Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1916-03-31
is LIKE GUESSWORK
ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO FORE
CAST FINAL FORM OF lMPoR-
TANT LEGISLATION.
PROPHETS ARE ALL AT SEA
Party Leaders Guessing-New Con-
nressional Directory Is Instructive
Human Recommendations Made for
Great Memorial Bridge.
sv GEORGE CLINTON.

BY GEORGE CLINTON.
Washington.-Leg has been
and continues to be a loiterer this
winter. The administration, the house
and the senate. to say nothing of per-
sons outside of both, have been en-
gagged in one gigantic guessing con-
test concerning the final form to be
taken ON by legislation of Importance.
The prophets business has been an
Rrdnous and a preearious one this
year. Comparatively few Of the fore
casters are justified in claiming that
they are prophets with honor in their
own country. The reason for the ut
ter inability of the administration or
Of the leaders In either house of con-
gress to foretell results. with anything
like certainty that their words will be
fnliilled, is that the members of
house and senate irrespective of party
lines have been divided among them
selves upon nearly all the greater
questions Of the winter. 1t has been
, impossible for the leaders of either
party in either house to learn definite
" just what following he could count
upon in advocacy OF in opposition to
any OF the more commanding meas
ures OF legislation.
The Preparedness Bills.
Take the preparedness bills for in
stance. During the preliminaries Of
tho framing OF preparedness bills in
house and senate the two committees
al the two bodies charged with the
work OF preparing legislation were
shown to be completely at odds with
each other on the matter of the proper
handling Of the subject in hand. The
chairman OF the senate committee on
military affairs wanted a continental
army such as had been suggested by
the administration. The leader of the
house committee on military affairs
was utterly opposed to the plan for
n continental army and was in favor
Df a great strengthening of the militia
and n comparatively small increase in
the regular army.
II was impossible for anybody to
tell which Of the two men in charge
of things would give way. Today
both the house and senate have re-
ported military preparedness bills and
while II was thoroughly believed at
the outset that they would be radical
" different in all their provisions
there are some few signs of a
coalescing of views, but the two meas
ures still are almost diametrically op-
posed one to the other.
There viii be compromise of some
kind between house and senate on the
military preparedness bill and it is
perfectly apparent that there must be
compromises between the two houses
on other bills such as those affecting
me navy and on some other matters
OF high Importance. In the senate
there are many members who favor
the plan of the house. So it is easy
enough to see how utterly impossible
II has been and still Is for the proph
cts to foretell accurately the outcome
On these big defense measures.
In the matter of the resolution warn
hng Americans not to travel on armed
liners belonging to belligerent coun
tries. the membership in house anC
senate has been divided not into par
tics but into groups irrespective o.
party. The divisions in the two
houses show no trace of Republican
ism or Democracy, but are botl
marked deeply with the signs of boil
parties. Old members say that neveI
IN their memory has there been sucl
q mixing up of party friends ant
foes on both sides of a question a
there has been on this matter whicl
has created such a sensation in tn,
country.
Prophecies Shattered.
There were supposedly wise men il
tho senate who predicted within Al
hour or two Of the vote on the Cor
resolution. now a matter Of compare
lively recent history. that the affai
was sure to be settled one way bC
cause It could not be settled any otE
w way. The prophets saw thei
prophecies shattered within fiftee
minutes OF their utterance. Some ser
ators voted one way or another, an
then made speeches exactly counte
90 their votes. The whole proceedin
was enough to distract the minds
men who tried to get any logical d.
dnctions from the course OF affair
and from the final vote.
The same condition of things wa
true in the house when the McLemor
resolution finally came under dire,
discussion. This was a resolutio
also intended to warn Americans fro,
taking passage on belligerent passe
ger ships which had guns mounted +,
defense. In the house, from hearir
the hrst speeches. stranger could n,
tell which was the Republican side
the chamber and which the Democrs
tc. No one could get any idea
what the outcome was to be. VIII
has been true Of the matters here d
cussed Is true of half a dozen 9th
bills and measures. This year L
leaders Of neither party know in 2