The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1911-06-17
STATE Of CHAOS
At WASHINGTON,
SAYS HARRIS
Correspondent Takes a DOleful
VeiW of Situation.
"a
PUBLIC HAS LOST INTEREST
Opening Speeches on Reciprocity Be-
ing Delivered to Empty
Galleries.
PUBLIC HAS LOST INTEREST

Washington, June 14.-If any con
siderable part of the rumors concern
ing congress in general and reciproc-
ity in particular were true, then
chaos would reign and the world
would drop into bottomless space No
political yarn is now given the slight
est credence here until after II is
demonstrated by transpirlng. Even
truth wears such guise of falsehood
that it usually gets swatted on sus-
picion. Everything is going around
in a circle, and there is no beginning
or end. The end has been cut OFF,
and is gone.
During a two weeks absence up in
Vermont, imbibing real air and sleep
ing well o'nights | have sufficiently re
covered from the paralyzing effects
of torrid weather and baneful poll
tics TO enable ne 10 stand up to be
knocked down again by the deadly
twain, and experience teaches that
the worst is yet to come II don't
seem possible, and yet, experientia
docet If lost souls are sent TO hover
around congress during the average
Washington summer-then they are
getting all that is coming to them.
Last Sunday the heat here broke all
records for twenty eight years. aver
aging 107 up and down the streets
all over the deadly town Meanwhile
| was up in Gods country trying TO
keep warm over a sitting room IRE
with the thermometer at forty-three
out at the front door. But il Will
catch me next time Again, ora pro
nobs, please.
Congress entered on the last leg OF
the reciprocity uproar yesterday,
with the beginning of the formal de
bate in the senate Senators Nc
Cumber and Curtis broke the ice for
mally with set speeches delivered to
empty galleries and a void chamber,
all of which indicates that the public
has lost interest in the arguments
and the senate itself is already weary
of the whole matter even before the
final requems are sung The initial
speeches are falling like a wet blan-
ket on unappreciative ears, and-tno
il is predicted that from four TO SIX
weeks may be consumed in the de-
bate on the subject and all its raml-
fcations before ii is allowed to come
to a vote-it is difficult to see how
the discussion can be thus prOtract-
ed under the inert conditions which
now prevail. Nobody has any heart
for the fight. o. the continuance OF
what in a large measure has degen-
Grated into an ignoble squabble with
the boundless universe for its limits.
1t is a bad mess, but no faction dares
loose its grip for fear OF the advan-
tage' which the other fellows may
gain.
The general expectation is that
vote will be had during the latter
half of next month at the farthest,
and this will mark the end OF the
session. The president has intlma-
ted that he would not tolerate a con-
tinuance of the session after reciproc
ity was disposed of, that being the
only article in the warning, and
quite regardless of whatever condlt-
ion the program of the House demo
Gratis is left in he will exercise his
influence to BRING the session TO
close. The most apparent result OF
the session thus far, from the SEN
ate at least, is the very evident sol
idifying of the republican members
of all factions into a practically solid
and cohesive working body. There
can be no doubt but that the republi-
can factions have gotten together to
a very large extent and are now work
ing with a degree of internal harm
ony that has long been a stranger TO
their councils. The so-called 'lnsur
gents" are now largely back on the
reservation, and the conservatives
seem to have met them half way All
have seemingly united against the
common enemy and even La Toilette
finds himself acting with the republi-
cans once in a while. Not only is
this condition of unity observable in
the senate but it is also apparent in
the House, and thus is the party in
congress indicating the get-together
spirit which is now animating the
rank and file throughout the country
All talk of thirty or anywhere near
that majority in the senate for the
reciprocity bill even without the Root
amendment is of course utter non
sense. Largely because of the ener-
getic work of the president the chan
ces of the bill have materially bright
ened but that it now has anything
like such majority is not decent
nonsense. Nobody can guess what
majority may be found for it before
the vote is finally taken but If 1t were
taken today its friends would be de-
lighted if it carried by a half dozen
votes. That it's chances are now
steadily increasing is probably true,
and that it will pass when a vote is
finally taken, unamended, is now very
likely