The National tribune., 1903-12-03

| Cleveland took to the swamps of Virginia
| BY the way, the burly ex-President is vio
| latins the law of Virginia in hunting win
out license. which the law of that State
requires and there seems to be no oificla
| with backbone enough to tell him so. The
fee is only SO. If it was some poor
negro. now, my, but wouldn't he catch 1t
The President certainly does have a
hard time of it over his dinner guests. lie
invited Booker Washington TO lunch one
day, and the South has nearly declared
war over it. He extended the courtesy OF
breaking bread with him to some hlgn
Catholic prelates. and the Protestant
world nearly had fits. He ate barbecued
OK with some cowboys, while on his
Western trip, and society suggested ostra-
cizng him. One day last week he IN
vite6 to dine with him some miners from
Butte, Montana and they came all that
distance TO accept the invitation. Now the
miners of Montana or some OF them at
least. have repudiated those who dined
at the White House. and are threatening
all sorts of dire things to them and the
President.
Now. as the President pays for his own
grub, it really does look ut though he
might ask whom he pieases to help him
dispose of it.
There is something really pathetic in the
case of Senator Morgan. He is n man of
far more than ordinary ability. but at IS
years of age, after a service of almost ~
years in the United States Senate, he
finds himself failing in strength. and that
he is being pushed aside for younger men.
Senator Morgan began to talk on the
canal question last Tuesday week. but af-
ter three hours of continuous speaking.
found himself unable to stand longer. and
craved permission of the Senate TO speak.
sitting. OF course this was granted. for
everybody honors Senator Morgan, but
there were many of the older men there
who had served with Senator Morgan for
almost a generation. and they felt that it
was sad hour for the sturdy old Sena-
tor, who but session or two ago held
the palm for the longest continuous
speech on record.
Senator Morgan occupies the seat in the
Senate Chamber that was filed by Sena
tor Morton. of Indiana, who made all his
speeches while sitting, being unable to
stand upon his feet and by Senator
Brown, of Georgia, who had also an in
trinity which made it necessary for him
to speak while sitting.
Some have wondered if the displacing
of Senator Morgan from the Craftsmanship
of the Committee on InterOceanic
Canals might not have broken his spirit.
He has been at the head of that Com
mittee for many years. Senator Hanna
has now succeeded him. Senator Morgan
said as he sat down to finish his speech.
MY old limbs are getting as shaky as
the Republican Party in the presence of
truth" 1t is the first time that he has
ever been heard to admit that his pow
ers were failing.
Everybody expected that there would be
something doing when Mr.. Cannon became
Cannon has been objecting to the manner
in which the Senate undertook to boss the
House. While he was Chairman of the
great House Committee on Appropriations.
he kept things between the two Houses
of Congress bubbling. The Senate has
arrogated to itself the right of recent
years to amend the Appropriations bill in
any old way it pleased. Now the law as
laid down in the Constitution says that
all bills for revenue, and consequently
all appropriations of money shall originate
in the House 1t is well known fact
that the United States Senate has a sly
way of making amendments to that bill
when it gets over to them which makes
the appropriations of the House look like
30 cents and quarter. The Senate even
makes appropriations for perfectly new
and bandly sends the same
back to the House for concu renee.
In years past and gone, Mr.. Cannon has
vigorously, emphatically, and all but pro-
fanely objected to this kind of legisla-
ton. He has always declared that it was
and that if he were
Speaker of the House he would never sub
NIT to it. Mr.. Canonn Is now in posi-
ton to dictate to the Senate, and it looks
nightly as though he was doing it. The
Senate would like to adjourn, and it might
as well, for it is not going to do any bust
ness at all, but the House faxed it no."
three days at time without the consent
of the other. Mr.. Cannon is of the opin-
ion that as Congress was called in extra
ordinary session to do certain thing that
it would be discOurteous to adjourn until
that object is accomplished. The House
promptly passed the Cuban Reciprocity
bill. and Mr.. Cannon thinks that as the
Senate is already on record in favor of
such bill the very least it can do, il it
get to work and pass the bill. and then
both Houses can adjourn until Dec. T.
The Senate. however, has decided not to
vote until the meeting of the regular ses-
sion.
"All right" says Mr.. Cannon. "my
House has lots of work of routine char
acter to do and We will jnst go ahead
and do it." The House of Lords got an
awful jolt when it learned that the House
had really decided to buck against the
Senate, and force that body to ask the
House to adjourn, or to stay in session.
1t isn't used to it, don't you know. But
Mr.. Cannon is autocrat just now. and as
long as the House stays with him he can
boss the whole push.
The struggle which seems imminent be-
tween the House and Senate is a aues-
tiOn of prerogative not merely as old as
the Government, but as old as the race.
1t is one which we inherited from Eng
land along with our other political insti-
tutions. The Commons always had to
pay the bulk of the taxes, and finally they
insisted that their representatives should
be consulted by the King and Lords be-
fore any taxes were imposed.
At first they were only allowed to ap-
pear before the King and House of Lords
on bended knees and humbly present their
views. As their wealth and Importance In
the Kingdom grew, they insisted on be-
ing treated with more consideration, and
finally gained the point In the course of
centuries that all questions of taxation
must be referred to them, and they would
devise the ways and means for furnish
ing the King with the money he reouirad