Evening star., 1919-03-22
REPUBLICANS BAN
PARTY BITTERNESS
tCont,hued from First Pase.D


have a small mbership-hve-so
as to be more workable. The COM
mittee on committees named the five
members and then added the norl-
fnee for House leader as chairman
ex-officio. These members are: Rep
resentatives Mondel1 of Wyoming
Massachusetts,. Madden of Illinois.
Moore of Pennsylvania. Longworth
of Ohio and Dunn of New York.
The steering committee is designed
to play an important part in the next
Congress. 1t is proposed that 1t
shall brush aside all the less impor-
tant and cumbering legislative pro-
posais 50 that Congress can focus en-
the big problems of financing the
government. clearing up war obii-
cations. readjustment of industry for
the employment of all the people ana
the development of world commerce
Face Big Problems.
1t will incidentally guide the party
policy in legislative matters. but this
is rather incidental. The republicans
in the House realize that they must
handle the big problems that are be-
fore them in a way satisfactory to
the people. and that the occasion is
pr" ying politics. and that the cnly
issue on which the public approval
in the 1920 campaign can be won Is
by giving the American people the
Legislation they want to bring this
country back to stable peace and
prosperity.
Outstanding Tasks.
Revision of the tariff disposition OF
the, railroads and development of the
system generally ana
orga nization Of the great merchant
marine are the outstanding tasks OF
the incoming republican House.
Now take the last of these as an
illustration of the sort OF work the
steering committee is designed to do
No man in Congress is an authority
on the merchant marine, no man
knows because the United States has
never had an adequate merchant ma
rine. So the steering committee work.
ing through a subcommittee w1h
probably cafl into conference the pest
informed man on this subject IN the
entire country, men Of practical ex-
perience, to get out the best pfac-
tical business. workable law Tor the
merchant marine.
The Lane idea Of reclaiming lands
for soldiers will get similar attention.
The steering committee is designed to
take much of this extra work on
Congress by making thorough stuoy
Of these subjects and then passing
on to the House the summarized facts
and boiled down opinion.
Call for Workers.
The republicans in the House. as
whole, feel. therefore, that the steer
ing committee should be composed OF
workers and should be thoroughly
Some contend that
not all Ave of the present members
are known as workers and active
leaders whose summarized opinion on
proposals would be ac-
cepted. They say, too. that there IS
a great deal of force In the claim
made by Representative johnson that
the country west of the Mississippi
river should be represented.
Editorials are being clipped from
papers throughout the country and
sent to members Of the House point.
ing out that only about per cent OF
the legislation in the last Congress
with the members and that
the rest was dictated by the admin
The incoming republican
House, while 1t realizes that during
a war emergency it was necessary
that the chief executive should domi-
nate. realizes also that now the war
is over the people expect their repre-
In Congress to act of their
own initiative and make decisions as
they believe best for the country.
This makes the work of the steering
still more important.
Would Enlarge Committee.