The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1913-03-06
CAUSE OF FAULTS
| IN Lower HOUSE
Inatienti0n and Talking Due to
| CvercrCWding,
POWER IS CONCENTRATED.

Not so Out Of 400 Members Seem to
| Have lnterest-1ody Has Had Too
| Many Members For Twenty Years.
! Champ Clark Used to Seeld the
| Legislators For lnattention.
BY ARTHUR w. DUNN.
Washington. March 6.-lSpecial.]-
Champ Clark scolded the house a
great deal during his two years serv-
ice as speaker. principally ON account
of the disorder which prevailed. due to
the fact that members kept up rum
ming fire of conversation among them
selves ii they were not particularly
interested in the business before the
house. For the most part not more
than 50 of the nearly 400 members
ever seemed to care what was 60
ing on.
Another reason for the seedlings was
the fact that members would not stay
in the house. and much time was con-
suned In calling the roll to keep a
quorum present. At any time man
could get up and make the point OF no
quorum, compelling count, and II
there were not 200 members In sight
the roll had to be called.
| Where the Fault Lies.
Champ Clark and Leader Under
wo0d may look back and recall that
when they forced through an increase
in the number Of members OF the
house they contributed to the very
conditions which prevailed during the
congress Just closed. The house is too
large. 1t has been too large for nearly
twenty years.
| 1t has lost its effectiveness. 1t has
Concentrated the power In few men.
The others do not care much about
what happens as long as they keep
their records straight on most ques-
lions and get through their local meas
ures. Until there is reduction in the
membership of the house there will
still he great disorder and lack OF at
tendance.
Cause Of Absences.
The house Office building Is one OF
the most prominent causes Of absences.
Members tire of dreary talk, which
amounts to very little. and so to their
Offices. They stay there. and the quo
rum disappears. One can't blame
them. for the business of the house Is
In the hands of few leaders who are
ragged by rather lightweight states
men making regulations for themselves
in endeavoring to establish economy
records. Under such circumstances the
majority retires. and when some man
gets angry because he loses his point
he makes the point of no quorum. and
the roll must be called, taking up half
an hour.
Holding Up the Majority.
The close Of the three months short
session shows the same traits OF hui
man nnture and the same lack in our
over,iiaental machinery. IN the house
s{iSe rsllee are such as to finally grind
ont results. but the SENATE showed that
one man could ray. "Give me what i
want or will force this bill over to
the extra session"
Many senators awaited themselves OF
their power to talk and defeat the sup
MY bills and secured action on meas
ures that would have been lost. There
was no real necessity for passing all
the appropriation bills. because they
could have been considered in the ex-
ira session. Int the desire to get them
through made the managers consent to
the various "holdups" Of the closing
days.
Underwoods Regard For Clark.
"No man on this floor has higher
regard for the speaker than myself"
dramatically declared Leader Under
wood few days before the adjourn
ment.
''lf he had thought Of that said a
man in the press gallery. Eat one psy-
Geological moment during the Baltf-
more convention he would have made
Champ Clark president"
But 1t was just Mt that moment that
Underwood thought the tide was run
ming his way.
Congressional Death Rate.
It was J. Hampton Moore who
thought that he had discovered why
there were so many funeral occasions
in the Sixty-second congress. and in
a set of resolutions the member OF
Philadelphia attributed it to the poor
ventilation Of the house. Perhaps
there may lie something in the sugges-
ton. but most of the meu were not
very regular attendants upon the SEES
siOns of the house.
Several of them were rather old in
years. and others died on account of
causes which could in no sense be at
tributed to services in the house. But
every person about the capitol will ap-
prove the efforts of Moore.
Professional Contestants.
Men who contest congressional seats
are generally allowed $4,000 as attor-
ney's fees. But the practice has re-
ceived Jolt. Members Of congress are
lgoing to scrutinize these accounts in
the future and cut off those ''profes-
)sional contestants" who bring contests
simply to get the fees. The scheme
was exposed in the closing days of the
last session. and some of the men who
expected 10 get bunch of government
money were disappointed.
Levi p. Morton III.
New York. March 6. - Announce
ment was made by the family thai
Levi p Morton, vice president in ths
Harrison administration, and former
governor of New York, is seriously il
at his Fifth avenue residence. He IL
eighty-nine years old.