The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1906-11-30
Especial to The Messenger.)

Washington, November 2S.-If Chair
Mr.. Jim" Tawney, of the house
committee on appropriations has bis.
way, the big supply bills will not lag.
this winter. With his ~Iieutenants, he.
already is at work ON the legislative,
Judicial and executive bill, which car
ries the salaries of the greater propor-
ton of government employees, from
the president down to the charwomen
in the departments.
The District of Columbia appropria-
ton bill, the Notifications and PEN
sion bills will come next in order. We
want to get all four OF these bills re-
ported to the house before the holiday
said Chairman Tawney. I'VE expect
TO pass the legislative bill before we
adjourn for the holidays and possibly
n of the other of the annual budgets
Mr.. Tawney said he was unable to
make any prediction as to what other
legislation would be considered and
acted pom al this session. He OK
pressed the strong belief that the COM
pletion Of the business left over from
tie last session and the passage. of the
appropriation measures would take
about all the time of congress-.
Whatever new legislation there
may be, if any" continued Mr.. Tawney,
will depend in large measure upon the
recommendations the president may
make in his message. There probably
will be considerable discussion regard
ing The proposed new plan for the con-
struction Of the Panama canal"
Although Mr.. Tawney was some
what chary of discussing simplifed
spelling, it was easy to see that he an
ticipated that the departure from the
customary method OF preparing and
printing the public documents, CON
gressional reports, and the avs would
receive considerable attention at the
hands Of congress, both in committee
and on the floor Of the house.
Among other things, Chairman Taw-
ney said he knew of no new line O!
policy suggested with regard to the
appropriations Or their limitations
which will be cheerful news for the
government clerks, who possibly have
feared a revival of the effects OF the
last session to enforce some system OF
age retirement from Office.
There always is a great deal of time
devoted to the consideration of the
various supply bills" said Mr.. TaWney,
land the necessity for careful scrutiny
is as great this session as at any pre-
vious one. The appropriation bills no
doubt will take the greater part Of this
session. There will be little time for
anything else"
With Speaker Cannon and other anti
revisiOnists in town, "Standpatism' has
reared up it's head and is disposed to be
arrogant. The attitude of the ave
g congressman has been that of wait
ing to see in which direction the cat
would jump. If revision sentiment
promised to prevail, he was ready to
be a rampant revisionist. If it appear
ed that the stand-patters were secure
in the saddle, he was just as anxious
TO stand pat. Now that the word mas
gone forth that the tariff shall not he
touched until after the presidential
election, MIR. Average Congressman
finds that the program exactly meets
his views.
In spite OF the demand for revision
in some normally republican states,
republican leaders do not interpret the
recent state and congressional contests
as indicating anything like a general
desire for changes to the Dingley law,
and they are willing TO let it go at
that. If, they say, it were possible TO
make a few reductions at a special ses-
sion to be called after the F~ifty-ninth
congress ends, and to do nothing more.
they might counsel the calling of such
a session. But their idea is that if the
tariff is touched at all a complete re-
arrangement will have to be made, ard.
this, they insist, will not do at all, in
view Of the nearness of the presidential
contest.
Some of them are willing TO go to
the extent of giving the country to un-
derstand now that the republican party
will revise the tariff in the Sixty-first
congress If it is retained in power, and,
If deemed necessary, to make a definite
promise to that effect in the platform to
be framed In the summer of 1908.
The more. extreme ,standpatters, how
ever, see no necessity for doing oven
that. Few of either classes are willing
to talk until after they have seen the
president. and Uniformed themselves
more thoroughly concerning the gener-
al situation.
The majority of the members OF the
senate and house evidently are waiting
until after Thanksgiving Day to put.
in their appearance in Washington.
There are few signs Of life around the