The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1910-05-16
HIGH TARIFF
 REPUBLICANS
 IN BAD HEALTH
Congressman Charles F. Barclay is the Ninth to Drop Out of
 Race
WEAKENING PUBLICITY BILL
Congress Has Planned Billion Dollar Session and The
 Some

Washington, May 16.-Representa- tive. government almost-but not quite prevails in the national House of Representatives.
 Although still objectionable as pass ed by the House, the railroad regula- tion bill was discussed, amended and improved. And it was all done in the open.
 The entire membership of the House, for a change, was permitted to vote on the question of rejecting undesir- | able sections. The improvement of the bill by amendment was also allowed.
 Heretofore these privileges have to all practical ends been enjoyed almost exclusively by the representatives of the tariff trusts, the railroads, Wall street and other forms of special priv ileges which dominate the Republican party through either the control of local politics or colonial campaign contributions.
 Had the Cannon machine been work ing smoothly, the railroad bill would have been prepared by committee in the exact form it would have become law. That is, few men would have done the legislating instead of the entire membership; of the House. Had CannoniSm prevailed, the railroad bill would have been reported from a committee under a rule prohibit ing the membership of the House from voting for or against amendment. Bad features of the bill could not have been eliminated. The entire measure, jokers and all, would have been forced down the throat of the House just as submitted by Uncle Joe's" Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, which is generous ly packed with men friendly to the railroad.
 The improvement of the railroad bill in the House through coalition of the Democrats and Progressives is a cause for rejoicing. But it does not mean that the people have really wrested control of the national law making machinery from the special privilege ring. For this reason:
 The House is only the lower branch of Congress. The railroad bill will not become a law as passed by the House. The Senate is the dominating branch of Congress, and it is still con- trolled absolutely by the greedy cor porate interests. The Senate will pass a bill containing some of the very features stricken from the measure in the House as being against the well fare of the people. Both the Senate and House bills will then be sent to a conference committee composed of either three or five members of each branch of Congress. As the majority of the conferences will be regular" Republicans, specially selected by Ald- rich and Cannon, it goes without say ing that much of the good work ac- complished by the House Democrats and Progressives will be reversed.
 The finale. of the railroad bill prom ises to be the tariff fiasco all over again.
 Representatives government will have given special priviliges tight race, but in the finish Aldrichism and Cannonism will win by a nose! But why should such a result be conSid- cred strange? For what purpose do the railroads make $260,000 contribu- tions to the Republican campaign fund if it is not to control the Republican party's legislation?
 The Mccall Campaign Publicity bill has been so amended as to provide for the publication of campaign con- tributions after election. instead of before and after election. Publicity of contributions after elections is re- garded by Democrats as something like locking the door of the stable af- ter the horse has. been stolen. Sena- tor Burrows of Michigan, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections, very kindly explained why the provisions for publicity Of contributions before election had been stricken from the Mccall bill. "If," said Senator Burrows, i've were to give out the hst of contributors prior to an election it would mean that un- scrupulous newspapers and persons would take advantage of the informa- tion thus disclosed and proceed to de- nounce the candidate on the strength of the character of the contributions made to his campaign In other words. if the voters were permitted to know who was putting up the money for the candidates campaign they might defeat him. Could stronger argument be presented for publicity before election as well as after election? Think it over.
 Instead of saving any portion of the s300, GOO 900 which Senator Aldrich as- serts is being wasted by the govern ment annually through "absolete bus mess methods" the Taft administra- tion threatens to break all records in the history of the government in the enormous expenditure of money. It looks now as if the appropriations for