The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-04-02
With Underwood Heading Ways and Means All Com
 mittees Are Named
ABOLISH ONE-FOURTH
 OF PATRONAGE JOBS
Not a Discordant Note Is Sounded at Meeting and Clark and Un- derwood Are Greatly
 Pleased

Washington, April 1..-ln a party eau GUS, noteworthy for it's harmony and the smoothness of it's progress, the dem- ocratic members of the new House of Representatives today adopted without change the committee assignments, the economy programme and the new rules prepared for the coming session by ihe committees that have been working dur ing the last month.
 Important changes in procedure and general reorganization of the House will result from the action of the democrats today. The power of naming commit tees was definitely taken from the speak CT by the rules and lodged in the House itself. Committee members are to be elected by the House not only in the first instance but also in the filling of vaean- cies.
 A saving of s1s2,600 in the annual cost Of running Congress is promised through the cutting out of superfuous employees and inactive committees and through fhe abolishment of the time honored "eXtra months pay" Appointive places are all put into the hands of one committee, special body to be known as the commit tee on organization.
 At the night session, which continued 10 nearly midnight, legislative programme was adopted and officers were elected as follows:
 New Officers
 Clerk, South Trimble, of Frankfort. Ky, who was a member of the Fifty seventh Congress.
 Sergeant-at-arms L. s. Jackson of h. diana who defeated William H. Ryan of New York by a vote of IA to 97.
 Doorkeeper, Joseph J. Sinnott of Vir- ginia
 Postmaster, William NJ. Dunbar of Au- gusta Ga, was elected on the third bal lot, defeating R. G. Bremner of New Jersey 104 to 94.
 The other candidates were dropped
 A legislative programme was submitted by Chairman Underwood of the ways and means committee and adopted by the caucus. It is designed to limit the ae- tivities of the extra session to such ques- lions as popular election of senators, Canadian reciprocity, tariff revision, in- vestigation of governmental departments, congressional re-apportlonment, stale. hood for Arizona and New Mexico, gen eral deficiency appropriation, District Of Columbia legislation and publicity of campaign contributions.
 The important changes in the rules un- der which the new Congress will oper- ate are:
 The selection of committees by the House.
 A provision to prevent filibustering un- der the rule giving authority to discharge committees from consideration of bills A provision permitting amendments to appropriation bills whenever these amendments will result in retrenchnient Of national expenditures.
 Authority for bills to come up twice for passage under the unanimous consent privilege.
 The rule to prevent fibustering on motion to discourage a committee from custody of a bill is the result of a Hi buster conducted in the last session by Representative Mann of Illinois. He lad the postoffice reorganization bill placed on the calendar under this rule and de- nnanded that it be read completely, an operation that consumed several days. The new rule provides that a bill shall be read only by it's title and that it's tltle- shall not contain more than 100 words. It prohibits any member from having be- fore the House at any one time more than two motions to discharge committee and form the custody of bills.
 Under this rule the democrats believe that it can be made to work originally intended, to prevent the burying of bills In committee. ....t The new rule affecting appropriation bills is renewal of the so-called "Hol- man rule' first used by the democrats in 1875. It permits amendments to appro priation bills of wide character when these amendments will affect a reduction of federal expenditures. ! Burleson Presides
 dep,oc,a tjc cauc,e moi ' thic morning and its session continued through the afternoon and evening Presided over by Albert s. Burleson of Texas, chairman. and w. A. Ashbrook of Ohio as secretary. the caucus dis posed of the rules, the committee as- signments and the economy programme before o'clock and comple ted the cleo tion of officers of the House tonight.
 Following the adoption of the rules, Chairman Henry of the new rules committee stated that they would be offered to the House Tuesday, inn mediately after the preliminary organ ixation of the Sixty-second Songress.
 In its effort to reduce the House pay roll and dispense with extra employees the democratic caucus authorized sweeping changes. The abolishment of SS appointive positions; the dropping of six standing committees from tho, House list, and the abolishment of the extra pay allowed each session to the employees.
 The first of these items is expect cd to save $120,000 the second S12.6O0. and the withholding of the "extra month will save another $50.0OO The positions under the House, heretofore spportioned among the members gen orally, are to be given by the demo- crats only to those members who were not given committee chairmanships
 In it's attempt at economy the dem- ocratic organization decided that 42 of the special policemen employed about the capitol could be dispensed with, and that 32 clerkships and minor positions under the clerk of the House could he abolished. One chief bill clerk with four assistants and stenographer Is to take the place of the large number of clerks removed.
 The plan offered by the ways and means committee and adopted by the reorganization work done by Repre- sentative A. Mitchell Palmer of Penn sylvania, a member of the ways and means committee. The six committees abolished are those on militia, Pacific railroads. manufactures, private land claims. levees and improvements of the Mississippi river and ventilation S~~~~~~~~~~~rs lCONTINUED ON PAGE Al
 s.
 |I