The copper era., 1911-04-21
Washington Letter.

l lieve that much work will be accom-
 plished during the legislative session.
 By vote of 296 to Is tue bill propos- ing Constitutional amendment
 providing for the direct election of
 United States Senators was passed .
 Only one Democrat opposed the
 measure. The other fifteen voting
 against it were Republicans The Canadian reciprocity bill has also
 been favorably reported. MT. Under
 wood, chairman of the ways and
 means committee announced that the ! free list tariff measure will be re- ported before the end of the week
 Among important bills introduced
 was one to regulate the traffic in cold
 storage products, another to increase
 the prestige of the American mer-
 chant marine, a third to regulate the
 issuance of injunctious and another bill to change the date of the in- auguratiOn of the President to the last Thursday in April. This last bill
 has often been up in Congress and it | is an effort to extend the term of the 1 short session and to fix the date of inauguration which has become a
 national pageant, attracting bun- dreds of thousands of people. to a
 time of year of fairer weather than
 the proverbially cold and stormy 4th
 of March. It is proba ble that before
 this is in print the Canadian recipro-
 city measure will have passed the
 House. The Democratic leaders have fully decided to go into the agricultural schedule and make im-
 portant changes which they demand
 ed during the tariff discussions oflast year. Other schedules not included
 in the general legislative program it
 is expected will be brought before
 the House proba ply during this month.
 The success of the House in passing the bill providing for the popular election of Senators has had an eX-
 hilarating influence on the minds of the majority leaders, and they are hopeful that much important legis
 lation may be enacted.
 Up to the present time the Demo. cratic ways and means committee of the House had not contemplated much more than a revision of the
 wool and cotton schedules, but owing to their successes this week, they realize. that they have time for additional tariff revision. Mir. Uu- derwood, chairman of the committee, is of he opinion that the session will
 be completed earlier than has been anticipated. It is expected that the ways and means committee will take up the woollen schedule of the tariff bill without waiting for the report of the tariff board, inasmuch as it is understood that this board will not be able to furnish information con corning the woollen schedule durinN the present session. The possible revision ot this schedule came up in the Senate on Thursday, when Senator Warren, whom the late Senator Deliver characterized as the ''great- est shepherd since Abraham" offered a number of protests and memorials deprecating revision of the wool schedule. The Wyoming Senator represents wool-growinR state, but
 he said that these memorials do not protest against ultimate revision, but simply prayed Congress to defer action until proper information could
 be received as a basis for scientific revision. Senator Cummins has opened long
 expected attack on the somewhat dilatory national monetary commis- sion, that refuge of flame ducks" as it has been called. The Iowa Senator introduced bill requiring this com. mission to present it's final report at
 the beginning of the next session in December, and this bill provides for the repeal of the law creating the commission and removing it from the
 payroll as soon as it's report is sub-
 mitted. The commission, it will be remembered, consists of eighteen members. Seven of them no longer draw their salaries as Senators aud two of them were former members of
 the House of Representatives. This is why it is called the ''lame
 duck" refuge. To some of them, like
 Senators Aldrlch and Hale, the salary which they draw as members of the monetary commission is matter of no great importance. but the others who draw the same salary as member of
 Congress are Burrows, Teller, Money,
 Flint and Taliaferro. This commis-
 sion was organized in 1908. Senator
 Cummins says that he believes it is
 time definite financial plan should
 be submitted to Congress, that he is
 not opposed to any of the members
 of the committee, but that he thought sufficient time had elapsed for posi- tive results
 The Aldrich plan for a central