The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1908-12-28
CONGRESS IS
READY TO FIGHT
CONTINUED from Page one.l

| Continued from Page One.)
at its last session restricted the oper
ations of the Secret Service to the
Treasury Department, having by provi-
sion in one of the appropriation laws,
| forbidden the transfer of Secret Ser
vice men to duty in other departments.
/ This struck hard at practise the
President had countenanced of allow
ing Secret Service men to be trans
ferred for duty with the Department
of Justice and the Department of the
| Interior, largely for investigating land
frauds. Representative Tawney, of
| Minnesota, the chairman of the House
Appropriation Committee, is credited
with having brought about the legisla
! ton to forbid such transfers. Congress
| had quite a splutter about it at the
time It was claimed that Secret Ser
vice men had been detailed to follow
a navy officer and assist his wife to
get divorce, but the abuses most COM
planned of was the use of Secret Service
men to do work that the special agents
of the Department of Justice and of
the Interior Department could do, and,
as claimed, could do better.
The President declared in his annual
message, however, that this legislation
was solely in the interest of the crimi-
nal classes and that the chief argument
for it was to keep Secret Service men
off the trail of offending Congressman.
It happens that number of Republican
Congressman have at times been impli-
Gated in Western land frauds. The
President recommended in his message,
with fine sarcasm, that the restrictions
cha
be limited so that Congressman could
not be investigated by those sleuths.
Caused Great Indignation.
Great indignation at the Capitol en-.
sued, of course, as soon as the message
was read Senators and Representa-
tives forgot for the time being all else
in that document. They interpreted it
as a serious reflection upon great CO.
ordinate branch-of the government, as,
of course, there was no distinction be.
tween the good Congressman and the
bad Congressman, when the President
commented so severely upon legislation
that Senate and House had solemnly
enacted.
The fires smouldered for two days.
The big leaders on both sides of the
Capitol had to take notice of the situa-
ton. Democrats in the Senate and
Democrats in the House threatened to
bring forward resolutions for an inves-
tigation of the facts about the legisla
ton, if the Republicans did not. Speak
er Cannon and Senator Hale, the new
leader of the north end of the Capitol,
conferred again and again. A program
was Infinitely agreed upon and on Fri
day, after many, many parleys, reso-
luton was presented by Representative
James Breck Perkins, of Rochester,
New York., a staunch Republican, a
man of unquestioned probity, and one
of the most scholarly of members of
the House.
1t cited the language the President
had used in his message and called for
the appointment of committee of five
to make an early report. In most i'm
pressive and carefully chosen words Mr..
Perkins briefly recited what had been
done and the necessity for some action.
He spoke but three minutes and there,
upon, without dissenting vote, the
House authorized the appointment of
the special committee. Speaker Can
non named Mr.. Perkins, Mr.. DENLY, of
Michigan, and Mr.. Weeks, of Massa-
chusetts, Republicans, and Mr.. Viii |
liams, of Mississippi, and Mr.. Lloyd, of
Missouri, Democrats. They have been |
studying the situation and formulating |
a report. The Senate is ready to act |
and is expected to go quite as far as
the House is willing to go in showing |
it's displeasure at the President s course.
There has been talk that the Senate |
would expunge that portion of the mes
sage from the permanent Compression
al Record. For the message is read in
both houses at the same time, but is not |
printed in the records of the House
proceedings. 1t is, however, included
in the Senate proceedings.
President Has Been Busy.
With all this ferment on the Hill,