Omaha daily bee., 1905-12-27
SPEAKER CANNON TALKS
Veteran Congressman Says Country
and Lawmakers Arc Better
Now Than Formerly.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 26.-Speaker Can
non was one of the callers at she White
House today. He desired simply to pay
his Christmas greetings to the president.
but was obliged TO defer them as the
president had gone to the country for a
long horseback ride. The speaker was in
excellent spirits and talked with his news
paper friends in a characteristic way.
They say things are not now like they
were in the old days; that we are becoming
astocrats; that there is no longer honesty
in legislative bodies; that there is no
ability at the bar: that we are liable to
become monarchy; that some strong
man is liable to rise up and dominate
everybody But say there is no
fairminded man who studies the history
of this country from the days Of its
foundation down to the present time and
who deduces the difference between $780,
OOO people and 100000 who considers the
telegraph. the telephone and the railroads,
who will not say that we are markedly
better physically and mentally than our
grandfathers or even our fathers"
Then you believe the house Of repre-
sentatives is just as representative as 1t
was in years gone by?''
Yes; yes indeed" the speaker replied,
the house is just as representative body
now as it was when this country had only
100000 people. II you listen to all that is
said you might believe the country is
fast going TO the devil, is fast becoming a
monarchy and will cease soon 10 be a re-
public. Why, 1 heard that same kind oi
talk when | was a boy, when we used to
gather at camp meetings. They used tc
tell US that things were not what they
oil i. ls
same thing now; that the country is
retrogading; that everybody Is corrupt and
dishonest, and that there is wholesale inn
morality. / do not hesitate to assert that
this country is better today than ii ever
was in its history; that the people are
better - more honest, more moral and less
disposed to yield TO temptations that are
put in front of honest men at every turn
'The people are just as mighty now il
the matter of elections as ever before anC
just discriminating as to whether a mar
has done his duty. man never is so big
that he can not easily be wiped OFF th'
political map And how quickly the people
| do it, too. They settle n man so quickly
that he is soon forgotten. | venture tn,
prediction that few OF the best read men II
the country could sit down today and give
off hand. the names OF 100 men who have
helped to make history in the house of rep
resentatives The others were defeated anC
forgotten and that was the end There wa
William J. Brown, who put through thu
{ house the appropriation of $4,000 to bull,
the first telegraph line between Washington
and Baltimore. He did the world an i'm
mense service, yet at the next election
afterward he received hardly enough vote
to count. The opposition put up a maj
who ridiculed the idea of sending message
by lightning and beat Brown thousand
! Of votes. So it is today. A mans service
are not so easily condemned.
Undoubtedly, we are better off than ou
forefa theirs. The milleainm isn't here, it /
! true. and things will roi 80 a bit lnterestin
( when everything becofads perfc6t. We ar
doing better, though"