves seeking places for their constitu-
ents. He wrote letter to supposed
friend in which he made the idle and
illiterate boast that he was ssa bigger
man than old Grant," the latter being
then, President. The supposed friend
quarreled with Fitzhugh and in revenge
gave the foolish letter to the press.
Ridicule was heaped upon the Democrats
from one end of the country TO the other,
and because of it they fred Fitzhugh.
From these instances it will be seen that
the organization of the House affected at
the beginning Of Congress does not
always endure throughout the entire
term, but that effected at the beginning
of this Congress will last to the end.
The currency reformers have two dis
tinct plans in view, the one to secure leg
islation at this session if possible, the
other to secure the calling of an extra
session of the Fifty-sixth Congress- if it
be found impossible to pass currency
reform bill at this session. 1t is perfect
~ safe to prophesy their failure to pass
their bill at this session. Fl. Fl. Hanna,
chairman of the Monetary Reform Com
mittee, appointed by the Indianapolis
conference. says that the essential points