The Cairo bulletin., 1909-11-29
WILL CONTROL LEGISLATION IN
LOWER HOUSE OF CONGRESS
AS ABSOLUTELY AS EVER
Ca'MMITTEES PACKED"
BY Speaker With Those Upon Whom
He Can Depend to Garry Out
His viii to Defeat Popu.
i lar Legislation.
tBy Tav)
Special to The Bulletin.

ppeCldl 10 Inc bullelIu
Washington, Nov. 27-When jos
eph G.. Cannon resumes business as
speaker of the house of representa-
tiyes on December 6, 1t will not be
with quaking fears for the safety of
his distatorship, as those who have
been reading the threats of the in
Surgents might expect
Quite on the other hand, Uncle
Joe" will, in all probability. call the
house to order with greater secret
confidence in his power to rule than
he ever possessed before
The speakers optimism will be
due partly to his temperament, which
does not permit him to conceive for
single moment that insurgency is
thing to be taken seriously; and
partly because he knows full well
that he has firmer grip on the
1aw-making machinery of the United
States than he ever had before
BE 1t known that wise old "Uncle
joe has gone over every part of the
mechanism which for years has en-
abled him to hold back and crush
legislation sought by the people, and
has strengthened every weak spot in
the all-powerful legislative machine
which defies majorities in the house
and listens attentively to but one
voice-that of the special interests.
Committees Packed.
Your Uncle Joe" has gone to the
trouble to pack" every important
committee of the house BY this is
meant that in appointing members
to committees he has placed ma
jority on nearly every committee
that either thinks as he does on
legislation that must of necessity
come before particular committee,
or else the speaker has appointed
men that he knows will, beyond the
shadow ( a doubt, do his bidding. The
power to appoint committee, when
considered with the committee on
rules, makes the speaker the master
and not the servant of the house.
Under the rules all the committees
are appointed by the speaker All
measures introduced in the house are
referred to committees. No measure
can be considered unless reported by
a committee, except by unanimous
consent.
For instance, bills relating to a
central government bank. which SEN
ator Aldrich intends to eventually
force upon the country, must of ne
cesity be referred to the committee
on banking and currency.
In appoint the nineteen members
of the committee on banking and cur
rency, the speaker saw to it that
more than half were men loyal to
the Cannon-Aldrich combination.
The former chairman of this i'm
portant committee was Chas. N.
Fowler of New Jersey. Fowler
showed a disposition to be conseien-
tious and independent in the consid-
Grafton of legislation that came be-
fore his committee. And he was
deadly antagonistic to a central gov
ernment bank. Fowler was kicked
out, and Aldrich's man, Vreeland,
made chairman.
The committee on banking and
currency is not only packed in favor
of any Legislation Senator Aldrich's
monetary commission may recon-
mend but against any banking legis-
lation that Aldrich may object to.
Aldrich represents the big Wall
street bankers and thus the short
cut from Rockefeller, Morgan, ct al,
to the house committee on banking
and currency. is only too apparent.
The committee on postoffices and
post roads is likewise packed against
postal savings banks. Although
every other great nation adopted
postal banks years ago, the speaker
still considers them in the vicious
legislation" class, Uncle Joe" con.
fCnucluded On SacOud pa4AN