The Washington herald., 1914-07-19

change the rules Of the House. II passes
upon proposals dealing with the business
Of the House and therefore has great
power in selecting what legislation Is to
be dealt with and what is TO be side
tracked.
The MondeII Resolution.
before it at this moment Mr.. Mondclrs
resolution Oh. r. No. SD providing for
the consideration OF the suffrage amend
ment In the House this session. The
amendment itself has already been re-
ported to the House by one Of its most
responsible COMMITTEES. the judiciary. and
is now before IL awaiting action. Yet be-
fore action can be taken this new resolu-
tion of Mr.. MondeIl's making woman suf-
frage the next unfinished business OF the
House. must be introduced in the House
and referred to the Rules Committee: and
the struggle for a report has to begin all
over again.
1T will be asked at once whether II Is
not possible to discharge the Rules Com
mittee Of this business and bring IL be-
fore the attention OF the whole House.
Nominally It is quite possible TO dis
charge the Rules Committee. like any
other committee, OF business entrusted to
IL fifteen days before. Practically such q
line of action is absolutely closed.
Motions to discharge a committee, we
read in the Rules Of the House. may be
made by any member at any time IL he
presents TO the clerk the motion in writ
ing. II is then entered on the discharge
calendar and may be taken up on Mon
days, the day when such motions. under
the Rules of the House. are privileged.
Every Monday, therefore, it is theoretic-
ally possible to consider such motions.
but they are only in order after unani-
nous consent motions and motions to
suspend rules. Unanimous consent mo-
tions would not form a serious obstruc-
ton. Any one member objecting to each
measure which was submitted for the
unanimous consent Of the House could
rapidly dispose Of the whole unanimous
consent calendar. But motions TO sus-
pend the rules can be made indefinitely
and might be easily utilized to hang up
a motion TO discharge a committee. II II
were in the least embarrassing to the
administration leaders in the House.
III by act OF Providence, however. a
motion to discharge the Rules Committee
came before the House, 1t would have TO
be seconded by a majority vote and
passed by a majority Of the whole men,
bership OF the House. II IL failed OF a
second 1t could not be placed on the cal
endar again for the rest OF the session.
Calendar Deliberately Blocked.
zone might have thought that the sting
was removed from the tail Of this par
ticular form OF procedure, yet to make
assurance doubly sure. the discharge cal
endar was deliberately blocked on the
first three days of the present session.
BY December = twenty-four members
submitted to the Clerk Of the House two
discharge motions apiece. The rules OF
the House do not permit a member to
make more than two motions to dis
charge in the same session. After this
crafty maneuver any live motion to dis
charge a committee would find itself at
the foot OF a practically interminable list.
The Rules Committee has thus been care
fully safegUarded against this means of
encroaChing on its powers.
But a member honestly interested in
the success Of a nonadministration meas
ure has. In theory. another means open
to him Of securing action upon IL. He
can try to get his bill called up on cal
endar Wednesday.