The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1907-03-01
WASHINGTON. 9. %. 'O7.

When Congress doesn't seem tC
be doing much of anything it may
be doing great things and Great
ing large chunks of history with
neatness and dispatch. Lots OF
things seem to be so which ain't
so, and many things look impossi
BILE of accomplishment which are
already as good as done. This is
part of the game. The science
of legislation and government is
an abstruse one, the knowledge OF
which is only gained by large eX
perience on the inside. The moral
of this lies in the application of it
When | began, | had in mind
Senator Dillingham's immigration
bill-and other things. That bill
passed both houses many, many
moons ago, the early part of last
year, and since then has been an
insurmOuntable bone of cOnten-
tiOn-if a one can be insurmOunt-
abIe-between the conference
committees of the two houses. One
house found inconceivable Objec,
tons to the amendments inserted
in the bill by the other, and at in
tervals ever since they have met,
argued and disagreed. The bill
looked as if it was as dead as hay,
and has been so reported by cor,
respondents whenever their at
tentiOn was called to it. | admit
that [ did so last week, even. But
all at once something happened,
or Occurred, as the case many be.
Mayor Schmitz of San Francis
co and his coadiutors came on an
embassy to the president to dis
cuss the Japanese problem. Mr..
Roosevelt had to settle this. He
also has for months been anxious
that the important changes in the
immigration law contained in the
bill be enacted into law at the
earliest date, if such thing were
possible. The compromise with
the San Franciscans gave him an
opening, an opportunity to kill
two magnificent birds with one
stone. Then, on the instant,
things were doing. The air was
full of Roman and japanese can.
dies, rockets, pinwheels and
Chinese fireworks. His promise
to the Earthquake City delegation
that if they would allow the young
japanese to attend the city schools
like white folks he would give
them his word to keep out undo
sirable Japanese immigration in
the future was hastily incOrpOrat-
ed as a further amendment in the
comatose immigration bill and it
was at once agreed to by the
house and senate cOnferees. Then
it went past hosts to the senate
for acceptance, which would have
the effect of passing it as far as
that body was concerned. The
matter added is not definite and
specific exclusion legislation,
but allows the president to use
his discretion in the matter of ex-
Guiding the most undesirable
monaghan" elements.
When the report got into tho
senate, it met with immediate OPP
position on the part OF certain
Southern Senator's, who feared
that it would operate in some way
to restrict immigration into that
section, where it is so much need
ed, and also by few western
senators who pretended to see
some loophole whereby immigra-
ton might continue. The ques-
ton in all it's aspects was threshed
out in the senate for a good part
of three days, until the opposition
exhausted itself in talk, and late
Saturday night was accepted by
practically a strict party vote.
LaFollette, republican, voted with
the democrats, and McEmry, dem
ocrat, with the republicans. The
report had no such trouble in get
ting accepted by the house, and
the immigration bill is at last a
part of law and history.
The big republican majority OF
the senate stood shoulder to
shoulder together in defence Of
the report, though they made very
little reply to the continuous on
slaughts of the opposition. They
were content to save time by al
lowing the democrats to exhaust
themselves and "run down." Sen
ator Lodge, however, ably de-
Tended the report as against the
charge that the report contained
imprOper matter. Through it all
Senator Dillingham;, as chairman
of the committee, remained as i'm
movable as the stonewall which
gave the great Confederate Gen
eral his historical name. In all
the months gone by he has striven
and Iabored in all possible ways
and at all possible times to bring
order out of chaos "and a happy
issue out of all our Affections"
and only he can feel the complete
sense of qualification which the
final result brings.
In the particular matter of
solving for the time being the
japanese problem and harmonic
inc and nacifYing the country,