The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1909-03-17
AMEND HOUSE RULES
Resolution of New York Demo
crat Carried, 211 to 172.

Democrats With 81 Insurgents Voted
For Fitzeerald's Amendments After
the Clark Resolution For a Commit
tee of IS to Revise the Rules Had
Been Withdrawn-Three Important
Changes From Previous Rules Of Or
der-What Speaker Cannon Says.
Washington, March 16.-After one
IF the stormiest sessions in its history,
the house of representatives. regard.
less of party alignment, adopted, 211
to 172, a resolution by Mr.. Fitzgerald
(Dem.) of New York, whereby the
rules were amended in several import.
Ant particulars. The resolution was
substitute for one offered by Mr.. Clark
of Missouri.
Its adoption was accomplished only
after the insurgents" with the aid of
the Democrats, with one or two eX.
ceptions, had won a decided prelimin.
ary victory by voting down resolu.
tion by Mr.. Dalzell Of Pennsylvania
making the unamended rules Of ,he
Goth congress applicable to those Of
the present congress.
Three important Changes.
AS analyzed by parliamentarians
the amendment makes three import.
ant changes First, it establishes a
calendar for unanimous consents, the
effect of which Is to enable member
to have a proposed resolution brought
before the house without having to
go to the speaker for recognition. This
change. they said, will be relief to
the speaker
Second when consideration of
bill Is concluded and the previous
question Is ordered, the rules hereto
fore have provided for a motion to
commit with or without instructions
1t has been the practice to recognize
member of the majority party to make
this motion and thus prevent the min.
ority from offering such Instructions
as 1t may desire. The new rule gives
the mincritv the preference in making
such a motion and thus enables them
to get record vote on propositions
which would otherwise be settled in
committee of the whole house, where
no record vote is possible.
Third, it protects the calendar Wed.
resday by requiring two-thirds in.
stead of a majority vote to set it aside.
Fourth it is also claimed that the
amendment will have the effect of
preventing favoritism by the action of
the committee on rules in special
cases.
prominent feature Of the Clark
resolution was an amendment provid
ing for a committee of fifteen members
to revise, amend and codify the rules
and much of the opposition TO 1t was
because of this fact. AS adopted the
Fitzgerald amendment makes no
change in the present method OF the
selection Of the committee on rules,
which is made by the speaker nor is
there any change in the method of Sc.
lecting committees.
What Speaker Cannon Says.
Speaker Cannon is inclined to regard
the amendment as a slight improve
ment on the present rules, in that in,
stead of throwing the responsibility
for recognition on him it sets aside
certain DAYS for the consideration of
measures under unanimous consent
but, he says, under the new rules,
members will have to wait for those
days.
In a conversation soon after the ac.
tion of the house he commented freely
upon the fact that Mr.. Bryan had in.
terfered in the interest of the changes
submitted by Mr. Clark, and spoke
of the adoption of the Fitzgerald sub.
stltute as triumph over the Bryan
forces, saying that the conservative
Democrats who really want legisla.
tion had practically stood for the old
rules with the amendments offered by
Mr.. Fitzgerald.
at was" he said, "a protest by the
conservative Democrats against popu.
lism and all kindred things"