The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-01-11
Increase of the Membership Makes Necessary Change
 Of Committees
NEW PENSION BILL WILL
 GUT INTO TREASURY
SuilowRy Measure Would Add Fifty Million Dollars to Appropriations for Pensions But the senate
 May Kill It
BY wATTERsoN sTEALEy

Washington, January 1o.-tspecial)-- That the major committees in the new House will have their membership con siderably increased is a decision believed to have been reached by House demo- crats. The committee membership is not governed by any fixed rule and the ma jority party has always reserved to it. self the right to change the total mem bership of the relative apportionment be- tween the two parties with each succeed ing Congress
 In the next House the democratic ma- iorlty is much larger than the republican majority in the present House. In ad- diton the House which will be elected in 1912 will contain about A new members and increase in committee member ship would then be absolutely neces- sary.
 The present committee on ways and means consists of 19 members. It may be increased to 2l, the democrats having 14 members and the republicans seven. Rules now has ten members, but an increase may not be made in this case owing to the frequency with which the
 
 short notice. Appropriations has F mem- bers and may go to 19. Similarly Judiciary, interstate and foreign commerce, banking and currency, agriculture, foreign af- fairs. merchant marine, military affairs, naval affairs, postoffice, rivers and har- bors and public buildings may be in- creased two members each.
 A general committee increase is also being advocated as d means of finding places for a number of deserving mem | bers who would otherwise be shut out Freak Rules of House l Naturally the democrats cannot go in for every freak rule modification that may be sprung the House The vote yesterday was reversal of the record when in the last session of the democrats and insurgents combined removed MT Cannon from the rules committee and elected committee. 1t was against tho rules of the House and established preee- dence to bring it about but there was justification for it. The rules commit tee merely pigeon hole in Speaker Cannon's desk. Yesterday the point in- volved was a trifling one, although sni- liar in parliamentary status to the rules fight last year. For MT. Clark and a ma lority of the democrats to have voted against the speaker meant that the party would tie it's own hands and give it's op- ponents the opportunity to bring up Il right every day of the next session on tariff bill and every other piece of leg slation the democrats might wish to put through the House.
 To go against every ruling made by the speaker is merely factious opposi- ton. AS well object daily to the approval tl,. o1 f.f tba i'm tap tSl tive day The laugh is on Speaker Can non rather than the democratic leader ship The former failed to get his ruling overturned and precedent reaffirmed making drastic action applicable to any thing and everything filibusterins minority might seek to accomplish, or more properly seek to prevent in the Sixty-second House.
 SuIIoway's Pension Hill
 The passage of the Sulloway bill by the House today would add about s50.0o0. GOO to the pension roll in the event of it's passage by the Senate and executive ap- proval. There is strong opposition to the bill in the Senate and the President IS quoted as holding the opinion that 1t is excessive. The upshot will probably be a compromise carrying about $25,oooooO.
 Alabama's delegation in the House except Juage Richardson voted against the pension bill Representative Hob son spoke against the bill. He stated that the governments pension policy was too loose and that he opposed the proposed bill to add approximately s45 ,000 to the pension rolls indis- criminally and without regard to ser vice or merit or need for two main reasons. One of them was that he wished to protect those worthy of pen sions the other, to protect the gov ernment. He wish ed to pay the worthy more but the unworthy nothing at all Mir. Hobson said, too, that in discriminate pensions tend to pauper- izs He thought that the government ought to stand and go no further in extravaganza in pensions.
 The department of justice after con ference with United States District Att torney w. H. Armbrecht, Jr., of Mo bile today decided to set the trial of the so-called Shreve jewelry cases in Montgomery for March 2S.
 The trial of Butler Searcyl plant CT near Greenville, on char of peon- age, will follow. Ma
 MT Armbrecht is on his way to Pan anna He said his visit here was not concerned with politics.
 Representative Heflin of Alabama has called upon Attorney General Wicker sham to increase the fees paid by the United States government to the sher- ifs of Alabama for feeding and car ing for federal prisoners. The amount now allowed the sheriffs per day for feeding federal prisoners Is less than the amount that the state allows for feeding state prisoners.
 The Attorney General has promised MT. Heflin that he would investigate the matter with the view of making the change requested.
 Representative Hobson today tele- graphed live stock men in Sumter coun- ty to try to prevent the repeal of Aa- bama live stock sanitary penal laws Mir. Hobson said the repeal of the laws would be a step back ward. The officias of the federal agricultural department which has done much work in erad- ication of the cattle tick in Alalau, are, deeply interested In the agitation