The Calumet news., 1914-07-16
Mark Established in Fifty.First
Congress Surpassed and
Session Not Ended
ONE COSTLY SPEECH
LaFOIIette's Long Statement on
Railway Rate Case Costs
The U. S. $4,000

Washington, July 16.-The present
congress has shattered all long dis
tance talking records. At the present
rate it is believed when this session
finally adjourns, the record for words
will have reached a mark that no sue
ceeding congress can hope to equal,
for which, many veteran observers of
congressional affairs say, the country
should be devoutly thankful. The high
water mark for talk previous TO the
present session was established dur
ing the first session of the fifty-f first
congress. At that session the mem
bers of congress talked to an extent
that filled 11,S47 pages of The Con-
gressional Record. This was believed
to establish a record for words that
would never be exceeded.
But the present session already has
made the record of the flfty-first con-
gress look almost diminutive. Up to
today, the members of the present
congress have given the country the
DtlltHl VI lIltlt NOTuS VI NlSuO0n u
an extent that has filled 13,0S1 pages
of the record. With the administra-
tion program of antitrust legislation
and all the big appropriations bills yet
to be acted on. indications aregthe to-
tai output of the record for this ses-
sion will run to 10000 pages of words.
Should the fight be successful TO have
the confirmation of President Wilson's
appointees to the federal reserve board
considered i'm open rather than execu-
tive session along with the Nicaragu-
an and Colombian treaties, the record
for the present session unquestionably
will run more than double the number
of pages required by the fifty-first
congress.
Reforms Fail.
Reforms i'm connection with the
endless talk alleged evil frequently
have been discussed, but i'm the end
has amounted to nothing more than
alleged evil, il is freely admitted. has
never been more fagrant than during
the present summer.
While the talk continues at flood
tide, so far as the books at the offices
of the Congressional Record show, the
country appears to be taking abso-
lutely no interest in what the con-
gressmen are saying. For the past 10
years the bona fde subscriptions to
the record have lowered around 500
annually. This year there are just t7i
Yet with but 474 people
out of the nearly 100,000,00O in the
United states showing sufficient in
torest to subscribe for the record, the
members of the senate this week are
to force a situation that
win prolong the flow of words indeii-
nitely.
$500o00 per Session.
For the past 10 years ii has CO.'S
the general public on an average of
$500 900 per session for the record. In
dications are that the cost of the
record for the present session will run
pretty close to s1,000,000. This big
sum of money represents for the most
part, the cost of composition and
printing only. 1t does not cover the
cost of the official reporters, of whom
there are Is. and of the typewriters
whose work is done under contract.
The words which the members of
congress felt impelled to get out OF
heir system came most glibly in con-
nection with the debate over the re-
peal of the free tolls clause of the |
Panama canal act. The output OF
words i'm connection with the tolls con-
froyersv totaled few more than 4
339. 900. For more than five weeks.
he output continued i'm the senate,
,fter the repeated admission was
made by the senators bent on filling
M the record, that there was no
nope anything that might be said
would change a single vote.
Speech Costs $500.
Recently Senator LaFollette made
what purported to be speech
against what he termed the orga-
,ized campaign designed to influence
he decision i'm the railway rate case.
rhe speech consisted of desk
,eaped high with bulletins and
,amphlets published during the past
ear on the railway question by all
orts of interests and persons. with
PREDATORY of less than 1000 words
;enator BaFollette loaded all the
,amphlcts and bulletins into the
ecord. They took s65 pages closely
,rinted. at a cost To the government