The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-01-12
ssoooGOc0oooocCo0oGs,ooco>oo


 Washington, January 11.-(special)- That was pretty fight on the floor ot the House today when Insnrgent Leader Norris broke away from the leadership of MT. Mann and tried to secure the cleo ton of Representative MurdoeS on the rules committee. Mir. Underwood had put in nomination Philip Campbell. who had been suggested to the majority party by Leader Mann. Mr. Underwood was placed in the position of championing the cause of the regular republicans and appealed to the democrats to support Campbell. However he informed his fellow demo- crats that they need not feel themselves bound by any caucus agreement if they had any reason to believe that Campbell should not he elected to the vacancy Mir. Underwood won out, though a num- Der of democrats either voted for Mur- dock or refrained from voting altogether. For time 1t was believed that MT In- derwood would lose through a eombina- ton of votes of the regular and insnr- gent republicans and democrats, who seemed disposed to support the insurgents nomination. But defeat would not hurt MT. Underwood in any way except. the possible temporary impairment of his leadership fin the organization of the House under like circumstances when the right of organizing the committees of the House was taken from the SD aaker and vested in the House.
 The selection of committee places was given to the ways and means commit tee or it's, chairman, and the democrats in caucus offered the minority party author ity to suggest the man to fill the minority places on the committees.
 Republicans Accept Offer
 The republicans reached this offer and their own caucus conferred authority on their leaders to name the committee places.
 It to sustain this party agreement which has never been attacked until to- day, that MT. Underwood eontended for the election of the man that had been suggested by the republican leader and approved by the ways and means com mittee.
 When the fight was sprung on the floor of the House some of the democrats took the position that the matter should be referred back to the two factions of tho  themselves or that the democrats should refrain from voting on the first roll call Other democrats took the position that the democrats should show some recogni- tion to the insurgents for their support on tariff and other questions during the first session of the present Congress. The latter Is responsible for most of tho dem ocratc votes that were cast for Mur- dock.
 There was no intention to impair the leadership of Mir. Underwood. During the debate former Speaker Cannon paid the following tribute to Mr Underwood, which was loudly applauded on both sides of the House. MT. Underwood of Ala bama ~has grown more in public senti- ment recently than any other man in the United States"
 Beaten 167 to 107
 opposed by both democratic and repub-
 can leaders, the insurgent attempt was beaten by a vote of 167 10 i07. Of the 1N votes cast in favor of MT. Murdock 26 were republican and s1 democratic while 10 republican votes were cast against the proposed substitute.
 The nomination of Murdock by Norris came after the nomination of Campbell by Democratic Leader Underwood, who informed the House that MT. Campbels name had been presented to him by Mr. Mann. MT. Underwood exhorted the dem ocrats to uphold the republican leader, whom the republican caucus had author ized to select committee members for the republican side.
 Representative Norris attacked both the caucus method of selecting committees and the right of either party to prevent open nominations on the floor. Mr. Un- derwood declared nominations from the floor of the House would destroy com pletely the balance of committees, and that the authority of someone to pass on appointments must be recognized
 After tho defeat of Representative Mur- dock for the committee place the House elected Mir. Campbell. The insurgent rep resentation on tho rules committee was thus reduced to one. Representative Len root of Wisconsin.
 Representative Norris followed his first defeat with resolution for the appoint ment of Representative Warburton of Washington as a member of the special sugar Investigating committee of which the late Representative Madison was also a member. This resolution was tabled on the motion of Democratic Leader Un- derwood, 167 to q. The insurgents could not muster enough votes to force 8 roll call on the question.
 Lorimer Probe
 Senator Lorimer today told the story of his early life fin politics to the Senate Investigating committee and talked of his differences with some of the Chicago newspaper publishers. The opposition of H. H. Kohlsaat to him. he testified. be- gan at the Minneapolis convention that nominated James c. Blaine for Presl- dent.
 1T was a Blaine man and began to or ganlze the Illinois delegation for him." said Senator Lorimer. HMr. Kohlsaat sent one of his men to tell me that he had