The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-28
su,,.tance of Report.

Washington, Jan. 27-Recommend- ing that the speech delivered In the House last week by Representative w!llett (N. Y.), in which the Presi- dent was severely criticised, be ex- punged from the Congressional Record, the select committee appointed to con slider the speech, submitted its report to the House today.
 A letter written to the Committee by Representative Willett urging that ms speech should remain on record, accom- panied the report.
 Declaring that "the consideration or the speech in question involves a con- sideration of what Is and what Is not orderly debate In the House., the Committees report defines the privi- leges of members of the House and the limitations of debate. It discusses at length the relationship of the two houses of Congress and the relations which must be maintained between the House of Representatives and the Press ident in accordance with the constltu- tion.
 The report declares that 1t would seem that the peculiar constitutional duties of the House In relation to the power of impeaching the President do not preclude a clear line of distinction between that criticism of acts and con- duct necessary for peFformance of slle constituttonsi duties of the House and crttlctsm merely personal and 5iTri- tatinK."
 II also claims that it is especially the duty of the House itself to project the President from that personal abuse. or ridleulet tending to excite disorder in the House itself and to create a personal antag0nism on the part of the President toward the House and which Is not related to the power of the House under the constitution to examine into the acts and conduct of the President"
 "Your committee has carefully con- sidered the remarks of the gentleman from New York" continues the report, land finds that his remarks concerning the President are not justified by any consideration of the constitutional du-
 ties or powers of the House, that they transcend proper limits of criticism in
 debate; that they are destructive of that courtesy, respect and dignity
 which ought to be preserved, and that they ought not to remain in the per- manent official record of the proceed ings in the House."
 The Committee claimed that 1t was | impossible to separate the objection al remarks from the remainder of the | speech and the only way to eliminate | the remarks considered out of order | would be to strike out the entire | speech. It cited as a precedent for l such action by the House the speech of Robert P. Kennedy. of Ohio, attacking the Senate, made in the House on Sep- tember 3, 1890, which was excluded l from the permanent record. | In his letter to the Committee Mir. 1 Willett claims that he did not trans | cend the rules of the House but that he was entirely within his rights to
 make the speech. under the order of | general debate. Freedom of speech has always been held so sacred" he declares, that the
 utmost latitude has been allowed in debate. and I respectfully submit that
 to strike my speech from the record in this instance will establish a precedent extremely dangerous"
 The resolution recommended by the special committee for adoption by the House reads:
 Resolved. That the speech of Mir. WiIlett. printed in the daily Congress sional Record of January IS 1909, con tains language improper and in viola tion of the privileges of debate and
 that the same be stricken from the permanent record"