The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-12-02
Legislators Settle Down to
Work With Little
F0rmality
NO FILIBUSTERING
WILL BE ATTEMPTED
Passage of Currency Bill Predicted
Before End of Holidays-Grist of
First Day Bills Smaller
Than Usual

WASHINGTON, December I.-9specfaI1
The regular session of the sixty-thiFt
Congress opened today. and the entire
Alabama delegation answered the roll
call.
Representative Hobson was present
and occupied "A seat In the row Just be-
hind and three seats removed from
Oscar Underwood. This Is the hrst
time that the rival for senatorial hon-
ors from Alabama have been together
ON the floor of the House since their
famous tilt ia November.
Representative Abercrombie has the dis
tinction Of having answered every roll
call demanded by Representative Mann
during the recent lull in activity In the
House. A1r. Abercrombie did not so home
during this period, as did most every
other member of Congress
Representative Hefln will introduce a
bill at once to have the department Of
agricultural in its reports of cotton ginned
to separate the linters from the regular
report lie declares that to include lintefs
is misleading inasmuch as last year there
were some 100000 bales of linters. This
fact, not mentioned in the reports. makes
the crop OF regular cotton appear larger
than it really is.
| Washington, December 1.-Congress to-
day closed the extraordinary session
which began April Z and settled down
to the regular long session, expected to
continue into next summer.
Only the absolutely necessary formality
marked the ending Of the old session ard
the beginning Of the new.
The Senate was at work practically all
day. An attempt to institute the proposed
drastic programme Of day and night ses-
sions for consideration of the adminstra-
ton currency bill failed, the democrats
agreeing to allow final settlement of the
programme to go over until tomorrow to
give the republicans time to consider it.
No Effort to Filibuster
Repubhcan fss.der e3aninser ara sem
ator Smoot eomforted the democrats with
the announcement that the republicans
would make no effort to hlibuster or OBJ
struct in any sense the passage of cur
| rency legislation, and the democratic
leaders predicted the enactment of the
measure tonight before the end of the
holidays.
| The currency bill as completed by the
democratic conference was printed and
prepared for the Senate today, and Sem
ator owen presented it as a substitute for
the bill originally reported by himself and
the administration democrats of the bank
! ing and currency committee.
| Senator Burton, republican, of Ohio, in
troduced currency bill of his own which
provided for the formation Of a central
bank TO be owned by the public and op-
Grated by the government.
The House contented itself with brief
meeting formally beginning the new ses-
sion.
Galleries Crowded
The galleries were crowded to witness
the ceremonies but the formalities were
curtailed. The grist of first day bills in
the House was much smaller than usual
| tonight, but there is still pending hum
dreds of bills covering nearly every con-
ceivabe form of legislation submitted in
| the extra session.
| These include many bills for trust reg
ulation which the judiciary committee
will consider. Hearings on trust legsla-
| tion by this committee will be held be-
| fore many weeks.
Representative Gray of Indiana intro
duced a bill which would provide for an
! international conference next fall for the
purpose of agreeing to a plan Tor coaxing
! disarmament and suspension of naval
construction. programmes. The bill would
authorize an appropriation OF 5o0,000, the
| United States to entertain the delegates
| from foreign powers.
| President Wilson will deliver his first
| regular message to Congress at a joint
session of the two houses at l o'clock
tomorrow, and it is expected he will touch
upon many of the problems to be taken
| up at the new session.