The Hawaiian gazette., 1911-05-05
QUICKLY LEARN
TO PULL ROPES
NEW DEMOCRATIC ooNoRHsBMEN
TAKING HOLD LIKE
VETERANS.
az Ernsss 9. walter.l
lMall speelaI 30 Tho AdvorLIa1

WASHINGTON, April 10.-Tho seri.
GUS look has come into mems faeee at
the Capitol and the whirrine sound il
heard The machinery is in motion.
And as the wheels rcvolvo the finished
product is being turned out for inspoc.
ttiOn and approval, the while the wheels
continue to revolve and more tasks
are undertaken. The novel and the alb.
normal, which were so Conspicuous in
the very early April days, have ceased
Ito be, Now at the south end OF the
Capitol it is all as an old shoe. Tho
legislative plant is running without
noise or friction.
The new men are coming into the big
places hsudily and living up to the re-
quirements. Speaker Clark is now able
to run the house as though It had been
8. task to his hands for the last decade
His floor leaders no longer display
timidity in guiding the great legisla,
tive body through the maxo of daily
proceedings. 1t is not particularly
different in all the outward aspects
than it was ten years ago, when, the
Republicans were in their palmy days.
OF course, there are the new faces but
the. day-in-day-Out aspect Of things is
about the same stRs
The house leaders have had little
opportunity yet to show what they can
do. Representative Underwood, chair.
man of ways and means, is just getting
J kbro,-h ,,;AL ~, e-sA lin n,,,.5;.n
ReciproCity--an that is not of "a
character to seriously strain ways
and means chairman IS capacity to take +,
care of himself and his party's inter
ests. The resolution for the popular
election of senators has passed the
house, after discussion which occupied
one afternoon. The bill was in charge
of Representative William Waller
Rucker, of Keytesville, Missouri, who
has been in congress FOR twelve yoois
aud is now chairman of the committee
on the election Of President, Vice
President and representatives in con-
gress. He would hardly be styled one
of the Democratic leaders although he
is prominent man in the house organ,
ization.
1t fell to his lot to have charge of
two very important measures in the
course of the first few days, for after
the proposed constitutional amendment
for popular election OF senators, came
the bill to amend thela law regarding pub
hcity of campaign expenses. That bill
belonged to Judge Ricker's committee
and was put through the house, so as
to permit of publicity before rs well as
after elections Such a measure was
part of the Democratic platform at the
last presidential election and it will be
remembered what lot Of talk there
was along in the summer and autumn
of 1908 because the Democrats wanted
and, as far as their own campaign was
concerned, had publicity of eontribu-
tions before the election, whereas Mr..
/ Taft, then the presidential nominee,
insisted that only publicity after cleo
tions was necessary. Mr.. Rucker had
a little trouble getting that hill through
the house and the Republicans got FIN
into corner from which he finally ex-
tricated himself However, his com
mittee will probably be hardly heard
from again in this congress.
! The strain now will be chiefly upon
the Democrats of ways and means and
from this time on for a month or two
|
to show whether they are equal to the
big tasks which the house has placed
upon them. In the discussion of the
Reciprocity Bill, some of the best De-
mocratic debaters of the ways ana
means committee were trotted out and
given an abundance of time. Repre-.
sentative Claude Kitehin, Of North
Carolina. who was selected 10 open the
argument for the bill, is one of the
best stump speakers in congress. The
purpose evidently was to have from
him speech that could be circulated
next year as campaign document
And as usual Mr.. Kitchen did not dis.
appoint the house Democrats who chose
him for the opening speech
OF course there is an apportionment
hill 10 mass from the census committee,
hut that win take, at best, no more
than a day. The caucus has virtually
forbidden most of the committees to re-
mort business to the house and ae-
cordineiy the chairman will have no OPP
. portunity to show what they can DO.
,, Chairman Underwood promises to hold
II might be suggested that, IL he gets
ON well with his tariff program, his
, friends are thinking about grooming
. him for the presidential race. They
say he Is a very able man, level headea
and experienced IN pubic aHalrs anu
that there is no one in the South who
would probably take as wen with the
country as presidential candidate.
f. Mr.. Underwood is too busy just now
TO nav any attention to these compi-
ments from his friends around the Cap
litol. But his name Is bound to be on
many tongues for a few months In con
Z neetion with legislative matters lie
Is young enough 10 be presidential
: candidate IN 1916 If some other should
be nominated 10 1912,