The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-11-03
ALABAMA WOULD ]. LOSE HEAVILY +
 REPUBLICANS WIN
Chairmanships Now Held By Alabamians Are of Distinct Value to
 the State
pv HuCH w. ROBERTS

Washington, November 2.-(Special )-lf the country should return Congress which would not support the President to the .extent of voting for democratic organization of the House and Senate, i Alabama would lose two plums, the pos session of either of which is really worth | while.
 In time of war. 1t is to the credit of ! Alabama that the chairman of the House committee on military affairs is an Ala ,amian. Representative Dent succeeded sT To the chairmanship when Representa- rs tive Hay of Virginia accepted an appoint ment rendered by the President. MT Dent has made an admirable chair man. according to the opinion of!his fel- low members He has been an indepen- dent chairman, and is one of the few democratic members who have not jumped when the administration cracked . its whip. And still he stands very high in the opinion of the administrators which fact is attested in the act of the administration in flooding his district with government gratuities, and in the intention of Secretary Baker to Vlsr' Montgomery next month.
 With an anti administration Congress. Alabama would lose this, in time ot war, the greatest chairmanship of the House. It WOulQ go tO TNcpiSoCAtdtiNS ANehAAAi x California. a republican born in Ger ! Rnafr Despite the fact that it has been demonstrated that MT. Kahn is real american, there are many members or t,ongress who think that it would be al iinost uncanny for the ehairmanshlp or the military affairs committee 10 go 10 Germany. vne might as well suppose an American in the shoes of Chancellor Max.
 The other chairmanshp of great inn portance which an anti administration victory would lose for Alabama is that of the Senate committee on postoirices Fl and postroads. That committee is ln charge of Senator Bankhead. It is re- sponsble for all postmasters in the United States. and is Of equal lmpor- tance, 1t is probably true, with the post office administration. In addition, it su- pervises all governmental enterprises re specting road development. It is true that this chairmanship in possession oi an Alabamian made it possible for thF passage of the bill which binds the gov ernment to cooperate with the state' in the construction of good roads. rms bill will do more for road pullalhs throughout the United States, 1t il agreed, than any agency which exists could be made to exist. Its passag meant an active and perpetual role as sumed by the government in putting al 1 end to bad roads in every state Of tn union. ~ The chairmanship of this committe
 would go to Senator Penrose of Pennsyi
 vania, reactionaryf republican Of tn
 old school of political thought. He
 called the master of Pennsylvania" an
 he believes, it is said, in a master an g. servant class.
 Another chairmanship which Alabam
 would lose would be that of the imm
 grafton committee of the House Tn
 loss would not be so great, hoWeve
 inasmuch as the real immigration pl
 has been written on the statutes. Fe
 many years efforts were made to chee reckless immigration of undesirable Et ropeans and Asians Bills passed Congress had been vetoed by Preslden Roosevelt, Taft and Wilson Final
 under the direction of sRepresentati
 Burnett of Alabama, bill was prepare
 with which the Congress found such fi yor that when President Wilson veto' Ait, Congress promptly proceeded to p It into a legal statute despite the att Nde of the chief executive.
 These are the principal losses whi' Abaxaa would suffer were partisan T
 " ms put in charge of Congress