The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1905-01-20
WASHINGTON.
Legislative and Gem
eraI Topics from
the Capital.
January IA, 1905.

Congress in special session. which
has been authOritatively although
not officially made, has occasion
ed CONSERVATION in the Senate
where the old line, conservative
leaders regard every proposition
having for its purpose the extern
sion OF Federal control over the
railroads of the country as $50
claiiStic" and abhOrrent. Senator
ElklnS, chairman of the commit
tee which has to deal with this
class of legislation, and who
loves to see his name in the public
press as champion of railway
reforms, but who is always to be
found placing obstacles in the
path of any real reform, is in
open rebellion and plainly init.
mates that the special session
VIII accomplish nothing. "You
may lead a horse to water but
You ca u make him drink is
his favorite mode of declaring
that nothing will be accom-
plIShed. Meanwhile he protests
that legislation of Importance
can be effected at the regular
session of Congress and then
wastes all the time of the com
mlttee in giving clearing" to
the representatives of the rail
ROAD interests, to crankS. and, i'm
TACT to any one who will kill time
ana secure notice of the COM
mlttee and its chairman in the
newspapers.
There is no doubt in the minds
OF those in position closely to
observe that the Republican adj
mlnlStratiOn is in u very delicate
SITUATION. War to the knife he
tween the President and the ma
Jorltles in both houses of Con
greSS is likely to break out at any
moment and if it does the major
lty III the House after the Fifty
ninth Congress is certain to be
Democratic. Meanwhile t he
Democratic press is contributing
It's ample share to the straining
relations between the President
and the Republican leaders and
bis lmpetuOus even if sincere.
efforts to accomplish legislation
which will promote "the square
deal" are proving constant
thorn in the sides of the ponder
Gus statesmen who constitute
the conservative element in the
Republican party.
Every once in while the
President makes real break, as
IN the case of the letter he sent
to Senator CullOm regarding the
arbitration treaties. The consid
GRAFTON of these treaties is execu
tive business of which the public
is supposed to know nothing and
yet, with a frankness which
proved shock to the old fogies,
the President not only sent the
letter referred to, but took pains
to make it public, furnishing it
to every newspaper man who
called at the White House and
asked for a copy. When Mr..
Roosevelt makes these little slips
the amount of enjoyment it af-
fords the Democratic Senators
is unlimited and they never fail
to take occasion to rub it inn to
their Republican colleagues.
There is still grave doubt that
the arbitration treaties can be
ratified without amendment, de-
| spite the fact that the President
has announced that he will with
draw them if they are altered.
The Democratic Senators not
only regard them as inimical to
the interests of the South, but
they feel that they were negoti-
ated chiefly for political effect.
during the campaign and for the
purpose of disproving that the
President was "war lOrd.u
Now the President has assured
them that the treaties will not be
permitted to work any BARN to
the Southern States while he is
President and as they run five
years his successor would have
but one year in which to work
mischief under their provisions:
but the Democratic statesmen
insist that treaties which would
be susceptible of perversion or
which would enable an ill dispos-
ed President to work injury to
any section of the country ought
not to be ratified irrespective of
the promises of the honesty of a
particular Chief Executive.
Democratic members of the
Senate have adopted a wise policy
in their agreement not to fill.
buster or place obstacles in the
way of any tariff bill which NAV
be introduced at the special ses.
sion which the President pur.
poses to call. They have yielded,
perhaps some political advantage,
; but they have made for the gen
eral good of the public by remov
ing q real or fancied obstacle