Los Angeles herald., 1909-12-11
The American Congress
XIX-The Reed RULES Controversy
Bv Frederic j. Haskin

but Mr. Reed went on calmly counting
a quorum. The appeal from his de-
cision was laid on the table by ma
jority not of the house, but of the
quorum Next morning he again count
ed quorum to secure the approval of
the Journal, and this time refused TO
entertain an appeal from his ruling,
holding that the house had already
settled the question.
The Democrats were wild with fury,
and the turbulent scenes of the ante
bellum congresses were re-enacted.
The speaker was denounced as
tyrant, a despot and a traitor to the
country. He was given the title OF
Gear" which he accepted with his
rare good humor, and until his death
he was quite as often Gear" Reed
as he was Tom Reed. The opposition
continued to oppose what they termed
the speakers arbitrary, corrupt and
revolutionary action" and began to
attempt to break the quorum by actual
absence. 1t was IN one of these wild
rushes to escape from the chamber
that Buck Klgore of Texas kicked
down a door. But 1t was a useless and
a HOPELESS warfare. The principle
weapon of the fiillbusters, the power
to prevent quorum, was gone for
ever.
increased until it was safe the COM
mittee on rules brought in it's new
code. The house had not adopted the
rules of the former house, and the
speaker had been proceeding under
general parliamentary law for nearly
three months. Now that victory was
certain, the revolutionary rules were
submitted to the house. Among the
innovations proposed were rules pro-
viding that members present but not
voting may be counted as q part of the
quorum, that 100 members shall con-
stitute a quorum in the committee of
the whole and that no dilatory motion
shall be entertained by the speaker.
Before that time any member who
secured recognition might make any
motion he desired. In this way end
less succession OF roll calls might be
procured and the business of the house
obstructed indefinitely. Gen. James h.
Weaver In one session of congress
practically forced the house to do
nothing but answer roll calls for a
whole session. Now the speaker may
refuse to entertain a motion IL he
thinks it is dilatory, and thus another
weapon is denied the filibuster.
Reed was the leader, the master, the
soul of the house. He was an intense
partisan, who believed that only by tho
triumph OF the Republican party could
the republic hope to survive. He was
o party leader. the product of an era
Of bitter party warfare, and he be-
lieved in using the power II the ma
jority utterly to crush his opponents.
For the greater part of his con-
gressional career he was in the minor
ity, and ii must be said that Thomas
i. Reed was the most accomplished
and skillful fillbusterer who ever at
tempted to throw barriers in the path
,r IRn md fnHsifN Hn 20.
power he had no mercy for his OPP
ponents. nor did he tolerate the slight
est disposition Of his own partisans to
wander away from the course mapped
out by the organization leaders.
Upon one occasion the majority of
the house was certain to vote for a
resolution recognizing the beligerency
Of the Cuban revolutionists If given
the opportunity. The house was half
asleep when the Democratic leader
arose and addressed the chair. Reed
knew that he had the Cuban resolution
in his hand. Ignoring the Democrat.
the speaker gazed into space and said:
THE gentleman from Maine moves
that the house do now adjourn. Do 1
hear a second? The motion is seconded.
All IN favor will say aye Those OPP
posed no. The ayes have 1t. The
house stands adjourned" And ii was
adjourned, although Mr.. Dingley, THE
gentleman from Maine" did not know
il until after il was over No one
made a motion to adjourn, no one had
seconded such a motion. The house
was adjourned by the deliberate and,
of course, the authorized act OF a man
who was determined that il should not
have any opportunity TO vote on a
question upon which he knew the ma
iority opposed his own views, Yet Mr..
Reed believed that he was doing his
duty as a patriot to prevent war with
Spain, and he always believed that by
that very action he did postpone the
war.
The Democrats came back to power
in the next house by an enormous ma
iority, and the first thing they did
was to repeal the Reed rules. In the
next congress the Democratic majority
was somewhat reduced, and the tactics
OF Mr.. Reed, as leader of the minority,
forced the Democrats into what was
tantamount TO the adoption of the rules
they had so bitterly denounced. With
the Fifty-fourth congress the Repub-
licans and Reed returned to power.
since that time until now the Reed
rules have ruled supreme.
Tomorroy-The American Congress;
XX; Sneaker CannOn's Career.