The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-12-30
CONGRESS LACKS
BRAKE ON WORK
Weakness of the Minority Leaves
Majority Free to It's
Own Gait. Ill.
PROCEEDS ON BASIS OF
FIFTY-NINTH CONGRESS
Republicans Take Their Time to
Legislation, Knowing Demo-
Gratis PoWerless.
By w. w. Jermane.

BY w. w. Jermane.
Washington, Dec. 30.-The slowness
with which congress is moving at the
present session, and it's small record of
accomplishments up to the holiday re-
cess, is q characteristic sign OF the time.
1t means that the usual brakes on the
legislative wheels are either out of order
or in disuse. The republican leaders
find themselves in much the situation of
a coach driver whose horses are fresh
and vigorous, with drawstraps sound
and strong, but with a pole so slender
that were they to be suddenly checked
it might snap, and the brake itself so
twisted that it hardly clamped the wheel
would not get his horses to going at a
faster rate than he knew he could con-
troll.
The chief legislative brake is an alert
and well-disciplined minority. Fifteen
years ago, when the long sessions of
every advance movement Of the major
ity party, whichever it was, had to be
carried over, the bodies of a pugnacious
and determined minority. Recall the
struggle over the Sherman repeal, and
the tremendous delays in getting the Nc
Kinley and the Wilson bills thru con-
gress. Those were days in which it
took vigorous forward impetus to
carry any measure along. Party ma
members were kept we'll in hand the mi
nOrity would any day rush in to grasp
the power. Unlimited debate as means
of postponing legislation even unto
death was frequently utilized.
Minority Has Lost It's Snap.
Today the minority has lost it's snap.
It has no determined and aggressive pol
icy. Whenever a question comes up,
like the ship subsidy. the minority in the
senate feels compelled to hold a series
OF conferences to see what it's attitude
Mr.. German s efforts in the last con-
gress to secure caucus arrangement to
bind the. democrats together, went to
pieces mlserably on the single issue in
something - the Panama treaty = be-
cause of the: necessity of getting aitwo-
thirds vote in it's favor They went to
pieces on Wood s confirmation. They
begin the present session with no more
evidence of compactness of organization
or clearness of policy.
Basis of Fifty-ninth Congress.
Congress is practically doing business
today on the basis Of the fifty ninth con-
gress, with its overwhelming majority
In the house and it's more than sustained
majority in the senate, since everybody
knows that what is not accomplished in
the way to be desired now, could be- so
attended to. in that next congress-
Neither side Is likely to do anything ex-
always do business on the basis of q
tariff bill already enacted, before it has
actually gone into operation.
ms htty-nlnth congress basis lacks
another effective brake in the shape of
an insurgent minority of the majority
been defeated because certain wing Of
the dom inant party would split off.
Joining, forces with the minority. The
Randall democrats played this part on
the protection. question. The beet sugar
republicans of the house more recently
acted 1T on the Cuban reciprocity,
But in the Fifty ninth congress- the
republican majorities will be so large
that 1t is unreasonable to expect any
conserving influence to emanate from
the danger Of a fractional bolt. Broadly
speaking, any measure which could not
be defeated in republican caucus,
could not be defeated by insurgent re,
publicans on the floor, and this applies
to house and senate alike.
Power from a Split.
When the old subsidy bill passed the
senate, with six republicans voting
against it, 1t was argued that such a
detection would represent in the house
enough republicans to bring about it's
defeat That was doubtless true, altho
the test never came. No such defec-
ton would prove effective in the Fifty
ninth congress. Any subsidy bill that
secured the support of the republican
caucus and of Speaker Cannon would 90
thru the house with a rush. Therefore,
the republican leaders can look neither
to the minority to save them from any
of their own blunders, nor to minority
of their own party.
The Reed rules which have been vir.
tually retained ever since his day
greatly facilitate the speed of legisla,
cial brakes. Before these rules were
invoked the possibilities of filibustering
in the house had to be reckoned with on
q decisive measure, as we'll as in the
senate. Today the members Of the
house can be led up to vote on any ques
ton at any hour which the dominant
influences demand. Nobody wants to
would pass the Fifty-ninth congress
were they ever to reach vote. Scores
of members habitually rush into the
speaker $ room to implore him not tc
let bill come up, since were it to dc
so, they would be compelled to vote fol-
it. They want that intangible some
thing, known as the house leadership
winch QO6S not run III Lnelf u1SCr1CCS &c
stop the follies which they dare not
check.
The personality Of Mr.. Cannon thus
becomes an extremely serviceable ele
ment in shaping future developments
The things which he can be persuaded
to allow to come up, reasonably con
sistent with republican doctrine will &c
thru the house with sweep, In the
senate, with it's almost two-thirds ma
iority, measures will proceed very easily
whenever the leaders decide to allow
the legislative chariot to move on
Hence the caution with which they viii
watch it's getting into real momentum
SLOT MACHINES SEIZED.
N Chief Of Police O'Connor of st. Pau
yesterday seized a dozen slot machine
Z FROM cigar StOreS The machines wer