The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1907-12-17
CONGRESSMAN AIKEN.
Led All His Colleagues In Bill Pass
ing in the House Last
Winter.

pleasure by Congressman Aiken's
friends and constituents. The bills
referred to do not inciue his An
derson and Greenwood public build
ing bills, which were included in the
omnibus public building bill:
"Who is the most successful bill
passer in congress 2" was query
propoundcd the other day to Speak
or, Cannon by an inquisitive Repres-
entative. As a rule Mr.. Cannon can
answer questions of thi.. kind with
out reference to reports and records,
but lie admitted nc was cup
stump.'
eff l had two guesses." he said,
81 should guess Babcock, or Suilo-
way.'
Mr.. Babcock, of Wisconsin, was
For many years chairman cf the COM
mittee on the District of Columbia.
Mr.. SulIoway, of New Hampshire,
is the chairman of the committee on
invalid pensions. Py reason of hold
ing these chairmansilips Mr.. Bah
cock and Mr.. Sulloway had many
calls on their time from persons out
side their respective districts, and it
was natural that the Speaker should
have selected them as the members
who would be shown by the records
as charged with the passage Of
many bills.
Mr.. Cannon did not make good
guess, for it appears that Represen-
tative Wyatt Aiken, Of Abbcville, S.
G., led ali his colleagues in bill pass
ing last winter. Mr. Aiken is De-
mocrat, and, naturally, is "agin the
administration" =" Thirty bills intro
duced by him passed both branches
Of the Republican Congress last
winter and were signed by Repub-
iican President. NIy. Aiken never
held political Office until his election
to congress four years ago. He has
not been active in the congressional
debates and probably moi one of mis-
colleagues is aware Of his success in
securing the enactment of bills in
which he is Interested. None of the
thirty Aiken bills is a measure of
large pubic concern, most of them |
being private bills, or bills of spe-
cial interest to the third district Of
South Carolina. Nine of them pro-
vide for the building Of bridges over
South Carolina navigable streams.
Representative Don C. Edwards,
OF Kentucky, was a close second to
Mr.. Aikem. Twenty-nioc measures
introduced by Mr.. Edwards found
their way last winter to the statutes
of the United States. Mr.. Edwards
is a Republican. The Fifty-ninth
congress was his first appearance in
Washington as national "awmak-
nr
Messrs. Aiken and Edwards COM
'pletely outclassed veterans and lead
els like Speaker Cannon and Repres-
entative Payne, Dalzell, Williams,
and Clark. Only nine of Mr.. Dal-
zcil's bills became laws last winter.
Representative Payne, the Republi-
can floor leader had twenty-one of
his bills favorably reported, four
teen of which became laws. John
Sharp Williams, the minority lead
CT, succeeded in having Ave of his
bills pass both houses and receive
executive approval. Nine bills offer
el by Mr.. Williams were favorably
reported from committees. Seven
bills fathered by Champ Clark be-
came laws, while thirteen of Mr..
Cannon IS measures were approved
| by both branches of congress and the
president.
Representative Brownlow of Ten
nessee, introduced more bills in the
last congress than any other men,
ber of the body. In the first ses-
sion of that congress he proposed
nearly 400 bills, and il the second
session he offered about fifty mora.
Most Of the Brownlow bills were
private pension measures.
Only two bills introduced in the
Fifty-ninth congress by Representa-
tive Bourke Cochran were enacted
into law.
Representative Sulloway, who, the
Speaker thought, might lead the list,
had twenty four Of his bills. passed
last winter. Fourteen Of Represent
tative Babcock 5 bills became laws.
Representative Jenkins, Of Wiscon-