The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1899-05-06
TOM REEDS NEW DEPARTURE


, the measures then proposed by his party.
was not the only thing for which Speaker
Reed was contending. He was making a.
| fight in support of the principle that the
| majority of the house of representatives
should exercise its power - transact
business. and that it should accept full
responsibility for the way in which it
exercised that power. He made it i'm
| possible for the majority to excuse itself
! for failure to act or to justify wrong
| ton on the ground that the obstructive
| tactics of the minority prevented action
| or on. yelled actor for which the major.
| ity would not take responsibility.
Mr. Reeds own estimate of the work
which he had done was summed up in
| few sentences OF the speech which ne
made at the close of the sFifty-hrst con-
gress, when the Democrats refused to
join in the usual vote OF thanks to the
| speaker. He said: sf.sEss
| ''Confident, as I am, of the verdict OF
time on what we have done. 1 am still
more confident that ~ the highest com
n1endation will be given us in the future
not for what measures we have passed
valuable as they are but because we
have taken a long stride in the direction
of popular government. Having demon
| strated to the people that those who have
been elected to do their will can do it.
henceforth excuses will not be taken for
performances and government by the peo-
Complete vindication and triumph came
when, as result of the obstructive tao
tics which he, as leader of the Reoubh-
can minority, carried out, the Democrats
in the Fifty-third congress, presided over
by Speaker Crisp, we're compelled to adopt
the same principle for which he had con-
tended throughout the Fifty-first con-
gress.
More than this, Mr.. Reed remained in
congress long enough to see the bitter
ness engendered by the struggle of the
Fifty-first congress completely 'obliterat-
ed, and when he laid down the gavel at
the end of the Fifty-fifth congress. after
his appreciative reply to. the address
which Mr.. Bailey of Texas, made in NOV
ing the vote of thanks, it can well be-
questioned whether he was not even more
popular personally on the Democratic side
than on the Republican side.
In fact, there had been much disSatiS-;
faction with his course on the Republican,
side His autocratic rule over his own
party, which was submitted to almost
without murmur when it was appreci-
ated in the Fifty-first congress that only.
by the strictest discipline on the Repub-l
lican side could the Democrats be de-
feated, grew more and more irksome in
subsequent congresses.
A feature of the Reed rules" that was
priced by the man from Maine almost as
dearly as the principle of counting
quorum was the provision which gave
practically autocratic power to the COM;
mittee on rules, of which the speaker
was chairman, and which he dominated.
This committee had, in practice, almost
absolute control over the business of the!
house, and although the speaker would
! reply to such storms of protest as would
occasionally break out in the house BY
reminding the body that it had made it's
own rules and that a majority could UNI
make them, he was very careful to see
that the majority never had an opportu..
nifty to unmake them. 7tse. I;
This is one of the 'Reed rules" that
| will probably be changed, for, as al
thoughtful member of the house said tot
me one day, 1T is safe to intrust such
power to man of such scrupulous per-
sonal honesty as Mr.. Reed, but the danger
IS that the house may some day have a
speaker with all the strength of will Of
Mr.. Reed combined with dishonesty and
unscrupulousness."
Mr.. Reed will be sixty years OLD on the
1eth OF next october. His family con-;
sists of his wife and one daughter. Miss
Kitty. The latter is a vivacious young,
lady, who tnherits many of her fathers.
characteristics.
With the retirement of Mr. Reed will
vanish, doubtless, the disproportiorate I'M
nuence which the comparatively unim-;
portant State of Maine has exerted during
the decade just past in national politics!
he is the third to retire of that famous;
quartet of congressmen--Reed, Dngley.t
Boutelle and Miliken-which so long and;
ably represented that remote corner of
New England in the house.
All these men cut a figure in congrcss
Tar out or proportion to the politica. i'm
portance of their constituencies In
Maine none of the conditions obtain which
sometimes make single state a moving,
power IN the national party machine;
Since the organization of the Republican;
party as it is now constituted the state.
has never wavered in it's allegiance. Elec-.
ton after election it returns brutal ma
jorities. More than this its ELECTORAL
vote is comparatively insignificant. Party
managers have, therefore, never found it,
necessary to placate Maine statesmen fori
political reasons, nor to resort to custom;
airy measures to hold the state in the Re-;
publican column. Names few votes were,
always to be had for the asking.
In view OF these facts, the explana ton,
must lie in the extraordinary personality.
OF the Maine men in the house of repre-.
sentatives. Naturally, Thomas B. Reed
ranks as the leader, but his above named,
associates were all men Of ability and
strong character. All of them learned
legislative rudiments in the halls of their
native state, and once N congress their.
districts returned them term after term;
until accommodating experience increased
and broadened their political perspective
'Miliken was serving his eighth term
when death removed him, and DingleyI
was in his ninth. If Mr.. Reed finishes
the term to which he was elected last
fall, hc will have served twenty-five,
years. and Boutelle has been in congress-
about fifteen years. sr- .a
All of these men served with distinctiOn.i
and each placed his mark upon some con-
ispicuous point in the congressional calen7
idar. 1t became saying that Maine legis4
Hated for the ma tion
/ The death of Seth L. Milliken two years
,ago made the first break in the notable
quartet. Nelson Dingley was the next
ito succumb, but not before he had stamp
led deep heel and toe mark into the
sands of time. Mr.. Reeds withdrawal
Twill leave Charles A. Boutelle the isolat-
Jed remnant of Names "Big Four" The
linen who have succeeded Milliken and
Dingley, and also Reeds successor, who
ever he may be, may have ability, but
they will hardly be able to maintain the
standard set by their eminent predecess-
ors. Especially will Reeds retirement
leave vacuum almost impossible to
fill. The same state scarcely produces
two such political giants in the same dec
sGe.
J In coming to New York to hew out
fortune after he has failed to find one in
the alluring field of national politics, Mr..
Reed has followed the example of many
famous predecessors. Men of ability from
iiall parts of the country, having assembled
ITO fame by means of the political lad
der, seem to recognize in the great me-
tropolis the true field or money making
endeavor ard the secure platform upon
which to build enduring reputation. Gro
yer Cleveland u.s. perhaps the most illus
trious example. At the conclusion Of his
first term as president, and having failed
6f reelection. he entered upon the prac-
tice of law in New York city. Although