Emmons County record. [volume] (Williamsport, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1884-current, 1910-03-24

VIVA, are said By the dispatches
u have been the most stirring scenes
in The national house Of represent
atiYes since ciyil-war times occurred
in Washington this week.
From the founding Of the govern
men. 70 the time Of Speaker Reed,
many years ago. there vas not a
clo.u.e previous question
rule If the house by which debate
could be ended ard a question
brought 10 vote A small ninori-
y could talk proposition to death,
and, if Of sufficient strength numer-
icalIy, could break quorum, by
reason Of the fact that the entire
membership Of the majority party
was seldom il ever present at one
time. Then, too, the minority could
demand the yeas and nays roli-call
on even the most insignificant. sub
| sidiary motion.
The inability Of the majority TO
do business in the face Of an oppo-
sition from strong minority had
become an unmitigated nuisance.
One day Speaker Reed startled the
country bymaking aquorum through
counting as present those who were
really present when a vote was
taken, but who had not answered to
their names at roll-call. He also
caused the sergeant-at-arms to bring
into the house such absentees as were
absent without leave and could be
found His action provoked intense
bitterness. and he was denounced by
the democrats as car, tyrant, ;"
"despot, etc. But it soon became
apparent that the house was doing
business under the new ruling. A
few years later the democrats
obtained a majority in the house, but
under their speaker, Mr.. Crisp,
there was no attempt to change the
rules. and they had prevailed to the
day Of the recent contest. 1t cannot
be denied that under the present
speaker the rules have become I'M
popular. Mr.. Cannon is Of bellig-
erent disposition. and opposition
has served only to make him more
autocratic and aggressive.
The chief complaint as to the order
Of parliamentary procedure that has
been in vogue since Tom Reeds day
was that the speaker. having the APP
pointment Of the committee on
rules, welded an influence that
should not be tolerated in a repub-
lcan legislative body. and it was the
object Of the combination to take
this power from him and give it to
a committee of the house. Of which
the speaker should not be member.
This effort, as will be seen by the
report given below. was successful.
Although Speaker Cannon has many
bitter political opponents in the
house, he is personally popular with
the membership. And so it hap
pened that, when the democrats at
tempted to take advantage of the re-
publican family ruction, twenty-six
Of the thirty-fve insurgent repub!i-
cans quickly turned to the support
Of Mr.. Cannon. and Uncle joe
still yields the gavel Mr.. Gronna,
the political lightning change artist
from this state, at first voted against
unseating Cannon. and then in the
confusion slipped to the clerks desk
and had his vote changed before
the result was announced.
4 Below is the Associated Press re-
port of the recent stirring times in
Washington:
Scenes Of Wild Disorder.
i Amid scenes Of the widest dis
: order. for the like of which one
must go back to the exciting days
Just prior TO the civil war perhaps
even those times might not dupli-
cate IT the veteran speaker, almost
seventy four years old, stood erect
ana defiant at the end. When a big
ieSas democrat accepted the speak
er daring challenge and introduced
y resolution to fling him out Of the
speakership, the republicans reg
lulafs and insurgents with few es-