Evening star., 1919-03-02
BY G. GOULD LINCoLN.


gress has swung to the repub-
ncan party once more. After
eight years OF being "out"
the republicans will control the House
in the new Congress, and after six
years the Senate.
The first job the republicans will
undertake Is the organization Of the
Senate and of the House. Aside from
the selection OF the Speaker of the
House and the republican leader of
the Senate, and Mr.. Gillett of Massa
chusetts has been selected for the first
Office and Senator Lodge. also of
Massachusetts, for the second, the
most important work in the organi-
zation is the formation of the stand
ing committees Of both bodies With
the House membership reaching a
a foregone conclusion that most of
the real legislative work should be
done in the committee room. In fact,
the great majority of bills that are
enacted into law are passed with lit
tie or no change as they come from
committee. The republicans. there
fore. will be careful in the committee
assignments.
Seniority Rule Prevails.
The seniority rule in the selection
of chairmen of the committees is
operative in both the Senate and
House This rule has stood the test
for years, and in the long run has
worked well. And doubtless this rule
will prevail in the next Congress.
There will be attempts, however, in
both houses to kick over the traces
and set aside the seniority rule.
A concession has been wrung from
the old-timers in the Senate in the
matter of important committee as
signments, and an amendment to the
rules has been approved both by the
republican caucus and the Senate
committee on rules, which provides
that. beginning with the first session
of the Sixty-sixth Congress no sena-
tor shall be a member of more than
two of the following committees: APP
preparations, agriculture and forestry,
commerce, finance, foreign relations.
interstate commerce. judiciary, mill
tary affairs, naval affairs and post
offices and post roads. The practice of
distributing the important committee
assignments to the senator's Of elong
service has not only resulted in keep
| ing the younger men OF important
committees, hut also is an interlQck-
ing system that has placed small
group Of senators In control of inn
portant legislation through their
service on committees, and particu-
larly their service on conference com.
mittees.
In the present Congress 1t is inter
esting to note that two senator's are
| members Of four of the committees
named in the proposed new rule, six
teen senator's are members Of three OF
these committees and thirty-nine are
members Of, two.
Restriction in House Rule.
| In the House there already exists
an unwritten rule against a member
| being assigned to more than one of
the major committees. This rule was
adopted when, decade ago, there
was a revolt against The old rules OF
the House.
| The legislative law just enacted car
ries a provision which may result in
the final obliteration of many mac
| tive and useless Senate committees
The bill. in making appropriations for
committee employees, mentions by
name only twenty-six committees. ig-
noring the rest, forty-nine in number
Senators now chairmen of any OF
| these twenty-six committees are pro-
vided with a set of employees equal in
number and salary to those they
| would have as chairmen of the I'm
named committees. AS the real pur-
pose of keeping many of these un-
named committees on the roll was to
make it possible for the senators to
have help. these inactive committees
may at last be dispensed with.
Assignment of senators to commit
tees is made by committee on COM
mittees, which is the steering com
mittee also in legislative matters, ap-
by the Senate itself. A similar pro-
ceedtne is gone through i'll the
House.
Forecast of Committees.
Although the republicans in the Sem
ate and House are not expected to
make their committee assignments
until the new Congress meets. it is pos
sible with some degree of accuracy to
st the chairmen of important COM
mittees.
In the Senate there is one of the
major committee chairmanships about
which there is bitter contest-the
Craftsmanship of the finance commit
toe which handles all the revenue and
tariff legislation. Incidentally, there
s q similar contest brewing over the
corresponding committee in the House,
the ways and means committee.
Senator Boies Penrose Of Pennsyl-
yania is the ranking republican mem
her Of the finance committee. and by
all cannons of the seniority rule is
untitled to the chairmanship. But
progressive republicans in the Senate
and out are fighting him. They in
sist that Penrose is "standpatter,
that he has been known as frlend
of the Interests" for years. and that
the republican party for its own sake
cannot afford to put at the head of
the committee which is to have
charge Of what promises to be the
most important legislation for years
to come. in view of the war debt. the
raising of revenue and 1evying Of