Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1913-09-13
LEADER OF HOUSE HOPES TO De
ADVANCED AND ENLARGE
PRESENT POWERS.
POPULAR AMONG COLLEAGUES
DESPITE HIS CONSERVATISM
Congress Must 30 eesssd and 10 Up.
holder Of Present Caucus System
at Present Much condsmned-Un.
derwood May Be Blocked.
Especial Correspondence

. Washington, Sept. 13.-If Congress
chairman of the ways and means COM
mittee and democratic leader of the
house, becomes a candidate for senator
! in Alabama and is elected. there are
those who freely predict it will no; be
great while before he becomes the
leader of the senate.
Stranger things might be than tina:
Mr.. Underwood has just this in mind
in contemplating entering the race for
inc senatorship.
AS leader of the house democrats.
MIR Underwood has been successful, az
least in a parliamentary sense. He
has been enabled to keep the demo-
cratic forces fairly well together. He
has as a rule been able tc force thru
/ his programs and this in spite of the
growing spirit of insurgency among
the democrats in congress. He has
attained a great degree Of personal
popularity in the house and the demo-
cratic members who condemn him as
being conservative and too friendly to
the reactionaries are on good terms
with him personally with few excep-
lions.
Somebody Must Lead.
Mr.. Underwood believes somebody
must carry the banner and that, just
as in an army. so there must be q cap
tain in a legislative body. He is no.:
Of the insurgent school of thought He
believes in the rule Of party and in the
rule of caucus. The notion Of non
partisan consideration Of legislation
does not appeal to him. Turnout his
leadership in the house. he has con-
trolled situations as a rule by con-
trolling majority Of the caucus. bind
ing the democratic side of the house in
caucus to a course of action. and thus
has prevailed over the Independents
and insurgents.
Mr.. Underwood, as well as the lead
ers about him in the house. are we'll
known to feel that the senate demo-
Gratis are sadly lacking in leadership
and that if there were in the senate
more ironcIad way OF doing things,
with a strong leader at the head. the
democrats would make more Roadway.
l. may be expected that Mr.. Under
wood. if he goes to the senate with the
prestige of his long house career and
especially his career as leader. will not
sit idly by for long and fail to take q
hand in the game. He may be expected
to move tactfully and not give unnec-
essary offense but he will seek to make
Of himself a real senate factor.
Senate Majority Lacks Leader.
The democratic situation in the sem
ate just now is a peculiarly favorable
one for the advent Of Mr.. Underwood.
He Is a conservative. admittedly 80.
The majority Of the senate democrats
are conservative. some Of them wholly
reactionary. The senate democrats
lack q leader in the sense Underwood
leads in the house. Nobody has yet
arisen among the senate democrats
who in a crisis can do much more than
control his own vote. Senator Kern Is
nominal leader and il a capable sena-
tor but he exercise no domination. In
the senate nowadays. more than has
been the case for many years, every
thing is done by caucus. The senate Is
controlled by q minority-that Is by
majority of the democratic caucus-but
there Is little individual leadership.
Under the circumstances, 1t Is hardly
to be wondered that Mr.. Underwood
finds there is a glamour about entrance
into the senate. He has risen to the
highest honor possible in the house.
The speakership would not add to his
power but substract from 1t. 1t Is true
he has not avowed his intention Of
running for the senate but he is known
to be bordering on it and many OF mis-
friends think he will run.
Not Easy to Force Way.
However, it by no means follows that
a man who goes to the senate from the
house or elsewhere with great prestige
is going to rise to a dominating posi-
ton in the upper house. Many SEN
ator has been disappointed in this.
The senate is a peculiar BODY ana,
much as it is criticised, 1t contains a
number Of men Of great capacity. The
man who goes into the senate thinking
he will not have to compete with real
brains is in error. And there is a dis
position to pay little attention to what
man has achieved elsewhere and
make his show his high qualifications
as a senator before he is advanced.
One Of the men who was leading
house figure for years Is John SHARP
Williams. He was democratic leader in
the house. He is a man Of marked
ability However, Senator Williams
has not been made the democratic
leader and there is little probability he
will be in the future. So it may hap
pen that Mr.. Underwood, if he gets
to the senate over the combative body
Of Capt. r. p. Hobson, will find it