The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1908-12-07
Sixtieth Congress in Session
SOlOnS Assemble at Noon

EoiHlIiiSHt VI d great HuiHUeT VI IcueI-
al office holders, whose selection orig
mates, under usual conditions with
senator's and representatives. The
postmasters form only a portion of
these offices, where the Endorsement of
senators and representatives on friend
ly terms with the president are
equivalent to nomination.
The comparatively small majority
In the house will likewise be a deter
rent to the republican leaders. In re
cent years there has been a number of
revolts against the house organization.
If Mr. Taft and Mr.. Cannon should
have a sharp falling out about legis-
lative policies, it would not be difficult
to form a group of progressive west
ern republicans That number, acting
and voting Independently, could har-
ass the leadership very effectively.
All these prospects will be we'll talked
over during the short session of con-
gress. There has been little opportu-
nifty yet for congress to determine
whether Mr.. Taft will be more or less
forceful than Mr. Roosevelt in getting
what he wants in legislation. The lead
ers are uncertain whether he will play
as maSterful a hand played them as
Mr.. Roosevelt has played. But they
feel more friendly to him than to any
other incoming president of the last 20
years, except Mckinley, and there is
very general desire among republi
cans to start Off we'll with him.
Representative Charles E. Town
send, of Michigan, who has been
spoken of as speaker of the next house,
has commenced a crusade for rules
revision. THE only active campaign
I will make" said Mr.. Townsend, lis
not for the speakership, but for re-
vision of the house rules so that the
speaker and his party colleagues on
the committee on rules will not be
the whole thing. Several of our
strongest revisionists were defeated
at the election. Their defeat natur-
ally weakens our revision forces. Still,
we are going TO make fight"
Sherman In House.
Beheld of all beholders on the floor
of the house today, looming even
larger in the public eye than Uncle
Joe" Cannon, was Representative
Sherman, the vice president elect.
When Mr.. Sherman took his old seat
in the front row of the house today
to serve out his term as a member of
the six:ieth congress, his fellows of
the house witnessed a vice-p president
elect take part in its deliberations for
the second time in the history of that
bodybody. Schuyler Colfax, of Indiana
and like Mr. Sherman, a native of
New York, continued to serve as
speaker of the house for half a term in
the fiortieth congress after he had
been elected vice-president on the
ticket headed by Ulysses S. Grant.
On March 8, 1869, Schuyler Colfax
resigned as speaker in order that he
might prepare for his Inauguration
as vice-president. He called Repre-
sentative James +. Wilson. of Iowa,
to the chair and moved the election of
Theodore M. Pomeroy, of New York,
as speaker. The motion was carried
unanimously, and for one day Mr..
Pomeroy acted in that capacity. The
fortieth congress ended on March 4,
and James G.. Blaine was elected as
speaker of ~the forty first. Mr.. Col
fax remained as speaker even during
the counting and recording of the
electoral votes which made him vice
president, and although at the time,
it was FINALLY decided that it was
parliamentary anl constitutional.
Rules Revision.
Mr.. Sherman will have no official
part to take in his formal election,
which takes place in February, al
though he will be as active in legisla-
tive affairs in this session as he has
been in the past. To him will fall
the, principal work of framing the In
dian appropriation BILL while his work
on the rules committee and the inter-
state and foreign commerce commit
tee is expected to give him busy
session in the house before he goes
to the senate to preside over that
body.