The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1909-03-24
BOLT THE PARTY
Gulp Down Cannon And Vote For
Despot's Rule
THEY ARE TRAITORS

Insurgents Stand True to Their
Promises and Vote With Faithful
Democrats to Curb the Arbitrary
Power Of Speaker Cannon.
Washington, March 15.-Speaker
Cannon Is still on top in the House,
but If it had not been for the votes
of twenty-three traitors in-the DEM
| ocratic ranks he would have been
| routed horse, foot and dragon, and
| his despotic power in the House
| would have been a thing of the past.
1t is supposed that these recreant
Democrats voted as they did because
| Speaker Cannon had promised them
extra good committee appointments.
This will come out when the COM
mittees are appointed if it is true.
At one time the Democrats and
insurgents defeated Speaker Cannon's
~autocratic rules, but when Champ
Clark proposed to adopt the resolu-
ton agreed on in the Democratic
caucus for a general revision of the
rules, % Democrats, including five
Georgia members, bolted and voted
with the machine Republicans for
a mild revision proposed by Fitzger-
aid of New York, who led the bolt,
and the boilers and the Cannon Re-
publicans voted to give Cannon the
; power of appointing committees, in
Guiding the rules committee, with
practically the same powers as be-
fore.
The five Georgia traitors were
Livingston, Griggs, Howard, Edwards
and Lee. The insurgents stood man
fully to their guns and the figh'
: against Cannon would have been wor
: except for the bolt of the Demo
Gratis, all of whom should be excluded
from future Democratic caucuses, a.
they have proven untrue to their par
: ty at a vital time.
The bolt of Fitzgerald was gen
early expected. He has been slated
by Cannon as a member of the i'm
= portant committee on rules. If thu
Democrats had won their fight to
= day the appointment Of committee
t would have been taken out Of tn
sneakers hands and Fitzgeral'
y would have missed the appointment
1t is expected that all the bolter
: will be given good committee as
signments. Only nine Of them ar
from the South, the five Georgians
Broussard and Estopinal from Loui
siana, who, by the way, are nearl
= always counted on to vote with tn
Republicans, Sparkman Of Florid
and Moon of Tennessee.
Six of them were New Workers
e the Tammany crowd, the other eigh
8 are from different Northern an
! Western States.
The regular Democrats are yer
t much wrought up over the actio
of the boilers, who may be ruled GU
Of the party caucus, because th
e Denver platform is so explicit upo
the question of revising the rule
of the house so as to take the auto
t cratic power away from the speaker
The rules adopted, 1t is true, TAX
f away a small modicum of this pow
er, but leave him with the most i'm
n p~ortant and most dangerous power
e The Cannonites are jubilant to
: night, for although they did not &c
all they wanted, they got the com
promise which it is believed had tn
q sanction beforehand of Mr.. Cannon
o and as soon as it vas proposed b
E Mr.. Fitzgerald word was passe
around among the Cannon Republi
o cans to vote for it, as it was al
t right.
Another reason why it is general
: believed that the Fitzgerald substi
r tute was prearranged with Mr.. Can
q non Is that the speaker was quicl
f to recognize Fitzgerald after the pre-
vious question on the Democratic res
olution was voted down. Severa
s wanted to be recognized but tn,
: speaker somehow saw only Mr.. Fitz
: gerald.