New-York tribune., 1910-06-22
From The Tribune Bureau. ]


Washington. June 81.
WHOM THE GODS WOULD DESTROY.
Just what evil genius impelled Senator
Cunnrr1ins and a few OF his satellites TO at
tempt, In the eleventh hour, to kill the
postal savings bank bin by flibuster il
is hard to conjecture. Perhaps the most
reasonable explanation is to be found in
the old adage that Whom the gods would
destroy they first make mad" This meas
ure has few real friends in Congress. 1t is
opposed by practically all the bankers in
the country, and by those insurgents who
are bankers, such as Gronna OF North Da-
kota- But 1t is favored by the great mass
OF the people, especially those in rural and
mining districts, who are often remote
from banking facilities or whose lack Of
business experience is such that they dis
trust every form of bank It has been
only the force of the Presidents influence
which has commanded a majority of the
two houses for the bill but even its enc
mics freely admit that It is a dangerous
measure to oppose. and few Of them were
willing to run the risk except by some such
subterfuge as loading it with amendments
which would have made its final approval
by the President impossible. Every House
insurgent voted for it, it will be remeH-
bered II it was the purpose of Mr.. Cum
minis and his associates to demonstrate
that they were insurgents for the sake Of
insurgency, that they were angered at the
success Of the Taft legisla tive programme,
and that, regardless Of the interests of the
people, they were determined to defeat the
President on at least one CT his most
earnestly advocated measures, they doubt
less achieved their purpose, but any rea-
sonable explanation of their course is diff
hcult to discover. One of the reasons ad-
vanced by the frank enemies of the postal
savings bank legislation is that they are
convinced il VIII prove so popular that it
can never be repealed. Even Senator Cum
minis had abandoned all hope of defeating
the measure until yesterday, when a dele
cation of Democratic bankers from Balti-
more came to Washington and made such
an onslaught on Senator Smith, of that
state. that he determined to make last
attempt to defeat the measure. Then Mr.
Cunmins jumped into the arena and with
the assistance Of his "gccd man Friday
otherwise known as Senator Bristow, of
Kansas, began the filibuster which ended
ignominiousIy tonight.
NOT THE BIG STICK.-Of course. it was
In the neighborhood of the White House
this morning. but it sounded so periously
like it that there were some who trembled-
President Taft is too diplomatic to go
slashing around with the big stick. but
the things he said sounded like the most
outspoken brand of shirtsIeeve diplomacy,
and those who heard him realized that even
If the President did not have temper he
,s,,J,-
had he learned of the insurgent filibuster
than he sent for the Senate leaders. He
gently told them that it had been
cherished hope for at least four years that
he might go to New Haven to see his son
Bob graduated from old Yale but that
he had determined to abandon the trip. He
purposed TO see that the postal savings
bank bill passed, and passed as it came
from the House, he declared. And he gent
" intimated that he would think nothing
Of staying right here in Washington till
December l if that were necessary, rather
than be defeated by a little group of IRE
sponsible insurgents who had nothing bet
ter to offer by way of opposition than "a
contemplate little Crouch Mr.. Taft did
not leave any doubt as to where he stood,
and when those leaders left the White
House they went straight to the Capitol
and reported that the old man had blood
In his eye" It was right there that Sen
ator Smith wilted-a temperature of 96 in
the shade helping along the process-and
when he wilted the filibuster was doomed,
although Cummins and Bristow had not the
sagacity to see 1t.
THE BAILEY FILIBUsTER-T Presi-
dent had fairly stormy interview with
another f1ilibuster this morning. although
he had expected little good as a result of
the interview This was Senator Bailey.
of Texas The President is convinced that
the Senate should pass the bill increasing
the commissioned personnel of the army
engineer corps. This is the bill which Sen
ator Bailey announced yesterday he would