Perth Amboy evening news. [volume] (Perth Amboy, N.J.) 1903-1959, 1920-05-25
WILL CONGRESS
TAKEARECESS?
Question Is of Engrosslng In
terest in the National Capt.
tai. Leaders Going Ahead
BY w. 9. MANN
Copyright. 1920, by The Washing
-on Star.

congress2 Is question of engrossing
interest In the capital these days.
The Republican leaders are going
ahead with plans for a recess starting
June 5. but they are anticipating a
| message from the President warning
| them that they had better remain in
session-which they propose to ig-
more.
Speaker Gillett says he favors an
out-and-out adjournment, House
Leader Mondell is now driving the
| committees to get their stray ends of
| necessary legislation cleaned Up be-
| fore June s. He favors taking
| three months recess subject at any
time to being called back by speak
er II any emergency arises. Then,
when the House resembles in Sep
| tember. he would propose another re-
| ber
Democratic leaders. including Rep
| rescntatitev Henry ID. Flood of Vir-
ginia, who is chairman of the Demo-
| cratic congressional campaign COM
\ mittee, are quite certain that the
| President will send a very pointed
message to the congress in which he
Will accuse 1t of not having passed
the important legislation he outlin-
ed, and of having filtered It's time
away on political legislation.
The three most important legisla-
| tive matters that congress has neg
| lected and which will be urged upon
their attention by the President the
Democratic leaders say, are:
Reduction Of the cost of living, af-
fecting every home in the country.
Repeal of some 100 pieces of war
| legislation.
Failure to devise ways of raising
revenue to pay the current expenses
OF the government and about $4,000
Il. -. 4
pay within three years.
There are many Republicans who
join with the Democrats in expecting
such action from the President, de-
| manding that congress remain in ses-
sion to enact measures necessary to
i get this country back on normal
and sound financial basis.
| Champ Clark, the Democratic lead
er, Is among those who say they think
| that the President may call congress
| back even II It recesses for ninety
days. One thing seems very certain
| Just now. That Is that congress will
| be in recess all during June. during
the great national conventions
In order that they may get away
on Saturday. June 8, before the Re-
publican convention opens. House
Leader Mondell is pressing the COM
mittees sharply to clean up their work
for the session. Among the meas
| ures that 1t Is planned to get through
are
The conference on the naval ap-
preparation bill.
The conference on the agricultural
appropriation bill.
The conference on the budget leg
fslation.
| Tho conference on the diplomatic
and consular appropriation bill.
The conference on the District of
Columbia appropriation bill.
The proposed bonus Legislation for
former service men.
A report from Representative Fess.
Of Ohio. on his bill providing for vo-
cational rehabilitation of industrial
cripples.
| The Volstead bill exempting farm
ers and certain farm organizations
| from certain provisions of the anti
| trust laws.
With only eleven days remaining
| in which to put through these meas
ures those who have other pet bills
are endeavoring to crowd them In.
Calendar Wednesday must be taken
| care OF, the House leaders say, and
| the unanimous consent calendar Ia
| becoming jammed with bills as never
| before in a desperate endeavor to get
action at this session.
| Still further complicating the situa-
| tlon TOT tne ItepuDllcdn Ieduers ~
tho certainty that the President will
veto the peace resolution passed by
tho House on Friday endorsing the
senate amendments without sending
the measure to conference.
There is a strong suspicion on the
part of the Democrats, shared in by
a large number OF Republicans, that
the President is going to have real
"come back" that will startle con-
gress and make an impression on the
people of the country. The general
grounds on which he will base his veto
as seen by those who have been In
the confidence of the White House,
are:
| That It Is not the function of con-
| gres to declare q state or peace and
that this is a constitutional power of
the executive.
| That enactment OF the resolution
into law would forfeit all of the prop
erty in the hands of the custodian
Of alien property, valued at more
than $500 000,000 that we would lose
all the ships we have here now: that
we could not possibly get reparation
| for the cost of maintaining the
army of occupation, because we would
be making a separate peace with
Germany
The President is expected to point
out that by the treaty OF peace made
at Versailles which has already been
approved by sufficient number OF
nations, all OF such matters of COM
pensation have been referred to
PREPARATION commission on which the
United States will not have a repre-
| sentative.
| In regard to the prospective loss
of the alien property custodian funds,
the President Is expected to take the
same ground as was taken by Rep
resentative Flood. of Virginia, in his
minority report on the resolution.
That these funds, approximately
half a billion, cannot be dealt with
otherwise than by restoration to their
owners because It Is a fixed principle
OF international law that you can't
take the property OF nationals OF q
tbelligerent nation to pay damages ex-
cept by specific agreement of that
nation. The Versailles treaty con-
tains such consent from Germany,
but the peace resolution passed by
| congress has no such safeguard.
| In regard to the loss of ships. the
President is expected to lay stress on
the fact that the treaty and arrange
/ ments anclllary thereto deal in q
precise and definite way with enemy
shipping. Without these provisions
great uncertainty prevails as to the
| title to and right to use those German
ships. The President Will point out.
his advisers In congress say that the
title of the United States to German
ships which 1t seized during the war