Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1902-12-15
FIST FIGHT MARKS
CLOSE Of
HOUSE
ASSISTANT DooRKEEPER TRIED
TO PUT MEMBER FROM 5ER-
RIEN IN HIS SEAT, AND
MEMBER OBJECTED.

desks by another member, slamming OF
desks, cat calls and ending up with COM
nittee Of FIVE, marked the close of the
house Of representatives Friday night
The house adjourned about Zoo o'clock
Saturday morning, after allowing use OF
the public property fund. which had been
fought of until the wee small hours OF
the morning.
The hour Of adjournment, as shown By
the journal of the house was II O'Clock,
but the hour OF adjournment, as shown
by the electric time clock in the hail. was
2:55. slight discrepancy of three hours.
1t was just before Adjournment that the
scenes Of disorder which had been marring
the entire session reached its climax in
a personal fight between one of the as
sistant doorkeepers, Clayton Robson, and
]. z. Knight the member from the coun-
ty of Berlfeh. This scene was one OF
the most sensational that has been wit
messed in the house of representatives in
many years, and led to the appointment
of a committee to investigate the fight
The use Of the public property fund,
which had been fought OF by the house
until the closing hours of the session. was
the cause OF the fight. The senate had
instructed all Of its conference commit
tees to announce to the house committees
that the higher branch OF the general as
sembly would not for one moment swerve
from its determination of using the
money in the treasury which was there
to pay the public debt. The senate want
ed this money used to pay the interest
on the public debt but the house thought
the money should not be used.
Mr.. Knight, OF Berrien, arose to point
| of order. He stated his point to Speaker
Morris, who was in the chair, and the
speaker refused to see it as the member
from Berrien saw. IL, and overruled the
point In overruling the point Of order,
Mr.. Morris said:
THE point is overruled. The gentleman
from Berrieh win take mis- seat
The previous disorder in the hail. and
the inability of the present doorkepers to
preserve even the semblance Of order In
the house. had caused Speaker Norris to
ask Clayton Robson, his secretary, to as
sist the doorkeepers. and had ordered the
,doorkeepers and their assistants TO see
that members kept their seats,
When Mr.. Knight was ordered to take
his seat he was extremely slow in obeying
the order of the chair His seat is at the
rear Of the hall. just in fiont of the door
keeper, and Mr.. Robson, acting, as he
| thought, under orders from the chair,
took hold of might and tried to force him
to take his seat. Knight resisted and in a
moment the doorkeeper and the member
from Berrien county were mixing up,
Robson In his efforts 10 place knight in
Berrien county has elected him. and
| Knight in an effort to keep out Of the
chair.
II, took about minute for the situation
to dawn upon. the members OF the house.
and then several of them began TO execute
divers and sundry flank movements and
end runs In an effort to get at the bellig-
erents Mr.. Deal, of Bulloch. buclxed CEN
ter and hurdled the line, leaping. ninbly
| from the top OF one desk TO another like
a channels In its native Alps. On his
| head Mr.. Deal wore his hat. In his hand
he carried a bludgeon which might have
| passed as walking stick: In his eye
there was blood. His long black hair
waved out merrily to the breezes as he
made his perilous journey to the scene
of action at the front.
A large number of the members from
the rural districts whose desks are in
the rear Of the hall, dived low into the
scrimmage, and the hostile member from
Berrien and the assistant doorkeeper
were separated from their fond and bear
| like embrace.
Judge Akin, OF Barlow, and half dozen
| other members were on their feet in
stantly, clamoring for recognition, but
Speaker Morris refused to recognize any
\ of them until order was restored. or at
least a semblance OF order, for Of order
there was none.
| Joe Hill hail. from DIDO Wd1 LAAC HIcN
member TO secure recognition from the
chair.
'1Gr. Speaker he thundered, and his
voice grew Hnighteous IN his wrath, "a
member of this house has been grossly
| insulted on the floor of the house by per-
son who Is not a member. ] move that
| a committee Of five be appointed TO inves-
| tigate this affair, and ascertain what steps
we should take to bring the offender to the
| bar Of this house"
Speaker Morris, before putting the ques-
l ton, said that Mr.. Robson had acted with
| out instructions ingthis instance. and that
| as ne had done so he would be suspended
for the remainder Of the session He
| said that the doorkeeper or sergeant-at-
arms should only force a member to take
his seat when he had been ordered to use
such force by the speaker.
The motion of Mr.. Hall was adopted
| without dissenting vote. Mr.. Morris ap-
| pointed on this committee Messrs. Hall.
| Akin, Mitchell, Slaton and George. The
committee went into secret session to as
| certain what punishment should be meted
out to the offender, and the house passed
a resolution, providing for the use Of the
public property fund. Mr.. Hail. the bitter
est opponent OF the use Of this fund, was
| out with the committee.
The adjournment sine die was put on
until the Lexow COMMITTEES had made its
/ report. EnCrLiy dITeT 1scO . ClOCA the
vestigation committee. through its chair
man. Mr.. Hall, Of Bib. reported its find
fngs TO the house. This report demanded
an apology from Robson, both to the
house ana to Knight, of Berrien, for his
action in trying to force the representa-
tive from out OF the county of Berrien to
take his seat, when the aforesaid member
did not desire to be seated.
Robson at once came to position IN
front of the speakers desk. and In a manly
and STRAIGHTFORWARD manner he apollo
gfzed. He stated in brief that when he at
tempted TO force Mr.. Knight into his seat
he thought he was acting under specinc
instructions from Speaker Morris, adding
that he had acted under misapprehen-
sion.
Upon motion of Mr. Fielder. of Bib. his
apology was unanimously accepted by the
members of the house.
Knight, of Berrien, then addressed the
chair and stated that the apologies Of the
doorkeeper were entirely satisfactory to
himself
The house adjourned at 2:55 Saturday
morning, upon passage of a joint resolu-
ton by Representative Fielder. from BiDb-
Robson said that, in Justice TO himself
he desired to state that he had been acting
as the speakers secretary and that Speak
er Morris had requested him to aid the
doorkeepers in their efforts to keep the
members in something like order. He said
he believed he had done only what he had
been ordered to do by the speaker.