Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1916-11-15
Chairman Doremus of Dem ooratic Committee Hope
 fu1 of biajoriy.
WATCH TEE COUNT,
 SAYS CHAMP CLARK
Hh'aNer, Encouraged ny Report cs congressional gn:nnittec ChairRan,
 Talks oi Other Occasions When
 Fights 0ccnrred 0Ycr Speakcrsllip.

Washington, Nov II. - Speaker i Champ Clark reached Washineton to-
 day, and conferred with Democratic ! leaders regarding the coperessioD4l
 elections, which, according to the
 latest unofficial returns, leaves con-
 trol of the next house in doubt.
 me speaker first conferred with
 Representative Doremus of Michiga Il.
 chairman oi the Democratic congress
 slonal committee, who predicted that despite unofficial returns inlicating l inc election of five more Republicans 1 'han DemocfatS. the final canvass
 would give the Democrats control
 and that the speaker would be re.
 elected.
 ] On the other hand, Representative 1 Wood of Iowa, chairman of the Re publican congressional committee
 was insisting that the complete re | furns would show Republican gains
 instead of losses, and the Republicans 1 would dedicate the organization ot
 the house.
 Representative Doremus claimed
 early in the day at the white house
  1 publicans had been elected, and there
 were nine doubtful districts. He 1 reiterated this later to Speaker Clark. Senator Stone of Missouri and other | Democratic leaders, enumerating the districts which he believed wouli
 show Democratic victories on the Of l ficial count. During the day, how ever, there were no changes in the l unofficial results. which now indicate 1 the election of 217 Republicans, 211 ! Democrats, two Pro3ressives, one 1 Progress; veProtectionist, one inde- l pendent, one Socialist end one Prohi 1 bitiOnist.
 DoreHmS Optimistic. | Representative DoremuS. in his statement of the doubtful districts. 2t l the informal conference of party leaders, claimed official returns would show the following results:
 w. 0. Martin, Democrat, over Whit P. Martin, e-Protecti0nist, ill Louisiana: Zebulon Weaver. Demo
 crat. over James J. Britt, Republican. in North Carolina; Thomas J. Scully, Democrat, over Robert Carson. Re publican. in New Jersey; Samuel W. Reaks, Democrat. over Mark R. Bacon
 Republican, in Michigan; T. J. Steele Democrat, over G. C Scott, Republ;
 can, in Iowa; and M. Clyde Kelly Progressive, over William H. Cole man, Republican. in ennsylvanil. In addition. MT. Doremus insisted that Clyde H. Tavenner, of the Four teenth Illinois district. Harry B. Mitchell of Montana, al large, and Thomas G. Patten, of the Eighteenth
 New York district, all apparently de- feated by Republicans, had excellent chances of ultimate success.
 Unofficial returns from these dis districts show the election of Whit P Martin in Louisiana by 91 votes; Britt in North Carolina by. 13 votes; Car son in New Jersey, by il votes; Ba- con. in Michigan, by 100; Scott in Iowa by a; Coleman, ii1 Pennsyl- ! vania. 25 20: Francis, in New York
 by 2,65e; and Graham. in Illinois, by 1929.
 Republican leaders are claiming 1 that final results will show the elec- tion of A. J. Barchfiejd, Republican,
 over Guy E. Campbell, Democratic, T
 the thirty-second Pennsylvania di7 l trict, and of Robert F. Buer, Re publican, over Jesse G. Price, Demo-
 crat in the first district of Maryland. | Announcement of a contest in the l Maryland district was made today "Watch The Count" Says Clark,
 -"The only thing to be done,' said Speaker Clark, "is to watch the off cial count in all the districts and 1 wait for the final results.
 Three times ill the history Of the
 government there have been pro- longed contests over the election of q speaker. Twice it took three months and once it required two and one half months, to elect the speaker.
 "The first fight was in 1851, when Howell Cobb of Georgia was elected speaker after a fight lasting more than two months, during which no party could get majority.
 "The fight which lasted three months ended in the election of Gov. Bennington of New Jersey as speaker 1 in 1860 and of General Banks of Mas sachusetts in 1856. The struggle was hot in both these contests, and they were only determin:d arter the house had adoDted resolutions which pro- vided that only ten more E~llotS he taken ana Ol, oil tiie ,"i,i' "..AtO'' 'io candidate had majority, the man
 who had plurality would be de- clared elected. II was greed enough men would change their votes after the tenth ballot to give the candidate with plurality legal majority. "rhe most interesting of these con~ tests was in 1856. John sherman, Re l publican. of Ohio was leading candi- date. Every time Sherman would ap- near to be near election, membe" named John B. Clark Of Missouri-Eo kin of mine-a radical secesslonisl, wonld denounce sherman for having recommended an abolitionlst book written by man named Heipef.
 These speeches ended sherman 5
 chances, and Barks finally was elec'~ ed