The Delta independent., 1910-04-01
SOME REAL REFORM
MAY COME OUT OF
THE CANNON FIGHT,
New Rules and u Parliamentarian
Speaker Who Is Not Men,
ber of House Suggested.
A Non-Partisan Speaker Would Do
Away with Unfairness, Create a
Better Feeling and Save Much
Valuable Time.

Washington, March 27.-Many of
the insurgent republicans of the
house who last Saturday voted to
retain Speaker Cannon in the chair,
are hearing from home" accord
ing to reports in circulation about
the capitol
| These advices are said to be not
at all reassuring.
Following close upon this infor-
nation come statements from seve-
raj that the war on "Cannonism" is
to go on to the extent of ultimately
causing the dethroning of Speaker
Cannon, the election of his successor
and the complete reformation of the
rules of the house. The overthrow
of the speaker and the taking away
from the speakership of all power to
influence legislation unduly are
aimed at. Some of the insurgents
discussed these subjects freely to-
day.
A proposition to remove Speaker
Cannon by means of the combined
vote of democrats and insurgents,
and substitute in his place Asher
c. Kinds, the parliamentarian of the
house is one plan which several in
surgents advocated today. The plan
of placing in the speakers chair a
pure parliamentarian, not a member
of the house, who would be entirely
uninfluenced by considerations of
partisan advantage was pointed out
by Representative Poindexter of
Washington and others as the logi-
cal and proper course. Under the
constitution the house may choose a
speaker who is not a member of the
body.
Representative Poindexter, who
is one of the prominent members of
the insurgent body, said:
This initial reform which we
have complished must be followed
by others. The whole trouble in
which the house finds itself is caused
by the joining of power of the
speaker with that of the leader of
the majority. The English plan of
having an expert parliamentarian in
stead OF a politician as a presiding
officer is the only correct one. AS
long as we select a party leader a
speaker. just so long will we have
partisan and unfair rulings.
when the house adopted the
Norris resolution the other day. IL
was a vote of no confidence in
Speaker Cannon and he should have
resigned. AS he did not do so we
should depose him. With that accom-
plished. | think we should elect Mr.
Kinds. i believe a majority of the
house would vote for it. the demo-
Gratis and the insurgents who voted
against Cannon last Saturday. and
believe a large number of other
| insurgents and so-called near insur-
gents will vote for it when the tenn
per of the people Is accurately
judged on this question"
Victor Murdoch, of Kansas. an
other insurgent leader said:
THE movement to reform the
procedure of the house has Just be-
gun. Before this session adjourns
we will have accomplished a great
| many things. l hear radicals on thi
side who never before were willing
to admit that the rules or anything
else needed changing. now discus
sing ways and means of revising the
rules and making them better
Not in fifty years have such lib
eral ideas regarding the government
of this house prevailed among mem
bers. ! expect to see, in a compar-
atively short time, standing commit
tees of this house meeting in open
session instead of secret sessions as
now. OF course, the military and
naval, and perhaps other commit
tees would have to meet in secret
occasionally as a matter of public
policy But secret ways of doing
business here are on the wane and
will soon be over. Many Interesting
and perhaps startling developments
will result before this house ad-
journs sine die"
Other insurgents expressed them
selves along similar lines. 1t is GER
tain that number of insurgent
leaders have in mind at least two
| things for this session: First, the
deposition of SpeakerCannon unless
he voluntarily retires; second the
establishment of committee on
committees. All of the insurgents
expressed themselves as desiring to
see that present Legislation is out
of the way before hostilities break
out again.
One insurgent who would not al
low the use of his name, said:
UNLESS Speaker Cannon resigns
we will depose him before this ses-
sion ends. He is part of this sys-
TEN, and must go. II 1t does not ham
pen before. I look for 1t to come
about the last day of the session.
The proposal to elect Asher Kinds
as speaker elected much comment
from those who were made aware
of 1t.
Mr.. Kinds is a republican and is