Truth. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1901-1908, 1906-03-10

ISS VI Tic WllOl6 I1OuSG Ou lle OldlG VI
the Union" and the bills are read, with
the committee amendments. The clerk
goes through them with astonishing
rapidity. Nobody pays attention ex
cept two or three members of the COM
mittee. The few members scattered
about the house are busy with their
correspondence, newspapers, or con-
versation. 1t is not even necessary
that man shall look out to see his
own bill go through. He knows no one
will object, and it is all a matter OF
unanimous consent. Very few bills
could pass on their merits If there
were careful Investigation and con.
sideration, with the debate produced
| by any political measure, however tri-
vial. But each man has his pension
or private claim bills to get through,
Democrats as well as Republicans, and
he keeps his hands off those of others
so that they will keep their hands off
his.
The clerk races through the bill, and
the committee amendment cutting
down the amount originally asked for,
and then the chairman says:
| Without objection the amendments
will be considered as agreed to and
the bill as recommended for passage.
The chair hears no objection. The
clerk will read the next bill"
Amazing speed is secured by this
method. On the first pension day in
the house, this session, 1873 bills were
put through the Committee of the
Whole at the rate of considerably less
than minute per bill. On the second
pension day 263 bills were handled in
Committee of the Whole and passed
by the house in just two hours. The
Committee of the Whole merely rec.
ommends the bills for passage Then
it rises and the house does the rest. In
the house the process is even simpler
and speedier than in the Committee of
the Whole. Attic beginning the clerk
reads the bill by title, and the Speaker
says:
without objection the bill will be
considered as having been engrossed,
read third time, and passed"
After fifteen or twenty bills have
been passed in that manner, the pro-
cess is still further cut short. The
clerk reads only the number of the bill
and the Speaker says: Same order"
BY that method the house has passed
III lSoo I'll III viz
minute. When all are passed the
Speaker says
without objection a motion to re
consider the votes on these bills will
be considered to have been made and
that motion laid on the table"
That is the last act, the usual form
employed in clinching the passage of
a bill. When the motion to reconsider
has been tabled, the bills can be taken
up again.
The procedure of the senate is prac-
tically the same, and the speed at
tanned in passing bills almost as great.
The only difference is that the Vice
President sticks to the full form for
each bill.
No one ever objects unless a member
happens to think he is not getting a
square deal from the committee. Last
year a Pennsylvania representative did
not think he was getting his bills out
of committee as quickly as he should,
and could get no satisfactory explana-
ton. On pension day he was in his
seat, and when the first bill came up
for passage he rose and mildly in
quired if it had been engrossed. The
surprised chairman of the committee
stammered out that it had not and the
Pennsylvania man espresso the opin-
ion that it better be before it was