Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-06-01
BY n. O. MESSENGER.


IN DIES PENROSE's presence
here bodies no good" NUT
tered Bill Bryan. the old
lighthouse keeper, that
time the Gridiron Club at one of its
dinners put on a skit depicting the
wicked republicans. headed by Sena-
tor Penrose. putting out the light
and Turing the good ship democracy
onto the rocks.
Twas a fearsome melodrama, but
the villains were foiled, as were the
democrats in the Senate last week
when they sought to lure that gal
liant craft, Republican Party, Pen
rose, skipper, to destruction by en-
couraging a mutiny in the mixed crew
of progressives and standpatters.
But the mutineers wouldn't mutiny
when it came to the pinch. nor permit
the democrats to come aboard; they
didn't like their looks and preferred
taking chances with their own skip
per, for all Of his reputation as a
bucko mate. to throwing in their lot
with democrats.
1t is quite appropriate to treat in
1ightsome simile the elimination of
the much advertised row in the repub-
lican ranks in the Senate. for despite
the ominous forebodings. not a man
was lost overheard out of the republic
can complement. but every one stood
by and, pulled and pulled and hauled
with will. And they did SO for the
very simple. obvious and creditable
reason that they had to do so or turn
nothing else to it.
The net result Of the friction be-
tween the two republican factions In
the en- Q,
XoW LEAVES according to
e. O. p. STRONGER. careful sur
yey after the
storm blew over. is declared to be
that the outcome of recent events
leaves the party in better shape than
it has found itself for several years.
There is no bitterness between the
factions, for the first time since 1912.
There are differences Of opinions
over policies. but they are not
classed as acute, let alone irrecon-
cilable. The differences are said to
be more academic than specific. In
point Of fact the progressives have
made distinct gains In concessions
from the old.liners. They have Sc
cured mobilization OF the rules SO 40
to break up the close corporation
which formerly existed within
small group of senators who practi-
cally dominated all legislation by
their chairmanshps and their places
on conference committees. They
have secured good committee assign
ments and will have = hand, as the
regulars admit they should have, in
all important work of the session.
The only thing they haven't accom-
plished was to have seven senators
dictate to about forty-two senator's.
The victory of the old-line repub-
licans was merely in the committee
organisation. When 1t comes to
practical legislation ON the floor, ac-
ton on bills, the progressive SEN
IL
vote with the democrats against pol
icies or measures which they con-
slider meretricious, and from the
warning given will probably do SO
upon occasion. But the big fact is
that the progressives and old-iners
have joined hands. to remain united
until a strain shall be applied which
haste the democrats at every turn.
The first thing to be done, they de-
clare, Is to oppose the democrats;
afterward they can attend to any
little family troubles of their own
as best they may.
The time has arrived, Mr.. Speak
er, when the Congress of the United
States must
BANANAS THEME be doing
OF n. c. L. SPEECH. m ing
about these
matters, else some day you will find
nm army Of determined and intelligent
citizens march upon this Capitol to
find the reason why
No, that was not the utterance OF
q bolshevist, an anarchist, a socialist
nor even our old friend Gen. Coxey.
who happens to be in our midst. 1t
was the observation of statesman
from the Hub, from that very Boston,
center of intellectual light. intelli-
gence and conservatism, Representa-
tive Fitzgerald. in fact. He was fol-
lowing along the line he pursued the
previous week. Of attacking the high
cost OF living in its lair. and. in order
10 be perfectly fair he made a drive
at a home institution. the United
Fruit Company, purveyors of ba-
nanas. He said he had taxed the rep
Jesentative of the company with
charging such price for bananas
that retailers were forced to ask so
and so cents dozen, where they used
TO get Is and 20 cents for this staple
fruit of the poor mans children. He
said he had charged the United Fruit
Company with making a profit of $40
share on it's stock, and that the
company's representative had, in ef-