The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-11-17
SPEAKERS POWER
WILL BE LESS.
Continued from Page one.)

interpreted to give the speaker power
to refuse to recognize a member. For
instance, Mr.. Reed would ask, For
what purpose does the gentleman rise?"
and If he did not like the answer, he
would refuse to permit the member to
speak With these words stricken out,
the speaker would have to recognize a
member demanding the floor If there
were no other member holding it. OF
course, if the member brought up mat
ter not germane to the discussion, he
could be suppressed, as now, by point
Of order; but the fact that he was not
speaking to the point would have to
develop itself in his speech, and an. ap-
peal against the point of order would
lie to the House instead of the whole
power to decide being lodged in an
autocratic speaker.
The present rule is not one Of the
Reed rules 1t was adopted in the
XLVIth congress by a number of lead
ers on both sides, who desired to mo-
nopolize the privileges of the floor. 1t
has always been easy for any promi-
nent member to secure the floor, pro-
vided no one else had It. Conse-
quently, to shut out the majority of
the members at the pleasure of the
speaker was to increase the opportu-
nifty Of the leaders and clinch their
leadership.
The second modification extends the
powers of the committee chairmen. AT
present, under call of committees, the
chairmen have the power to call up any
measures on the House calendar. 1t is
proposed to give them power to call any
measure on the union calendar as well,
and possibly on the private calendar.
Most OF the important measures, in
Guiding all appropriation bills, are on
the union calendar, while the bills Of
the House calendar are for the most
part comparatively insignificant.
NO LONGER TO DOMINATE THE
COMMITTEE.
The third proposed change will be to
reconstitute the committee on rules,
which is now composed of the speaker,
two democrats and two republicans.
The minority representation is a mere
farce at the best, and the committee
is really the speaker for he holds the
balance of power and can impose his
will. The new committee proposed is
to consist of five members, all repub-
licans. and the speaker is to be ineligi-
BILE. Probably the committee, unlike
other committees, will be elected by the
House instead of being named by the
speaker, and viii thus not be under his
personal domination, as at present. 1t
ing committee, except that it will be
clothed with all the powers of other
committees of the House.
So far as can be learned, there will
be no real attempt to change the only
two essentially Reed rules that the
House now has. The power of the
speaker to count a quorum is based on
common sense, and has been approved
by democrats as well as republicans,
and there will probably be no effort at
all to change it. If there be any, it will
be feeble. The right to refuse dilatory
| motions may be seriously attacked by
some of the democrats, but, if honestly
| administered, it is considered strictly
| justif1able by the republicans and many
| democrats. If any objection is made to
| it in framing the new rules, the objec-
ton will be q party one, and the rule
will stand especially as an appeal to
| the House lies against it, and the pow
| er of the speaker is not arbitrary.