Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-11-24
TREASURY WATCHO0CS
Chairman Of Appropriations
Committee.
Mr.. CANNON'S TROUBLE
TO SELECT ONE FOR THE COMING
SESSION.
Several Names Mentioned - Some
Stories as to Former Holders
Of the Place.

Aside from great matters of legislation
over which the entire country is concerned,
interest in the coming session of Congress
seems to center just now about the vacant
craftsmanship of the committee on appro-
priations Speaker Cannon is giving the
matter his earnest consideration, but an
nouncement of his selection will probably
not be made much before the Christmas
holidays. Representative Burton of Ohio,
Representative Tawney of Minnesota and
Representative McCleary of Minnesota are
most frequently mentioned in connection
with the vacancy and perhaps Tawney in
the guessing has a shade the better pros
poets, and may be the next watchdog OF
the treasury"
1t seems to be the popular idea that the
chairman of the committee on appropria-
tons ought to be, and is, watchdog In
all that the name implies And 1t is true
that those who have won this title have
done 1t more by their vigilance in fighting
on the floor of the House raids upon the
public treasury than in the mere framing
of money bills. Holman of Indiana was the
best-known watchdog, but not the first,
and Mr.. Cannon during his several terms
as chairman of the appropriations commit
tee was something of that canine breed
himself.
The first watchdog of the treasury, that
is, the first chairman of the committee on
appropriations who was thus popularity
branded by reason of the office he held,
was Enhu B. Weshburne of Illinois, who
was chairman of the committee in 1857.
The committee on appropriations was Or
ganized in 1868, when Schuyler Colfax was
Speaker of the House Its first chairman
was Thaddeus Stevens of Pennsylvania, to
whom Speaker Colfax gave the choice of re-
naming on the committee on ways ana
means, which at that time had charge OF
appropriations for government expenditures,
or going at the head of the new committee.
Stevens chose the latter.
He was succeeded in turn in the chair
manship by Washburne, H. l.. Dawes of
Massachusetts and James A. Garfield OF
Ohio-all republicans. Then came William
s. Holman of Indiana and j. d. {. Adkins
of Tennessee-democrats Then Frank His
cock of New York, republican, who was sue
ceeded by Samuel j. Randall of Pennsylva-
MIA, democrat. Then Cannon had the chair
manship, and after him Holman again.
Then J. D. Sayers of Texas democrat, then
Cannon again, and then the honor fell to
Hemenway, whose elevation to the upper
house of the national legislature created
the existing vacancy.
In this connection 1t is Interesting to note
the singular fact that If Mr.. Hemenway
had been allowed to have his own way
when he first came to Congress he would
it's most important committee. When he
came to the House of Representatives
Thomas B. Reed was Speaker, and to him
Mr.. Hemenway applied for place on the
committee on rivers and harbors, believing
that was the place he could do the most
valuable work for his constituents and
most surely win reputation.
The Late Speaker Reeds Remark.
There was great pressure upon Reed at
that time for places upon the rivers and
harbors committee, and he was unable to
place the Indiana man there. Eventually he
landed him at the foot of the appropriations
committee, and 1t was long time before
Mr. Hemenway and his friends were recon-
ciled to the Speakers decision. Mr.. Reed
was somewhat surprised that they did not
at once see the desrablity of the place that
had been assigned to the new member from
hoosierdom, and it was the discussion of
this appointment that led the Speaker to
make the remark, SO widely quoted after
ward, that Some people have to be kicked
UPSTAIRS
The pressure upon a chairman of the ap-
proprlat1ons committee is very great, and
If man who Is complacent and ready to
accept the estimates of all the government
officials and listen to all the appeals of
congressman with all sorts of wildcat
propositions for the benefit of their con-
it the money bills would grow to such
enormous proportions that no party would
be able to stand by them
An Illustration of the sort of demands
that are made on this committee Is found
in the story that Speaker Cannon when
chairman of the committee ~appropria-
tons, used to tell with regard to the re-
port of the alleged wasteful extravaganza
of Prof. Langley of the Smithsonian In
stituton with his flying machine expert
ments.
Speaker Cannon's Story.
Away back in my school days we used
to study the spectrum said Mr.. Cannon.
"You know the yellow, blue, orange and all
the other colors refracted by the suns
rays when they pass through prism. got
mighty interested in 1t all, but what
saw and what all the other scholars in
my school saw didn't complete the brilliant
exhibit of what the do. I now
with a whole lot of equally unseeable
things, are well known to scientists, and
that the science of the unseeable Is con-
monty called the astrophysical.
Several years ago a scientist-Tm not
mentioning names-in the government en-
pIoy obtained an appropriation of $4,000
for the study of astrophysical science. /
asked him what he meant by astrophysi-
cal And what do you thing he told me !?
""Why,' he said, metaphysical is the
study of the SUMS rays behind the red
Think Of 1t. Eighteen thousand of the
governments good hard money for the
What a campaign for spendthriftness."
What are the SUMS rays behind the
red? ! asked.
"'Why. the colors of the spectrum out
side Of the red, the man of science re-
piled.
"'Can you see 'em?' asked.
mo he replied, but / think I could
| IL had the S1S,000.' "
Mr.. Cannon gave the scientist the $4,000
| to see the rays behind the red because it
| was a comparatively small amount of
| money and because Mr.. Cannon thinks
| that while scientific gentlemen are, as a
| rule, not very practical, occasionally when
/ fooling around with the spectrum or an air.
| ship or something else they make a valu-
| able find behind the red" something that
| It Is to the interest of the public to know
| and which could not otherwise be OBJ
| tanned
A Simple Proposition.
| The above is just a sample of the
| propositions that are put at the appropria-
| lions committee, only there are others
| which haven't anywhere near as much
merit. And that is just why the chairman
| of this important committee must In truth
| be a watchdog of the treasury alert and
| on guard at all times. Regulations have
| been won and lost at the head of the
| appropriations committee, and the gentle
| man who is selected by Speaker Cannon