The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-03-20
CRITICISM OF MIR. BRYAN
Nebraskan Spoke Without
 Knowledge of the Plan.
Rumored That General Miles May Be Retired as Result of His Latest Tilt With the x
 President.
 -eFl

Washington, March 19-tSpcclALJ-io day brought no cessation of Democratic hostility to the plan of the House Com mittee on Rules to force through the Crumpacker tsmelling committed resolu- ton on suffrage in the Southern States.
 They declare it is the first step toward restrictive legislation against the south and the strongest determination to fight 1t has been form cd. In fact. the House Democrats will caucus for a policy of re- sistance, the call to be issued a day or two before the Republicans plan to bring the measure before the House.
 It. is a question if there are enough Re publIcans in the House favorable to the bin to pass 1t. A large number regard 1t as bad politics.
 One phase of the question which stirred the Southern Democrats yesterday was the telegram to The Post from w y. Bryan, in/which he expressed the opinion that there would be no particular harm in an investigation of suffrage. North as we'll as South The indignation is general and emphatic. The statement will go far to estrange whatever following Mir. Bryan has left in the South.
 The Post today prints interviews from leading representatives of Southern States. Mir Underwood of Alabama sharply criticizes -Bryan's statement. He says: .'
 MT. Bryan evidently made his state- ment without being conversant with the resolution. He assumes that 1t relates to investigation of fraudulent elections. As a matter of fact the resolution does not relate to election methods at all. and the committee, If appointed under It, would have no power to investigate elec- tions anywhere. The ,purpoSe Of the reso- luton is to investigate whether any states, by law or constltution,y have dis. franchised portion of the voters m vio. lation of the Fourteenth amendment. and this is the only. question, which the com niittee would have power and authority to investigate. Of course, ,the real pur- pose is to strike down representation in those Southern States which have abridged suffrage. without affecting rep resentation of the Northern States which, for many years, have done the snme thing" 70 ,.= ga.
 MT. Clayton of Alabama, in advocating a policy of resistance to the proposed measure, declares for the stoppage of House procedure by the Democrats He says: l.
 This act of the Republicans Is a decla- ration of hostilities. It is an effort to revive the era of sectionalism and sec tional hatred which thousands of good people have hoped was past. l favor re- sistance in the extreme, refusal of unan- imous consent, a constitutional vote on the approval of the journal and consti- tutional vote on all questions before the House. Also insistance that quorum shall always be present.
 "The Democrats of the South have treated the negro in his right to vote no more harshly than have the hepuDhcans of the North.
 Miles May Be Forced Out.
 General Miles's second rebum at the White House and the recent publica ton of the incident may be followed by the retirement of the old warrior by Roose- welt. It is said both the President and the Secretary of War are highly indignant that the story leaked out, and in con- sequence the President may exercise the law which allows him to retire an officer over the age of s. Miles reached that age last August, but unless sooner retired by Roosevelt, will continue his present office until August, 1903.
 It was nearly a month ago that Miles called on the President. laid n1re hi r'T'"0 to stop the war in the Philippines and received the second IT esidsn...-. ..-..-.' for his pains. There was an understand ing between the soldier and the President that the matter should be kept secret. Perhaps it would have been kept secret had not Henry Watterson. in general newspaper article last Saturday. referred to 1t In a paragraph. Then newspaper men here dug out the entire story. How the Kentuckian got the facts that Miles had been rebuked again is still secret. In view of the fact that the original pun lication represented that General Miles had been snubbed or severely reouked by the President, it Is not regarded as. a reasonable supposition that the tnforma- ton was made public by him, but rather hv some person or persons inimicai to his interests.
 Neither the Secretary of War nor Gen. eral Miles, nor, in fact. any of the lead ing officials of the War Department will say anything for publication in regard to the matter. It was learned from other sources. however, that the President ha' called for all the papers in the case and is considering the advisability of making them public, with a view to showing the facts and preventing further mlsunder- standing of the matter.
 Another rumor Is to the effect that the correspondence will be called for by one of the houses Of Congress unless 1t is made public voluntarily by the President There Is possibility that this latter course may be adopted, now that portion Of correspondence has leaked out as It Is understood that both sides are. equally willing that it should be made public
 Status of Canal Matte-- -.
 While the advocates in the Senate of the Nicaragua canal are making no enort to unduly press the Hepburn bill for con sideration. 1t is believed the bill VIII very st ,.;n Dass The bill has been favora- biy reported from the Committee on ' IS,er. Oceanic Canals by a vote of ten to four and is now on the , calendar; :,;,s # Y has been passed by the iiouS .,sn s.n z o.a nassed a bill once which was sub