The Washington herald., 1913-05-10
WILSON DELAYS
CAMP AIGNPLAVS;
LLOYD HOLDS ON
Democratic Congressional
Committee Adjourn: With
out Changing Personnel.
JOHNSON MAKES MOTION
Kentucky Congressman Had the Votes,
but Feared to Use
Them.
JOHNSON MAKES MOTION

| ne cOunSel Oh PRESIDENT WHSon pre-
vailed, temporarily at least, at the meet
| ing of the Democratic Congressional
Campaign Committee last night, the first
held since the assembling OF the Sixty
third Congress.
| Pending further consultation with the
President and members of the Demo-
cratic National Campaign Committee.
the committee, by unanimous consent,
agreed to retain the holdover chairman
and secretary. Lloyd, of Missouri and
Page of North Carolina, giving them
authority to go ahead with tentative
plans for the campaign of 1914.
The committee was called together
upon the signed request of group OF
It's members who were backing Repre-
sentative Ben johnson of Kentucky for
the Craftsmanship. 1t is!not known def
nitely that President Wilson is opposed
TO the candidacy of Mr.. Johnson, but
at any rate action by the committee
last night was forestalled by reason OF
President Wilson's wish as expressed to
the committee through its hold-over
chairman. James T. Lloyd. OF Missouri.
When the committee came together,
tail the story Of his recent conferences
with President Wilson.
Lloyd Makes Statement.
Mr.. Lloyd said:
About April 20 I gave notice that the
new Democratic Congressional Commit
tee would meet for organization April ..
At about 100 p. M, April %, the Presi-
dent called me to the telephone and
asked that the meeting be postponed in
order that there might intervene con-
ference between the two committees
National and Congressional-somewh
al LONG tho line that pxjSted nv agreement
during the last campaign.
I'm obedience to the request OF the
President 1 notified every member of the
committee of the postponement. Since
then | have had conferences with the
President, and he requested that there be
further postponenient of the organization
of the committee He desires this to be
done in order that there may be per-
fected better system of Congressional
committee organization that would more
completely subserve the interests of the
Senate and enlarge the scope of the
Congressional campaign committee by
making il specifically part of the work
of the committee to elect Senators as well
as members of the House of Represent
atives. To do this he feels that the Sem
ate should have similar committee rep
resentation to the House.
The House of Representatives now
has Democratic Representative in
Congress. The President suggests for
the consideration of the committee that
il might be we'll to have the committee
enlarged 90 that il will consist Of one
Democrat from each State now repre-
scented by Democrat in the Senate and
for which a Senator is to be elected in
1914"
There is shade of ambiguity about
the last paragraph of the statement OF
Mr.. Lloyd. He did not clearly designate
whether the new Congressional Cam
paign Committee should include Sem
ator from every State in the Union
which has a Democratic Senator. or
only those in which a vacancy impends
for 1914
Immediately Mr.. Lloyd had defined the
position of the President, motion was
made by Representative Raker to post
pone consideration of any schemes OF
organization pending the meeting, on
May 16, of the national committee.
CInrk Offers Resolution.
Representative Frank Clark of Florida
Immediately offered contrary resolu-
ton providing for the immediate organ
iZation of the new committee and the
election of officers. This would have
bttl Iisilt DIT tHe fTeeI-
dent. Senator Stone of Missouri here
spoke I'm favor of the Clark resolution,
and did not hesitate to designate the
suggestions of President Wilson as tend
ing toward an assumed dictatorship Of
the affairs of the Democrats in Con-
gress.
Representative Clark. speaking to his
own motion, voiced sentiments parallel
to those of Senator Stone in yet more
pointed language. He received support
from Representative Floyd of Arkansas,
and Representative Taggart of Missouri
and the committee was on the high road
to a fine row when Representative
Riley of Connecticut moved to table the
resolution of Mr.. Clark This would
have precipitated the trouble and brought
out a definition of psrty lines had it
not been for the action of Representative
Ben Johnson, the favorite candidate for
the chairman, who asked unanimous cons
sent that the committee drop considera-
ton of any scheme of reorganization
and delegate to the present chairman Mr.
Representative Page of North Carolina,
the duty of comforting with the Ma
tional Democratic Committee, the Presi-
dent and the Democratic organization in
the Senate.
1t was a Wilson victory. for the impress.
sion prevailed that Mr.. johnson had the
necessary votes to put him through
Speaker Clark is deeply interested in the
of Mr.. Johnson.
Carmen Go IN Strife