New-York tribune., 1910-06-24
THE FRUITS OF THE SESSION.

Two IUIlgS Siduu ouI III 1C1tAo ~
the session of Congress now drawing to
close. One is the Presidents remarka-
BILE success in promoting the. passage OF
measures to which he considered the
Republican majority in the legislative
department pledged by the declarations
of the Republican national platform. The
other is the restoration of the prestige
of the House of Representatives as
factor in legislation. The two results
were not merely coincidental. They had
a common cause 1t had been made evil
dent by the occurrences of the extra ses-
sion of 1909 that the Presidents leader
ship of the party could not become really
effective until a larger measure OF self
government was restored in the House OF
Representatives. Like the President, the
members of that branch of Congress are
supposed to represent the people rather
than the states. and it is natural TO count
upon them TO support President en-
deavoring to carry out national policies
which may happen to clash. with mar
rover interests. The House is the natural
ally of the Executive in breaking down
the particularism of the Senate. But the
House had unfortunately tied itself In
the bonds of code Of rules which by
making the Speaker an autocrat reduced
to the vanishing point its own response
bility and freedom Of action.
Last winters successful revolt against
the code restored to the House its lost
initiative and self-confdence. 1t began
to take legislation seriously and to pass
bills which represented the views of
majority, determined by debate and
rollcall, not the opinions and orders Of
little coterie Of leaders. What it did soon
carried added weight. For twenty years
the House had played minor part in the
preparation of important measures. The
Mckinley tariff act, the antitrust act,
the silver purchase act Of 1890, the VIII
son tariff act, the Dingley tariff act, the
Hepburn railroad rate act and the Payne
tariff act had all been jammed through
under rules restricting discussion and
amendment, and had gone to the Senate
representing in a crude and defective
way the opinions and wishes of the ma
iority in the House. The Senate was ex-
pected to repair all mistakes and to re-
shape the rough drafts which the House
had taken on faith from the leaders. The
consequence was that the Senate ceased
to think of q House bill aS embodying
any ideas for which that body was pre-
pared to make stand, and many Repre-
sentatives were put to the humiliation Of
going hat in hand to the Senate to ask
that body TO undo what had been done
in the House with their own approval.
So little stress did the House lay on its
own legislative responsibility that it al
lowed the Rules Committee to put
through rule IN March, 1909, allowing
votes on only few scattering items in
the Payne tariff Etll and denying the
House the privilege CT voting on SO i'm
portant a provision for raising hew
revenue as that reimposing federal in
heritance tax.
Now times have changed. It seems amaZ-
ing to read in Washington dispatches
that the Senate has accepted without
question the postal savings bank bill
OF the House, after having passed earlier
in the session a very different postal saw
fngs measure of its own. Similarly, it is
ence on the interstate commerce bill the
House won on all essential points. Such
announcements reverse history, for pre-
viously it was always the House which
yielded on important particulars because
it had given its case away in advance. :
Action in the House which means
something and for which that body is
willing to accept full political response
bility is a new development at the CAPT
tai 1t will work for better legislation
because it will tend TO curb the present
excessive influence Of the Senate. A self
governing House, acting in harmony
with a progressive President like Mr..
Taft, will be able to give freer effect to
the popular will on issues on which the
Senate, representing the narrower inter-
ests Of the states, is inclined to be ind1f
ferent or obstructive.