The Birmingham age-herald., 1917-04-08

sion of both houses-that is. as far as the state of war" feature was concerned. He went further. He admonished Con- gress against a possible tendency to waiver when confronted by the plans adopted for the prosecution of the war by the administration. Consider, peace" he said in effect, that whatever is pre-
 sented to you for action will have been devised by the administration, responsi- ble f0r the war. after the most assiduous and careful effort"
 THE WILLFUL TWELVE
 Following the message of the President both branches of Congress prepared to act Tuesday the Senate committee on foreign affairs reported the war resolu- tion." Wednesday the House committee did likewise
 That same day in the Senate occurred the r1omentous debate. Under the lead ership of Senator Martin strong and unbendng Virginian who as a boy re- ceived his baptism of fire on the banl5A of the Potomac, the majority let certain 'recalcitrants understand that despite their plans for checking progress, the upper House would not adjourn until the work in hand had been discharged.
 In the beginning it was evident that the only opposition in the Senate would spring from the ranks of the 12 who, in March, prevented by a filibuster the en-
 
 F'urthermore, it was known that the real opponents would be Mir LaFollette of Wisconsin, spokesman, and MT Stone of Missouri strategist of the so-called Ger man element.
 CRY OF TREASON
 Of the 12 who opposed the armed neu- trality bill, however, six had learned their lessons. In the month which had intervened since they made their blunder in March they had suffered under the cruel lash of public rebuke and scorn. MT. Kenyon, republican,; MT. Kirby dem ocrat; MT. Cummings, republican, and three others, publicly "came through" They declared of course that in their opinion, their conduct in March had been justified-but they added what was more important, that in war preparations, they would stand by their country
 Of the six who still survived, MT. La Toilette, Mr. Morris and MT. Stone spoke. The speech of Stone was received in silence. Norris, however, startled and electrified the Senate and the packed and suffocatng galleries by affirming that the United States was supplanting the stars of it's flag with the dollar mark.
 MT. Reed of Missouri cried ''Treason" The galleries in violation of one of the sacred rules of the Senate, abplauded and then hissed Norris. MT. Pomerene of Ohio, indignant as Reed was. submerged the Nebraskan, Norris, with vindictive strong as could be expressed in a par liamentary body. This was the most sen sational incident of the long debate.
 LAFOLLETTE'S POSITION
 MT. LaFollette delivered the speech which he had prepared in March for the proposed defeat of armed neutrality. At that time, democrats, under the leader chin of Mr. of Na11r o1x vented LaFollette from speaking. Wednesday. he had his opportunity. His address was started at and concluded at 6:30 o'clock. He deftly employed all the arguments and revamped all the con- tentions which pacifists and pro-Germans at home and abroad, had previously made iniquitous. He declared the people of the country did not want war He de- clared that the war propaganda" was supported and sustained by manufactur- CTS of munitions who were anxious to add more blood money to that vast horde which already they had acquired. He declared the press of the east, for long loud in it's denunciation of German out rages and insistent in it's demands that Americanism be permitted to assert itself, was really the subsidized property of Great Britain. His entire argument was to the effect that Great Britain had, after persistent effort, finally succeeded in lOTCluS InG On1leu SIaleS to pull JUS chestnuts from the fire. Albert Beverdge, in his palmiest days. never made more palpable play to the galleries.
 John Sharp Williams of Mississippi, answered the charges of LaFollette. His address was an excoriation of the Wis consin. It was admittedly masterly ef- fort of rebuke, powerful antidote for the egregious conceit under which LaFol- lette continues to exist.
 WILLIAMS DENOUNCES HIM
 '"rhe speech of the senator from Wis consn,' said Senator Williams would have done justice to Bethmann- -Hollweg if that German had had the nerve to deliver it. I have never heard a more general charge to the effect that every thing Germany has done was proper and everything the United States has done was wrong. That feeble and palpably false and untenable argument that Amer ica is moved in this moment at the in- stant of Great Britain, should be branded by the Senate, by Congress and by the people of the nation as an infamous lie that which it is"
 Other great speeches in defense of the war resolution were delivered by MT. Borah and MT. Harding, republicans, and MT. James and MT. Pittman, democrats. MT. Borah, full of patriotic fire took oc- casion to rebuke the prevailing opinion that all German-Americans are traitors to this country. MT. Harding cleared the press of the charge that it was subsi- dized through the money of the Morgans and Great Britain. MT. James electrified with that oratory which was born in the south and which, wherever expressed, al- ways excites to shouting. MT. Pittman was effective in declaring that no Amer ican should hesitate to sacrifice the lives of thousands now to the end that here after, tens of thousands might not die. It was his point that the United States must now fight Germany with the as- sistance of France and England, or later alone.
 VARDAMAN PLAYS PART
 And then came the vote It was late practically F o'clock. Every gallery, how ever, was still packed to capacity. In the gallery reserved for diplomats, were prac- tically all the representatives in Wash ington of the foreign countries of the globe. Conspicuous among them was the ambassador from Austro-Hungary, who may, on account of pending difficulties between the United States and his coun- try, be sent soon from American shores Behind the senators in their seats were half the members of the House, standing in their excitement, rigid though alarmed.
 The roll call was quickly dispensed with. At it's conclusion the vote was an- There was sigh of satisfac- tion from the galleries and just a ripple of applause, At the six who had stood against what was construed as the best