Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-11-19
BIG HOUSE FIGHTS
I. FOR SPEAKERSH|P
CIoseness of Incoming Body
Recalls Great Contests
Before the War.
FEW ALWAYS CONTROLLED

Unless all signs fail. the House of
Representatives in the SiXty-ffth Con-
gress will find the parties lined up
with a smaller difference in numbers
than ever before; and it is this small
majority which is one day given to the
republicans and on the next day to
the democrats which is causing the
students of history and parliamentary
presidents to dive into the volumes
telling of former close contests at the
Capitol. Although the present political
status is close and extremely interest
ing. there are no such bitter issues at
stake as those which tore the country
in the days preceding the civil war.
The Speakers before the days of
1851 were elected only after scenes of
turbulence and violence which can
Banks, Cobb and Pennington We're
elected after weeks of balloting: and
1t was only after the House determined
in each case that aplurality rather than
q majority should elect Spea ker that
decision was reached in each of these
cases. In the case of Nathaniel Banks
OF Massachusetts the House was with
out organiza ton and without Speaker
for two months; the same period elaps-
ed before William Pennington of New
Jersey, then in his first term, was elect
ed Speaker. Howell Cobb of Georgia
was elected after three weeks of ball
1oting.
In the case of Cobb. the great issue
of slavery was uppermost in the minds
of men when the Thirty-first Congress
assembled on December 3, 1919 The
House was composed of men who rep
resented a great many lines of polit-
ical and economical thought. There
were northern wings and southern
wings Thirteen members were of the
free soil bnt called themselves
wings. These were the radicals of the
House, and they really held the bal
ance of power. In addition there were
112 democrats and los wings. The
man whom the whig element wanted
to see in the Speakers chair was Rob
ert c. Winthrop of Massachusetts,. who
had been Speaker in the previous
House Eight of the free soil men
would not vote for HIM because of his
action in ignoring the anti-slavery
sentiment in making up committees in
the Thirtieth Congress.
District Committees Prominence.
At this juncture the House commit
tee on the District of Columbia came
into peculiar prominence. The eight
free soil members who were making
the trouble demanded that the District
committee. together with the judiciary
committee and the committee on terri
tories. be made up so as to report non
estly on all petitions and memorials
favorable to the abolitionists. tThe
quotation is from Fuller's book. The
Speakers of the House.") Winthrop
would not agree to this
Howell Cobb of Georgia was the
southern candidate for the speakership.
but the radicals would not agree to
support him. The situation was be-
clouded further ~ fourth small band
of members under Representatives
Cobb of Georgia led in the first ballot
by seven votes, and there was scatter
ing field of the adherents of the various
radicals The balloting then continued
for several days. and the tempers or
the members became worn to hne
edge. After thirty-six votes had been
taken Winthrop withdrew temporarily
William j. Brown of Indiana was put
up by the democrats. and he got all but
two votes of a majority. Following
this, the southern members caught one
of their number in what they believed
was bargain to sell out the south. ana
there was a scene of great excitement.
The next day Representative Meade OF
Virginia and Representative Duer OF
New York had a passage in winch the
words THAR and traitor" were used.
Hubert Bruce Fuller. writing of that
period. says:
"CoIcock of South Carolina. carried
beyond the depths of his intellect by
The swift tide of party passion, an
nounced that he would introduce for
NAL motion for the dissolution of the
Union after the abolition OF slavery IN
The District of Columbia should be de-
cided upon. or the Wilmot proviso
enacted.
Warning Taken by Southerners.
1.-THE warning sounded by these dis
ciples of slavery we're not lost upon the
southern members. and although they
created no wild panic. yet they did
much toward securing the final or
ganization of the House by serving
notice that there was a limit to south
ern endurance. We have the word OF
Stephens that such financial conSidera-
tons as unpaid board bills and impor-
tuning creditors helped much to bring