Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-03-12
CONGRESSMAN MOORES
LETTER
Defense OF the Seniority Rule by Man
Who Believes IN It-Record Of CAM
denifes in the Nary
Washington, ID. C., March 12.


~ Wilson and the Peace Council have been
doing in Paris. the members OF the Repub.
lican Committee on Committees of the
House Of Representatives have been con.
ferring slhce Congress adjourned In an
effort to provide suitable committee, places
for the 23s Republican members who are
coming into the sixty.sixth Congress. Mr..
Mann. OF Illinois. the floor leader who was
beaten for Speaker by Mr.. Gilett, of Mas
sachusetts, has been acting as chairman,
although all parties TO the recent speaker
ship contest have been represented about
the board. Under the scheme Of represen.
tation agreed upon at the general party
conference, Mr.. Moore. of Pennsylvania,
has been casting the highest number of
votes and Mr.. Mondell of Wyoming, the
lowest. Mondell speaks for one Represen-
tative and Moore for twenty:eight
Although the big Republican states are
being considered for the nrst time in dc.
cordance with their voting population; it
Is conceded that they have been fair and
generous TO the smaller states notwith-
standing the announcement by Mr.. Long
worth, of Ohio that the system is bad.
Up to date the assignments to commit.
tees indicate that there will be very little
chance to override the report Of the Com.
inittee on Committees when 1t gets back
TO the Republican conference. If what the
committee is doing is sustained, as is now
confidently believed, there will be little
cause for insurgency. The so-called "old
guard" has done no boasting about its
apparent control of the House committee
situation. II has si
get rid Of the work and to make the as.
sisnments as justly as possible. Penn.
sylVania, under this arrangement. will prob.
apiy rare better than it has ever done IN
Inc history of the Republican party. All
the Philadelphia members will be on first.
class committees, while quite a number of
fennsylvanians will secure charmanships.
A"oRD or two about the so.called senior
ity rule and what it means in practice
IL INC Longworth idea were to prevail and
committees should select their own chair
man the result as to the WAYS and Means
committee, for instance, might be disas.
trous' Every new member coming to
washington for the first time and anxious
10 impress the folks at home with the
extent of his influence strives to get on
the Ways and Means or some other big
committee at the start If by reason of
deaths, transfers or vacancies, the Ways
and Means Committee, being entitled to
ntteeh Republican members against ten
Democrats, should be cut down to six Re.
publicans, which is now the case, the nine
new Republicans coming fresh from the
country. anxious for honors. but without
experience, could organize, elect their own
chairman and take the work into their
own hands If the seniority rule were
broken, judging from the camorous de-
mands of new members, that very thing
would probably happen to the existing
Ways and Means Committee and the six
men who have served for many terms,
gradually equpping themselves for the
big work ahead, would be turned out for
the incoming raw and untried aspirants.
1t is not too much to say, even of men
elected upon the Republican ticket, that
the element Of selfishness and personal am.
bition has not entirely died out in this year
of our Lord, 1919.
The existing Committee on Committees,
made up of older members OF the House,
has stood against the abolition of the
seniority rule, and to that extent has sus.
tanned precedent and probably stemmed
the tide of insurgency.
WASHINGTON hears that Colonel George
w Montgomery, for many years the COM
mandant of the F'rankford Arsenal, has be.
come engaged to marry Miss Clara Babbitt
Hyde, of New York Colonel Montgomery
made a splendid record for efficiency at the
Frankford Arsenal and for saving the gov
ernment money. He was one of the lead
ing experts on small arms ammunition
manufacture, but during the war was as
signed to special work in Italy and France.
It is understood the War Department is
expecting him to take care of the ordnance
situation at Augusta, Ga.
Nov that the war is over and the army
L doipgs are fairly well reported, it is not
unnatural that friends of the navy should
have an occasional look-in. Admiral Harry
B. Wilson, who did such efficient work In
France, where he was in command of the
American naval forces, has brought a good
deal of glory to Camden, where he was
born and where his mother still resides
but another young Camdenite has also been
doing things in the navy. He is Lieu
tenant Commander Guysbert b. Vroom. a
nephew of Richard Campion, OF the Union
League. who was executive officer of the
destroyer Benham and served about nine
months in the submarine zone with head.
quarters at Queenstown. Commander
| Vroom is a son Of the late Judge Vroom,
| Of Camden. He was appointed to Annapo-
| lis in 1907.
CYLvEsrER S. GARRETT. the South
~ Third street paper man, has a letter
| from General Leonard Wood concerning
the value OF home defense companies.
Mr.. Garrett thinks the home defense re-
serve should continue to function, and
| General Wood says it should be kept up
| until we have something to take its place.