Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1913-12-08
CONDEMN LOBBY
IN HOUSE REPORT
Majority Of Committee Makes
No accommodation of
Punishment, However.

Washington. Dec Sine house com
mittee which has been investigating
the charges of lobbying at the capitol
has decided TO make no recommended
lions to the house, though it's report
will comment severely upon some OF
the facts disclosed during the months
of inquiry following the published &C
cusation of NJ. NJ. Mulhall. former
agent of the National Association OF
Manufacturers.
Representative Mcdonald of Michi-
gan, the progressive member of the
committee, will file dissenting report,
though he agrees in the main with the
statement of facts set forth by the
majority of the committee.
The reports will be read TO the
house tomorrow. Al that time a final
meeting of the committee will formal
ly adopt the majority report. The
committee. >.:er meeting until near
midnight Saturday was in session all
of yesterday considering the scope and
language of its report and the question
OF whether there should be any rec
concentrations concerning Representa-
tive James T. McDefnott of Chicago,
mentioned by Mulhall. or as to remed-
ial legislation. Chairman Garrett said
that a tentative draft of a report sub
mitted by him to the committee had
been torn to pieces and changed gen
orally"
The majority report is confined TO 4
statement of the facts, including eX-
cerpts from the testimony and cor
concerning the operations
of the National Association of Manu-
facturers, an dto formal conclusions
in many cases couched in severe Ian
guage The resolution creating the
committee did not call upon ii to sub
NIT recommendations
The dissenting report OF Represen-
tative Mcdonald goes considerably
further. 1t sets forth that unless the
popular branch of congress is kept
above suspicion the balance between
the legislative. executive and judicial
branches of government is endangered
and contends that IL is the duty OF con
gress to expose fearlessly and to APP
ply the most drastic remedies, particu-
larry as there il broadcast a BuspI-
cion of conditions in congress. IL
urges the need of reforms in the leg
sIative methods of the house, "a sim
OBLIGATION of the rules TO avoid trivial
publicity for all commit
.ees a well-ordered system Of docket
ng the committees, abolition Of caucus
4 system of registration OF lobbyists
and penalizing of attempts 10 bribe
Or otherwise improperly influence leg
station.
The report further declares that the
alleged lobbying under investigation
was a battle between the vested and
abor interests and arraigns the So
;alIed Workmen's Protective associa-
ion as pretext for Vaccinations Of
obbyists. II states that the disclos-
Ires a few days after President VIII
jons public charge of improper in
iuences at work on legislation brought
proof of the need of the
inquiry.
The house lobby committee ended
is work today by passing on a re-
Used text OF conclusions as to test
nony concerning Representative Nc
)ermott of Illinois and other chief
igures In the house investigation.
Democrats and republicans save three
signed a report holding McDermott
guilty of improperly, but making no
Re-reJentative Nc
Donald of Michigan today completed
report agreeing to the committee
statement of facts, but dissenting from
is conclusions and recommending
egiglation for lobbying in report TO
De presented TO the house tomorrow.
All the news all the time-The
ArEus-