The daily morning journal and courier., 1903-04-18

! Speaker Reed esta blished the rule that he would count all as present, whether 1 they answered to their names or not.
 I have always believed this was a just l and fair rule. It prevented the minori-
 fly from blocking legislation cy simply remaining in the house and refusing to act, or even answer. I am aware that much chitisism was made against Mir. Reed for this new rule, and some | went so far as to characterize his con- duct in framing and enforcing this, as ] that appropriate to a czar. I never
 could understand why his act in that matter was not fully justiiable. And
 Speaker Crisp, when the democratic party came into power, made use of the same rules.
 ] Under the present rules of the house, 1 1t is possible for the majority to ren-
 der the minority utterly powerless for good or evil in any legislation. So far
 as their efforts are concerned, Whenev- 1 CT the majority so wills, the minority might just as we'll beabsent as present of the majority see fit to enact legisla- tiOn without debate, and there is a great deal of legislation which passes
 the house with but very little debate whatever
 1 do not wish to be understood as ! saying that the greater part of legis- lation is put through under the whip and spur of the party in power. But
 to call attention to the power the ma | jority has to do so whenever it is so inclined, and believes that open and extended debate would be injurious to it, and these are the very measures which ought to be debated above all others. Legislation which will not stand the light of day and open debate, usually is not the best form of legisla- tion. But, on the other hand, if our
 rules permitted free and unlimited de-
 bate, as is permitted in the senate, de- bate would be so protracted that no | substantial headway in many instances would be made. The minority would, for the sake probably of making politi- cal capital or to get some political ad- vantage, consume much time to the de- l triment of needed legislation.
 To one first entering congress and
 noting these rules, they appear very ar
 bitrary and unfair and intended to de- prive the minority of it's rights, and this is the result in many instances, but as one sees the tendency of each party to secure as much as possible for itself without too strict a regard for the welfare of all, he is led to believe that while, in some respects, the rules work hardship upon the minority l members, yet, after all perhaps, they are as good as others which have been in force in that great deliberative body
 heretofore, or others which may be adopted hereafter.
 Congress is composed to-day, as it al- ways has been in all it's history, or honest. able, well-meaning, hard-work- ing, patriotic men. I believe the lower house of congress is the ablest delibe- rative body on earth, and when I say this, have not forgotten the grave and venerable enate, which occupies the chamber at the other end of the capi- tOl. Of course, of the nearly four hun dred members which now constitute the house, there are many men or ordinary ability who would not carry much | weight wherever their lot in life might take them, but I am speaking of and have in mind the whole as a body. Out of the less than four hundred members of tile house. I think there | could be selected to-day two senates of l ninety members each, which would compare most favorably with our pres
 ent senate, or it's predecessors, and I 1 believe this condition will continue un- til we elect our senators by popular
 vote rather than by popular and proli- fic contribution, as is too frequently done in many states.
 All that is said and done in the house
 is taken down verbatim and appears in the Congressional Record, a paper
 printed every day. The fact that each
 member realizes that whatever he says 1 is to appear in the record, to be read and scrutfnized by the public at large, | and to remain upon record for all time,
 makes him careful and thoughtful about what he says and how he says it, l and the speeches delivered are, in my | opinion, of a much higher order than l they would be were it not that record l is kept of them. But even with strong | incentive for careful, fitting and appro- | priate speeches, now and then some speeches are made not of the highest order or in the best taste.-Springfeld Republican.