St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1908-06-17
HaSkinS' Committee Places Anal
wed.

HaSklnS' committee Places Anal
yZed.
Everyone who is at all acquainted
with legislative proceedings in either
state legislatures or the National Con
gress knows that the committee is the
real force in enacting the laws and trans
acting the business of the state or OF the
nation. 1t is the committee, and not
the legislature or Congress, that gives
the careful and deliberate attention to
proposed laws that prevents food of
dangerous and ill-considered legislation,
and it is the committee that stands
squarely between the treasury and those
who would, legitimately or otherwise,
draw upon the public funds. So well
recognized is this fact that at Montpe-
lier, and at Washington, the committees
that really play an important part in
the scheme of government are dominated
by strong men, men who have ability
and courage and can be trusted, and so
perfect is the system that seldom is there
a serious conflict of opinion between the
committee and the legislative body
which created it.
In the House of Representatives at
Washington there is a total of sixty-two
committees, and therefore sixty-two
chairmanships, of more or less impor-
tance. OF these committees thirty may
be considered of neutrality-suspicious., to
a greater or less degree, in legislative
matters; twenty-five of legislative or
local Importance; and seven inactive or
ornamental Indeed in practice the lat
ter number might be greatly increased
by borrowing from the other two classes.
With this explanation it is possible to
fix with accuracy the position held by
Representative Haskins in the Commit
tee organization of the House of Repre-
sentatives, and by the same token in the
House itself. There are two hundred
anu lWCulf NS putnam AAlNAhDNlo
in the present House of Representatives.
OF these seventy-four have served longer
than has Mr. Haskins, and twenty have
served as long. Thus, on the basis OF
service alone, Mr.. Haskins would not be
entitled to Craftsmanship at all; or if
location and not ability had fixed his
status he might have been placed at the
head of an ornamental committee, or at
best, as chairman of committee of only
local or legislative Importance. The
fact is, however, that at the close OF his
third term of service Mr.. Haskins had
reached standing in the House which
brought him, without influence or solicit
tation, the Craftsmanship of a committee
of national importance-War Claims-a
committee which may fairly be classified
as standing at least midway OF that
selected list of thirty.
Of the twenty Republican Representa-
tives whose term of service has exactly
equaled that of Mr.. Haskins, FIVE have
become chairmen of committees of
national Importance, four of committees
of legislative or local Importance only,
and eleven have not risen to the dignity
of Craftsmanship at all. Mr.. Haskins
is one of the first FIVE mentioned, and
none of these hold a more important
craftsmanship than he. Moreover, Mr..
Haskins is member of two other COM
mittees-Agriculture, and Labor-both
of national Importance, and this is es-
pecially worthy of note. No other
Representative among the twenty above
mentioned holds place on three COM
mittees of this class together with a
craftsmanship From this statement it
must be admitted that no member OF the
House of like service has attained so
high a committee standing as has Mr..
Haskins. In fact it may fairly be said
that no Vermont Representative within
generation has been awarded so inn
portant craftsmanship as has Col. Has
kins, and it is likewise true that none
have held more important committee
places than does the second district
Representative, today. Moreover, this
distinction was not conferred upon Col.
Haskins because of political service, or
because of the Importance of his district
from a political standpoint. A candid
analysis of the facts as stated above
forces the conclusion that Mr.. Haskins
fairly and squarely earned his present
position of responsibility and influence
in the national House by reason of
ability and close attention to duty, and
those acquainted with the situation
know this to be the fact.