The Mathews journal. (Mathews C.H. [Court House]) 1903-1937, 1911-01-05
DEMOCRATS APPEAR
VERY MUCH AT ODDS
Some Southern Representatives
Favor Protection and Others
Duty for Revenue Only-To
Strip Speaker of Power
Make House Chaotic.

WASHINGTON, d. G, SPECIAL
] Anxiety OF the leaders of the Demo-
cratic party to avoid political pitfalls
1 and please radicals and conservatives
alike has led them into a situation
| bordering on chaos, so far as the
| adoption of definite policy for the
! management of legislation in the next
| Congress is concerned.
! With the time for holding a caucus
( rapidly approaching. the Democratic
leaders are considerably confused as
/ to the real sentiment of a majority of
! their party. Moreover, il now ap-
/ pears that there is a decided differ
I enCe Of opinion among the leaders
| themselves as to the exact policy that
/ should be pursued.
The two great questions that are to
/ &c considered in the approaching eau
! Gus are those involved in the manner
/ of selecting the standing committees
4 OF the House and the way the tariff
| should be revised. 1t is frankly adj
mitted that some OF the Democrats
are demen6iaS that the tariff be re-
yised on n s.Cict tari1-for-revenue-
J only basis. The leaders informally
admit it would be impossible to bring
! the tariff to this basis at any one ses-
! sion of Congress.
Some Are for Protection.
other Democrats, particularly those
| certain
! amount of protection, while still 9TH
ers want out-and-out free trade I'm
| less the leaders manage to bring all
! factions together on some common
ground IL is extremely unlikely that
any Of the schedules will be revised in
such manner as to command the
! support of the Republican Insurgents
/ in the Senate. Without that support
\ there Will be little hope Of tariff re-
vision in the next Congress.
on the question of the manner of
| selecting committees Of the House
there is the same uncertainty. To
4 strip the Speaker of all his power in
this direction. il is now admitted. will
mean that conditions in the House
VIII become chaotic. The Democrats
1 have leader who VIII not merely be
an advocate, but an arbiter as we'll
| hitherto, the Speaker has been a
steering committee all by himself. To
| divide this authority will be to divide
responsibility and permit consider
! able delay while the jockeyinr for
position goes on. One of the plans
| oeing considered is to place the Sc
lection OF committees under the juris-
diction Of the Rules Committee. To
give that committee such power. how
| ever, the stipulation must be made
| that the members must not decide on
| any OF their own number for the
! other committees. If the best men
were put on the Rules Committee.
there would then be a scarcity of
good material for the other commit
| tees.
Suggests a Flood Leader.
In other words, some Of the lead
ers feel that they are between the
1evil and the deep blue sea- The
natural leader OF the party in the
House is Champ Clark. With Clark
shorn OF all power, they would have
! 10 concentrate the power elsewhere.
ana they do not see how this would
be much Of an Improvement.
IL is not to be understood that the
| Democratic leaders are suffering from
a lack Of advice. If anything. they
are suffering from plethora of sug-
| SestonS Bryan men have suggested
one thing, Henry Watterson another.
and now John Sharp Williams nae
come out with still another sol 4t!..-.
Inc suggestion OF Senator-e act
! Williams is that the Democratic par
| " in caucus select a party leader, in
addlton TO the Speaker. The party
/ leader, according to Williams. should
be an eX-officiO member Of the Rules
| Committee.
The caucus also should select the
/ members of the Rules Committee.
which. in turn. should name the men
TO be placed on all the other stand
ing committees. Under this plan the
|
/ most OF the power of the Speaker
| and would become the dominant body
| of the House. The struggle of MEM
/ berS to be named for that committee
! however, il is said, would be apt to
\ split the party into factions
! II is feared that there would be
| such strong pressure on the members
! of the Rules Committee that the
/ members of ii would pull in opposite
| directions, causing considera bic delay
and confusion. AS Woodrow Wilson.
! Governor-elect of New Jersey. pointed
out in one OF his books on political
/ economy. the real trouble in Con-
gress is that the occupation Of the
| Speakers chair is not clothed with
sufficient authority to fix responsible
ity AS DR.. Wilson says. the First
Congress. in 1899, tried the expert
ment of appointing a committee on
committees with anything but fatter-
ing results.
DIR. Wilson's Prophecy.
| While DR.. Wilson'S s%atements on
this subject We're made long before
the present crisis arose, Democrats
are giving them now a prophetic
meaning.
While Mr.. Clark has come out for
a committee on committees, il is
known that he takes the position that
it is a nice theory, but may Heaven
helf us when we try it." He sim
i - hopes that it may turn out all
right
The Republicans, on the other
hand, feel that they have the chance
of their lives in the next Congress to
prove the value Of practice against
theory In President Taft they have
leader whose authority all Of them
recognize.