The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1918-02-08
Washington Letter.


advocating single appropriation
committee for the House, and the
adoption of the budget system of ap-
preparations so successfully used by
other countries. Mr.. Frear enumer-
ates 80 countries that are now con-
Quoting their financial affairs in the
manner he advocates and charges
that the party in power in this coun-
try persistently ignores the recon-
mendations of the President, ex-Pres-
ident Taft, students Of finance gener-
ally, and national party platforms, in
adhering to system that annually
wastes millions of the peoples money.
With an aroused public sentiment in
favor of his plan Mr.. Frear hopes
that the attention of Congress will be
attracted sufficiently to bring action
in the matter.
Each Senator has had placed to his
credit, for distribution among his DO
litical supporters at home, ten copies
of "Brachyceratops-A Ceratopsian
Dinosaur." If you have been over
looked in the matter send at once to
your senator for a copy. After you
have read the document you will
doubtless feel consuming desire to
possess "The Middle Triassic Marine
lnvertebrate Faunas of North Amer.
ica," and "Renurrent Tropidolaptus
Zones of Upper Devonian." All these
and more, can be obtained from the
same source as the first. If the sup
ply of these documents is not distri-
buted within reasonable length of
time they will be disposed of as old
paper. All of which, with many 9TH
er examples that might be mention
ed, illustrate the absurdity of the
present system of document distribu-
tion by Senators and Representatives.
To cure the evil Senator Reed Smoot
of Utah, ranking Republican of the
Printing Committee, has worked for
several years to secure the passage
of bill authorizing the free distri-
button by Senators and Members of
documents up to a certain value, rath-
er than to allot to each an arbitrary
number of every document, for many
of which there is no demand what
ever.
The Constitution is now cited to de-
fend the Presidents opposition to the
establishment of war cabinet. It is
the New York World which produces
this argument, claiming that the Con-
stitution vests no power in the Presi-
dent "to transfer the executive func-
tions with which he is intrusted TO
three distinguished citizens of DEM
onstrated ability or three undistin-
guished citizens of undemonstratcd
ability" Yet the President has con-
stantly been doing this latter, with
and without Congressional action. He
has steadfastly sought great powers
from Congress, which powers, being
granted him, he has transferred to
mediocre Democrats or to equally
mediocre men claiming allegiance to
other parties but who have voted for
and supported Woodrow Wilson. The
Constitution has been no bar to him
when he has wished to do something
in line with his personal inclinations;
and that ancient document is of use
to him now only as it's provisions can
be cited as a reason for his not doing
something which he does not want to
do. AS matter of fact, there is no
Constitutional question involved in
the proposed war cabinet. But there
is question of grave national import
involved in it. That question turns
upon the winning of the war and upon
our war aims in general Are we still;
seeking "peace without victory?" Or
are we really desirous of making the
world safe for republican institutions?
There is no doubt where the nation
stands on this question. There is no
doubt how the fathers and mothers
whose boys are in France or freezing
in cantonment feel about this. They
are for the winning of the war, as
speedily and as thoroughly as possi-
BILE. They will not submit to pro-
longation of the pititful inefficiences
of the War Department beyond the
time when they can themselves apply
a remedy. If their representatives
in congress will not apply the remedy
or if the President with his veto in
terposes to prevent the application
of a remedy-then so much the
worse for the Congress and for the
President. The people will not for
get.
In March there will be four special
elections in New York State to fill
in the Congressional dele
CATION occasioned by death and resig-
nation. The recently enfranchised
women of New York will then vote
for the first time in an election in
volving party distinction. The four
seats have been held by Democrats,
and it will be interesting to scan the
returns from these districts as an in
dex of the probable affiliation of the
new voters. We imagine that the
Democratic campaign slogan will not
vary from that used in other SINH
lar cases. The voters will be ad-
jured to "stand by the President"