Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1903-11-28
LBY H. ]. MAHIN.l

Washington, D. c., Nov. 27.-What
the house does today will decide whe-
ther or not the chasm now separating
the senate and house is to disappear
or whether this condition. almost un-
PARALLEL in the history OF congress is
to drag out the special session. The
house has been greatly angered by the
senate's failure to dispose of the Cub
an reciprocity treaty during the spe-
cial session,-the only measure that the
session was called for. BY some it
was c1nsiGi ed l. direct sian at the
President, by others scheme to help
the sugar trust and sugar SPECTATORS
to some profits. However, it is gener-
ally understood that today the house
will join with the senate and adjourn
the extra session choosing to regard it
as triumph for the President that the
democrats in the senate were forced
to agree to vote on q certain date
when they could, if they chose, have
prolonged the matter for weeks and
even months by dilitory tactics.
This statement that the President
has won victory is beyond question.
The house did its duty in the matter
so well that the congressman thought
the senate should do more, but senate
rules are much different from those in
the house. The house can limit de-
bate and set a time for vote while
the senate cannot. Even a very
small minority in the senate could, as
long as they could put up members to
talk, keep question from coming to
vote in the senate That body is Am
erica's greatest example of the princi-
pal of free speech upon which this ma
tion is founded Senator Allison him
self feels that the senate has done well
to accomplish what it has and he in
company with Senator Aldrich called
on Speaker Cannon the other night to
try and convince him that nothing else
could be done and that an adjourn
ment of the special session at an early
day was advisable. 1t is thought that
the house may, today, decide to ad-
journ on next Monday.
The breach between the house and
senate has been pretty wide and there
was considerable hard feeling. s'Uncle
Joe" Cannon was mad through and
through at the action of the senate.
When the writer saw him on the even
| ing after the senate had decided to ad-
journ he relapsed into irony to express
his feelings. "Of course, he said,
those unsophisticated gentlemen in
the senate never thought that if they
ratified the Cuban treaty tomorrow the
profit resulting from the twenty per
cent reduction in duty would be divid-
ed between the planters of Cuba and
the middlemen whereas if they ratify
| 1t month from now the planters will
in the meantime be compelled to let
go of their stock and the middle man
laIN will n1y
this is such an important thing that
in the former treaty President Palma
made it a condition that the matter
should be passed before December 1.
That clause fortunately is not in this
treaty. OF course" concluded Mr..
Cannon, "as l said, the senate never
thought of this but as believe it saws
in the Bible, 1t is well to avoid all ap-
\ pearance of evil."'
Even state delegations were on the
outs over the question and many anus
ing controversies were INDUCED in A
certain Iowa congressman and an To-
wa senator had it out in the latter's
committee room recently, somewhat
as follows:
Congressman: "You fellows simply
laid down on the mater. l think some
of yoa are taking rap at Roosevelt
and others are helping out the sugar
trust"
Senator: You are wrong, we did
well to get a vote at ALL How is the
! trust being helped. The treaty will
surely so into effect. 1t will be rati-
fed December l6 and become a law
ten days later, regular Christmas
gift to the Cubans. They know this
and they don't have to sell their crops
! till the duty comes OFF. :"
Congressman: They do not have
Ito but they viii. Many Of the fsnoraut
Farmers will not understand the state