Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1916-03-29
WASHINGTON LETTER
Evans Barnett Writes Us Some
thing About Nations Capital.
PLENTY OF FINE ORATORY
Congress Undignified Compared To
Senate, Says Evans Mighty IS
sues Being Settled.
Verify, a Good Judge.

Your prOmptness in forwarding lost
copies of your interesting paper,
wish to thank you for the same.
At the same time let me again con-
graduate you upon your multilaterial
fairness and the brOad-minded prin-
ciples of your editorial columns. Your
manner of hitting off truly American
ideas and principles is pleasant and
reassuring.
Champ Clark and His GaVeI.
Having the good fortune of being
in Washington during these turbulent
and unprecedented times | have be-
come extremely interested in the var
iOus topics now absorbing the atten-
ton OF legislators on capitol hill. The
chambers of Congress furnish a very
welcome place for my leisure moments
and I find one can pick up a great
amount of interesting facts as we'll
as enjoy brilliant debate by visiting
the Senate, especially. l seldom go to
the lower branch of Congress on ac-
count of its apparent levity and gen
eral lack of decOrum which charac-
terizes the Senate. Talking, reading
of newspapers and a common commo-
ton destroy any chance of following
the question before the house and it
is only when Champ Clark swings the
gaveI with great vehemence that one
can understand the member having
the floor. The Missourian is my only
favOrite there, while Mondell's vene-
nous tongue occasionally furnishes
little food for thought. The difference
i'm decorum between the two houses
is as marked as between kindergar-
ten and a church service. Only once
during my many hours in the Senate
have / heard Mr.. Marshall rap for
order and that was when Underwood
was being congratulated, by friend
and foe, on his speech on that floor.
Senator Gore No "SIOuch.o
During the tense sessions when in
ternational disputes occupied their at
tentiOn l missed very few speeches.
No doubt everyone is familiar with
the events of those days, but reading
of them is far from feeling and hear
ing them. Partisanship was flung to
the winds; the big men of either side
aligned themselves sqUarely with the
President who by his firm stand for
a showdown displayed to the nation
the power he has over Congress. In
my mind the most fOrceful and point
ed speech during the debate on the
Gore resolution was made by John
Sharp Williams, closely seconded by
that of Henry Cabot Lodge. When
Gore skillfUlly offered an amendment
to his resolution the situation became
white-hOt Ollie James quickly de-
tecting in it a substitute denounced
it with the result that ensuing de-
bate caused it to be tabled with a
gOOdly majority Gore, despite his
handicap of blindness is as active and
cOgnizant of proceedings as anyone.
Recently. he demanded a roll call for
quorum to vote on a bill fOstered by
him Only fOrty-fOur answered and
the chair ruled no quorum. Seeing
no vote could be taken, he quickly
moved to adjourn, and in a moment
the vote was taken and the ayes had
won He had turned the little trick
on the Senators who had tried to
sQuelch his bill
Shall Government Make ATmOr!
Yesterday l spent five hours in the
teresting discussion of the Tillman
bill for government ownership of the
armOr plate factories. You are get
ting the report of it this morning, and
/ shall not attempt to offer any per-
sOnal views on the question, but it
produced some animated passages be-
tween senators. The most sensation
al scene followed Senator Reeds eX-
cOriatiOn of every member on the 9th
er side of the chamber who had OPP
posed the bill as a pleader for special
interests.
Senator Oliver Called Down.
This was directed especially at SEN
atOr Oliver OF Pennsylvania. who had
declared he owned 1000 shares of
stock in the United States Steel Co..
which was shown TO be the head of
the armor plate monopoly" Reed
said The also, if he owned $500, 600
worth of stock in a company profit
ing from government contracts would
be excited at the prospects of the ter
minatiOn of those contracts" Sena-
tor Weeks amendment to the bill was
open for debate under the five-min-
ute Eule DIS the SeHeTdl ueDdIe clOSeu
here. J. Ham Lewis in a speech as
prim and neat as his whole makeup,
said he detected in it the hand of art
full device Senator MARITIME, in his
"frey" way, came back at the senators
from Massachusetts for slam Of~the
previous day in regard to the owner
ship of Krupp's, saying The had for
gotten when asking that thew we're
from Boston, the hub the universe
and the seat of all knowledge" As
usual after verbal tits, they shook
hands and conversed gOod-naturedly.