The Laclede blade., 1905-06-10
WASHINGTON LETTER.
Our Regular Correspondent Writes From the
National Capitol.

The president has finally announced
that he will not call congress in spec.
;ial session until after the November
elections and he now expects to con-
yene the extraordinary session on
November 13. There are many Of
the leaders in the republican party,
however, who believe that this de-
cision sounds the death knell Of the
special session and that eventually
the president will be entirely dissuad-
ed from the idea of calling any special
session. The argument used with the
president to induce him to abandon
his first idea was that he could accom-
plish no good by calling the congress
in session at time that would prove
Objectionable to all the members, that
as result they would all come to
Washington in surley OF sullen mood
and would merely waste time instead
of getting down to business in advance
of the regular session. The president
has needed this argument to the ex-
tent above outlined and now the
opponents of a special session are
ready with arguments for further de-
lay although they may not present
them until later in~the summer.
The argument which is expected to
dissuade the president from calling
any special session is this: By calling
congress together on November IL,
there will be at most but three weeks
gained before the date on which the
national legislature would meet by
law; congress will never again consent
however, to remain in session right
up to the hour when the regular ses-
sion must commence for the reason
that when this was done year ago
the members lost the extra mileage
which they regard as their special
perquisite whenever they meet in
special session. For that reason, it
will be urged, congress will certainly
adjourn at least week in advance of
December 4, the date ON which the
regular session must begin, and SO
only two weeks would be gained.
1henthe president will be asked if in
his judgement the two weeks gained
will compensate for the $4,000
which congress is certain to take for
itself for mileage and the old argu-
ment that no member of congress
wants a special session at all will be
revamped and so the special session,
of 1905 will, in the judgement of those
best fitted to judge, have been added
to the long list of things "gone glim-
mering."
There is no Disgusting the fact that
the presidents decision is a victory
for the stand patters. They so regard
it and are jubilant at having won the
day. 1t will be remembered that
when, early in the last session, the
president called the leaders of both
houses of congress to the White House
for conference on the tariff, Speaker
Cannon, while protesting that there
was not the slightest necessity of
changing single tariff schedule, de-
clared that if any must be changed it
should be done at a special session
called for the purpose this spring.
The speakers reason for nrging a |
spring session was that if it were un-
dertaken to reaajust the tariff shedule |
at a special fall session, the democrats
in the senate would purposely purlong |
the debate until SO close to the fall
election that the business of the coun-
try would not have time to become
readjusted to the new schedules and
the republican members of the house
would suffer at the polls. The speak
er's argument was met by Senator
Aldrich however, with the assurance
that there would be no unnecessary
delay if the special session were defer
red until fall and the. president