New Mexico state record. (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1914-19??, 1920-12-24
BY EDWARD 8. CLARK.

BY EDWARD 8. CLARK.
Observation-Disclosures Is won
dering whether there are to be three
months of listlessness In congress thii
winter. or If the president, by result
hitting the covenants and the treaty
intends TO see to II that things con
tlnue 10 be lively until this present
congress dies the death on noon OF
March 4.
Ii is quite possible to discuss In
n non-partisan way some Of the things
which may happen when the Repub
licans take control of the lower house
OF congress with the tremendously
increased majority given to them in
the November election.
There are some committees at work
already. committees of the present
congress. Of course; but the commit
tees around whose labOrs the great.
est interest centers are those little
bodies of men which have no recOg-
nized official existence, but which are
meeting all the time to provide ways
and means of putting through legis'
lation In the months after the fourth
Of March, and of doing II without
causing ructions In their W party.
The Democrats in their times OF
dominance occasionally have had pos
session Of the lower house by tre-
mendous majorities. The Democrats
knew the dangers of overwhelming
control as well as the Republicans
knew II. The Democrats had their
troubles within their own party and
today the Republicans are trying so
10 fix things In advance that they
will be able to get their legislation
through without splitting into fac
lions.
Danger In Huge Majority.
There are plenty Of Republicans
elected TO the mex house of repre-
sentatives who were membrs of that
house In the days when %insurgent Re
~publicanism succeeded in Wrestling
certain powers from the hands of the
speaker. Those were lively times,
and there Is not n correspondent In
Washington or a member of congress
who was here In those days who has
forgotten the tingling events which
happened one after another on the
floor OF the hall of representatives
IN the days now gone, but not far
gone mt that.
There is n curious feature about
shta fnnr 80 tha 1rAnt HaEt .V.htnh
suddenly has come into a great ma
jority in the house that there may
be trouble ahead for 1t by sheer force
Of prepOnderance OF members. The
queer thing is that nobody is able to
forecast with anything like intelli-
Rence what they expect the trouble
10 be about.
Depends on the President.
The truth is today, Just as 1t was
when Wilson became President and
the Democrats had their fears, that
trouble or lack Of trouble depends al
most entirely upon the acts OF the
President of the United States. II the
President suggests something In a leg
islative way which party men who
are progressive consider reactionary,
or which conservative party men con-
slider radical, then trouble likely will
start. This particular thing has hap
pened both TO the Democrats and TO
the Republicans before this time.
Really the one curious thing about
this whole matter, which TO some peo-
pie may seem trivial because It Is so
far in advance Of the time of possible
happenings, is that party leaders today
in Washington are getting their heads
together to find the means TO
combat foes Of whose appearance in
the field they cannot be sure. In
other words. the party with an over
whelming majority In congress has
some fear that II may have been alto
gether too successful in the recent
election.
One of the commonest expressions
heard among members of congress Is
"a good working majority" This al
ways has been taken to meal a ma
jority that was neither too large nor
too small, but one big enough TO allow
for the desertion of n few m~alcontents
and yet not so small as to leave any
doubt that the party's will under the
preached pressure" Of party interest
shall prevail.
Cabinet Makers Work Overtime.
Cabinet makers in Washington are
not observing the eight-hour day, and
moreover they are not asking any pay
for their lengthy labors.
Warren @. Harding has had forty or
fifty cabinets made for him already,
and there probably will be manifesto
tons Of dire disappointment II he fails
70 take one of the ready-to-hand ar
ticles for the White House.
IL was ever thus from the child
hoods hour of the republic. The cab
met makers through the years have
their fondest hopes fade away
and their prophecies dishonored. For
time, however, in the history
Of things American il was fairly easy
to tell who would occupy n cabinet
place on the incoming of a new pres