Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1903-12-24
Little Holiday Leisure for
Statesmen at Washington.
New Business in Congress Exceeds
That Of Any Other Session.
Grand Army Pleased with President s
Appointments to Office.

standing the fact that it is a holiday
recess and many of the statements are
away from town. Every senator has
an Office either at the north end of the
Capitol building or in the Maltby, a
large brick building. just outside the
Capitol grounds. They go to these
offices to receive their mail, sign let
tiers, read the newspapers, and meet
friends. The majority of these sena-
torial offices are occupied from about
| 10 o'clock in the morning till 2 O'Clock
| in the afternoon. Over on the House
side members are not so well provided
with office room, but the chairmen of
committees nearly all go up to the
Capitol daily and they keep about the
same hours as the senators.
Speaker Cannon is one of them. He
has a private office of one room at the
east end of the rear lobby, now finely
| fitted in mahogany and in contrast to
the old fashioned fittings and walnut
| furniture of the days of Speaker Reed.
Like senators and like other members.
Mr.. Cannon has a little leisure. All
these men, apart from their duties,
have time to talk it over" There is
| a lot of exchanging of views. The Re-
publicans express themselves about
what the Democrats are doing, and the
Democrats express themselves about
what the Republicans are doing. Then
there is little speculation about what
will be done after Congress resumes.
The two parties have a big political
game to play in the next campaign.
The game really started when the extra
session convened in November. 1t will
| be played even more earnestly after
Congress resumes January 4.
OF course the theme uppermOSt just
at the present hour is the situation on
the isthmus of Panama. Conservative
men of both parties are hoping there
will be no conflict at short arms there.
The only cause for fear is that some of
| the hot headed South Americans may
precipitate trouble against the coun-
| ellis of careful men. But the over
| whelming sentiment in favor of a
canal voices praise for President Roose-
| Welt for his business-like conduct in
mastering the situation. The clamor
| on every hand is ito dig People want
| to see the excavation for the ditch be-
ing made and are tired of the long
drawn out negotiations and chickering's.
The Democratic opposition increases
| the Impotence.
| The business placed before both
houses of Congress thus far exceeds
! that placed before any other Congress
| in the history of the country. The
number of bills in both branches is
larger than the number introduced
during a similar period in any previous
congresses. The Senate has already,
| in round numbers, 5000 bills, and the
House 5000. Before the Congress eX-
pires March 4, 1905, this number will
! be doubled in both branches. OF course
| a large proportion of these bills are
private bills, many of them for PEN
sions and many of them for claims.
Half q dozen members from Southern
districts which We're ravaged terribly
during the Civil War probably present
| a tenth of all the bills in the House.
| There is no prospect of these bills, be-
coming law. Most of them are utterly
hopeless. But the bills are introduced
| as the easiest way to answer the in
uuiries of constituents as to what is
being done.
Speaker Cannon is quite an intro 1uoec
of bills, wherein he is a contrast to the
last Speaker Reed. On one day Mr.
Cannon has several times. this season,
introduced more bills than Mr.. Reed
introduced i'm an entire Congress. But
Mr. Reed was very chary of introduce
ing bills and never offered one unless
he believed it to be entirely worthy and
deserving of being enacted into law.
mere requests for introducing bill
We're not honored by him. On the
other hand the former Speaker. Col.
Henderson, introduced many bills for
his iowa constituents. Practically all
the bills that Mr. Reed introduced be-
came law, whereas a large portion of
those offered by Mr. Cannon and by
Mr.. Henderson have failed.
Representative Allen, the only MEM
Der of the Maine delegation in the
House who is staying in town over the
holidays. is trying to catch up with
his department work. In this Congress
Chairman Babcock of the District of
Columbia committee has put upon Mr..
Allen good deal of the work. Mr..
Allen save Mr. Babcock is the best
known in the District of Columbia, of
all the members of that committee, as
Speaker Cannon took off both the
Maryland members whose districts adj
join Washington. Therefore good
many of the local people who have
petitions to present or bills to introduce
go to Mr.. Allen. AS chairman of one
of the sub committees he has lots of
hearings to attend and, in fact, his
work on the District committee occu-
pied a lot of his time before the hOli-
day recess. Now he is trying to catch
up with the routine work for his dis
trict, for the local committee work will
be rushed as soon as Congress meets
again.
Louis A. Dent of this city, now the
register of wills for the District of
Columbia, who will be remembered in
Augusta by the old friends of Mr..
Blaine, is to be transferred to some
good position in the consular service.
He was for many years a confidential
secretary to Mr.. Blaine and has had
quite prominent career. He was con-
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