The Washington times., 1912-11-30
SENATORS TO JOIN 7
ON 4 PROGRESSIVE !;
LEGISLATIVE PLAN
New Party Men to Get Help
of Anti Standpat Re-
publicans.

Senators Of the pfogressive .eroup.
without much reference to wether they
call themselves progressive Republicans
or Progressive party men. are going to
unite on . Vigorous and virile, iesisla-
tive program. u.
On the tariff. the trusts and corpora.
tons. railroads. income tax and other
important matters. the prospects are
they will get together and form, az
they have done In the past. q powerful
Aggregation Of fighting Legislators.
Not all the progressive Senators, az
they have uaaully been called in the
past-that 10. Senators who insursed
and refused to follow the leadership Of
the Republican old guard-are In Wash
inston. No formal conferences have
been possible - yet; but conferences
soon will be held. and when they are
II !. almost certainty what form they
Most OF the progressive Republican,
Arc not devotins much talk to the mat.
ter OF recognising the Republican
party. The dominant feeling AIMING
them seems to be that Il 10 too early
to get far with such . movement. and
VIII do nothing. Under the circum-
Stances. the Progressive group. not In.
GLIDING those Democratic Senators who
are entitled to be called progressive, IA
turning attention to legislation on the
big questions before the country,
Plan Progressive Bills.
The result 10 likely to be that by tho
time the winter Is well under way tho
country will see introduced In the Sen.
ate and actively pushed series of
comprehensive measures believed to be
responsive to the demands of prorrs-
sive thought In the country without
| much regard to party lines. These
measures will deal with the trust prob
lem. railroads. currency. and the largest
Of the issues which must be met I'm the
coming Administration. Tariff bills will
walt until next session.
1t is not expected, OF course, by the
Republican and progressive party ele-
| ments In the Senate that much Of I'M
portance can be done this session. But
they think the way can be paved for
next session. and for the long session OF
the sixty-third Congress-.
groups In the Senate-men like Borah,
Cummins, La Toilette. Bristow, Ciapp.
| Kenyon. Works. Poindexter. Crawford,
| Dixon. Gronna. and Bourne-are men OF
exceptional capacity and indefatigable
workers. It IN plain that II they set out
to put big legislative program through
the upper house they will be a force to
be reckoned with. Progressive Demo-
Gratis In the next Congress may unite
with this group.
Democrats In Fix.
| On the other hand. the Democrats
a. = whole may stand out against the
progressive group. and insist on using
none but Democratic recipes for legis-
lation. II the Senate Democrats fall to
be as progressive as the progressive
group. they will win the condemnation
Of the country: and. on the other hand,
u they are downright progressive, they
vii Invoke the anger OF part Of the
Democratic party.
The: The E, effect. e short. Of the proposed
and Progressive party group in the
Senate is likely to be to split the Dem.
ocratic party In and out OF Congress
more seriously. than It 10 now split.
pei the new Democratic regime to adop,
s,I most SH. vigorous progressive platform
While the Democrats will control the
next Congress-. BY no means all the
their side. The Progressive group does
not purpose to let itself be lost in the
shuttle. 1t IL going to proceed on the
theory that what the country wants
far.reaching and more or less radca
legislation to correct the evils mos,
complained Of by the public. and tina,
the voters are going to nay. much mor'
craftsmanship. In taking this course
the progressive Republicans bcliev,
they are taking tho only feasible wal
to renewing and strengthening tho Re
Whether the Democratic end Of Sen
ate and House meets the standar,
which the Progressive group OF tn
Senate purposes to set II will be VI
to Mr.. Wilson, as President. and tn
Congressional leaders to say.