The Washington times., 1913-06-21
THE SENATE CAUCUS.

1t does not overstep the mark to say that caucu
rule-machine methods concentration of power, star
chamber procedure in legislaton-was more re
sponsibe for the destruction of the Republican part
than any other pne factor. One need 60 no farthe
back than 1909, when a tariff bill was prepared il
the Ways and Means Committee, printed, and thel
withdrawn in order that some eleventh-hodr change
might be made at the dctation of the machine Thos
changes had been necessitated by the sudden devel
opment of political conditions that threatened tn
machines control. 1t was necessary to make certain
concessions in order to line up certain votes not TO
the tariff measure, but for the Cannon organization
in the House.
Those changes dictated absolutely without refer
ence to merits, and forced upon the Ways end Mean
Committee, marked the beginning Of the popula
suspicion concerning the integrity of the Payne
Aldrich measure.
From that time forward, the iron hand of KIM
Caucus was at the helm The people at length wer,
brought to see what caucus rule really meant hoy
their laws were prepared in secret for them, ant
how, in the secret conference considerations entre
apart from the mere public interest were assignet
undue weight
The revolt against the Payne-Aldrich measure
was quite much against the manner of its making
as against its details
Today the Democrats are making tariff measure
Remembering that they came into power largely be
cause of antagonism to such methods, it is hard
understand how they can now be adopting that very
procedure. Yet they are. The Senate Finance Com
mittee has completed its work the tariff measure
and turned it over to the Democratic caucus. While
the basiness of legislation waits, while House and
Senate mark time the Democratic caucus Of the Sen
ate, behind locked doors, will consider for several
days the POLITICAL aspects of the legislation. MOI
the merits, but the POLITICS. Everybody under.
stands now, that POLITICS is the consideration in
the caucus. There was time when the secret caucus
was regarded with no particular suspicion because
people did not know so much about it as they do now
Even if this caucus should be the exceptional one
in which only merits were considered nobody would
believe it. Nobody would be justified in believing it
The Democrats themselves have reviled the caucus
system before the country for years past The pro-
esiye Republicans started the split in that old party
with their protests against this kind of legislative
procedure.
Four years ago right now Senator Daniel of Vir-
ginia was denouncing the tariff measure then before
the Senate, on the ground that it had been made in
secret by the Republican side of the Finance Com.
mittee and did not represent the joint sentiments OF
that committee as whole. Ii was an impressive de-
nunciation and was echoed by the progressive Re.
publicans.
Today the Democrats are repeating that very per.
Torrance.
Making legislation in secret caucus was wrong
four years ago. 1t is worse than that now; it is
political mistake 1t cannot be defended before the
bar of more enlightened public opinion.
Moreover the Democrats finally will gain nothing
by this procedure. If they expecting their caucus
to line up the votes necessary to pass the measure
they are mistaken. The caucus will not save to them
the support of single Democrat who would have
been lost; and it will probably destroy their last
chance to get any independent Republican support
If they had done their tariff making in the open
without so much disposition to maintain the partisan
quality of it and preserve the full measure of party
credit, they might have won over some Of the pro.
gressve Republicans. II would take no more cour.
age for Republican of that persuasion to vote for
Democratic bill in 1913 than it took for the same
man to vote against Republican bill in 1909. But
the chance of such a thing happening is made in.
finitesimal by the course of the dominant party in
administering the snub to progressives outside the
fold and returning to the very methods that brought
odium to the old Republican party.