Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1908-01-20
A MONTH OF FUT|L|TY
Congress Wastes Its Time In
Useless Gossip.
PRESIDENT AND SPEAKER.
How the Preferment Of longworth
May Be Construed-coneernin Dele
gates to Denver-More Trouble For
Secretary Taft-Barren Results Of
the Republican Antitrust Crusade.
By WILLIS j, ABBOT.


the Republican Antitrust Crusade.
By WILLIS j. ABBOT.
The Sixtieth congress met on the
I'd of December. 1t adjourned On the
21st. During that time neither house
had averaged more than four sessions
a week nor more than three hours to
the session. Nor was there any work
| done in committees, because the COM
mittees were not announced by the
speaker of the house until two days
before the recess nor by the committee
on organization of the senate until
about the same time. In brief. whole
month was spent by members of the
house and the senate in absolutely in
conclusive and useless gossip.
Aside from any expense Of main
tanance, service or incidentals, the
mere salary roll Of the distinguished
senators for the month amounted to
$4,000. The house during the same
time for salaries of the members alone
cost the taxpayers S3O1.S75. To any
| of attaches, messengers, dOorkeepers,
pages, walters, secretaries and stenog.
raphers 1t becomes perfectly apparent
that for a month Of absolute futility
there was spent well over 100000 of
the public money.
OF course there is an answer to this
criticism. There is nearly always an
answer to any criticism. All these sal
aries go on whether congress is in
session or not Still, it does seem that
when it is in session it might attend
to some work. 1t Is true, too, that III
the house the delay was caused chief
ly by the heavy tax laid upon the
speaker of selecting his committees.
But the speaker, like all other men,
bers Of the house. has been under sal
airy through the long vacation between
March i and Dec. .. 1907. and during
that time has been in possession Of the
names Of all members reelected or
newly elected to the house of repre-
sentatives. Why could he not have
come to Washington with his commit
tee lists made up? Then he could have
started the house to business within
two days Of it's reassembling.
And, speaking of the speaker-if that
does not sound too tautolOgical-it IS
a curious fact that there is no consti-
tutional or statutory rule which COM
pels that he should be member Of
the house. All that the constitution
has to say is that the members may
choose their speaker. They might, IL
they wished, choose Tom Lawson of
Boston or Tom Watson of Georgia, ac-
cording to their respective tastes. But
1t so happened that the first speaker
chosen was IL member of the body, and
the precedent then set has been fol-
lowed so long that it has never been
overthrOwn and probably never will
be. Yet it might be worth while to
consider whether man entirely re-
moved from the hurry burly of parti-
san politics might not make better
presiding officer.
The President and the Speaker.
The relations between President
Roosevelt and Speaker Cannon are al
ways a matter of gossip about the
capital. Nothing can exceed the
warmth of their hand clasps when
they meet nor the courtesy Of their
references to each other when occa-
sion arises in a formal speech. But
in casual conversation they have not
been apt to say peculiarly friendly
words one of the other. Indeed, Speak
er Cannon has been rather OftspOken
in his violent assaults upon the inter
ference of the White House with the
affairs of congress. Bat the usual
Republican sense of party discipline,
the feeling that they must hang to-
gether or all would hang separately,
has evidently quclled that little quar-
rel. There was Il place left vacant
on the committee of ways and means
in the house by the defeat of Con-
gresham GrosvenOr of Ohio. When
his chair at the committee table was
vacated by his defeat Speaker Can
non appointed the presidents son-in
law, Nicholas LOngWOrth. Mr. Long
worth has served in two congresses.
lie has held his place in politics by
grace of George b. Cox, the Republic
an boss of Cincinnati. \ man of great
anna biity and with doubtless Il desire
to do all that in him lies for the good
of his country. he is still almost
freshman in the congressional college,
and his sudden advancement to the
most prominent committee of all can
only be construed as an olive branch
rendered the president by the speaker
or as a concession made by the speak
or to a demand preferred by the presi
dent.
Prominent Delegates to Denver.
Some rather prominent New Jersey
Democrats suggest that Grover Cleve-
land should be made a delegate at
large to the Democratic national con-
vention at Denver. They say that such
an honor rendered to Mr.. Cleveland
would not necessarily imply any hos
tility to Mr.. Bryan.
In Delaware other Democrats are
urging that Judge Gray should head
the Delaware delegation, position