The San Francisco call., 1910-03-20


he indulgence of the house for not t
nent.''
BY CANNON
Silence was restored by this reques
more quickly than it ever had been re
tored by the gavel of the speaker. Th
louse was breathless as the speake
'egan his statement.
The speaker said:
Gentlemen OF the house of repre-
sentatives: Actions. not words, de-
termine the conduct and sincerity
of men in the affairs of life. This
is a government by the people act
a majority of the people. Results
can not be had except by ma
jority, and in the house of repre-
sentatives a majority, being re-
sponsible, should have full power
and should exercise that power;
otherwise the majority is inefficient
and does not perform Its functions.
The Office of the minority is to
put the majority on its good be-
hav1or, advocating in good faith
the policies which it processes, ever
ready to take advantage of the
mistakes of the majority party
and appeal to the country for its
vfndication.
From time to time heretofore the
majority has become the minority
as in the present case, and from
time to time hereafter the ma
jority will become the minority.
The country believes that the re-
publican party has a majority OF
at this time, yet such is not the
case.
The present speaker of the house
has, to the best of his ability and
judgment, co-operated with the re-
publican party, and so far in, the
lican party has been enabled by a
very small majority when the test
came to legislate in conformity with
the policies and the platform of
the republican party.
Such action. OF course, pegot
criticism-which the speaker does
not deprecate-on the part of the
minority party.
ASSAULT UPON SPEAKER
The speaker can not be unmind-
full of the fact, as evidenced by
three previous elections to the
speakership, that in the past he has
enjoyed the confidence of the re-
publican party of the country and
of the republican members of the
house. But the assault upon the
/. speaker of the house by the min
ority. supplemented by the efforts
of the so called insurgents" shows
that the democratic minority, aided
by a number of SO called insurg-
ents," constituting 15 per cent of
the majority party in the house, is
now in the majority and that the
speaker of the house is not in har-
mony with the actual majority OF
the house, as evidenced by the vote
just taken.
There are two courses open for
the speaker to pursue-one is to
resign and permit the new COM
bination of democrats and insurg-
entS- to choose a speaker IN mar,
mony with its acts and purposes;
the other is for that com mbination
to declare vacancy in the office
of speaker and proceed to the
election of new speaker.
MATTER OF RESIGNATION
After consideration at this stage
of the session of the house, with
much important legislation pend
ing, involving the pledges of the
republican platform, and their
capitalization into law, believing
that his resignation might con-
sumo weeks of time in the reor-
ganization OF the house, the spea ker
being in harmony with the repub-
lican policies and esirous of carry
ing them out, declines by his own
motion to precipitate contest upon
the house In the election of new
speaker contest that might
greatly endanger the final passage
of all legislation necessary to re-
deem republican pledges and full
fill republican promises.
This is one reason why the
speaker does not resign at once,
and another is this; In the judg-
ment of the present speaker a res-S
ignation in and of itself is a, con-