Evening star., 1921-07-03

i of the House appropriations
- committee as successor to
Representative James w. Good of Iowa,
| who recently resigned to enter private
business, for two reasons-frst. there is
| decided opposition to following the
seniority rule, and second, there is no
need for haste, because the appropria-
| tion estimates will not come in until
next fall
! Opposition to following the seniority
rule in the selection Of a chairman. as
is done on the other ma jor committees.
is based on two principal arguments:
First. in the memory of the oldest l"s!s-
lators the seniority rule has not oper-
ated uniformly in choice of a chairman
for the appropriations committee. be-
cause more often than otherwise it was
not the senior member Of the majority
party who was chairman. and who made
the best chairman. Sometimes man
{ way down on the membership list from
point Of service was chosen as chair
man. and again an outstanding figure in
| the House, who was not member of
| the appropriations committee at all. was
given the job. Examples of this are
Uncle joe Cannon, who was chair
man for ten years. and Representative
James a. Tawney, both considered
among the ablest chairmen that COM
mittee ever had.
View in Creating New Committee.
| Second. II Is contended that II never
was the design to follow seniority in
choosing a chairman for this new mas
ter committee 1t is considered as a
| new committee created by the House,
and the chairman to be chosen by the
House. The original plan in creating a
master committee of thrty-five men,
bers. TO have exclusive jurisdiction over
all appropriations, as a within-Con-
gress adjunct to the budget system,
was to vacate the entire existing appro-
priations committee and to fill the new
master committee with five members
from each Of the seven committees in
charge OF specialized appropriations.
such as military affairs, post office,
rivers and harbors, etc.
Then the House found that there were
several members on the appropriations
committee who refused to resign
notably Representative Cramton OF
Michigan-and so it made the mistake
since recognized as a very grave mis-
ttake, Of continuing all the twenty one
old members Of the appropriations com.
mittee and adding fourteen new mem
bers. two each from the other sever
hitherto appropriating committees.
Now the question arises. If the senior
ity rule is TO be followed, which COM
mittee should get the honor, since
there are eight old committees repre-
sented on the present appropria tions
committee, some of which were in ex-
stence long before the appropriations
committee was first created.
Davis Favors Early Selection.
The ranking senior member on the ap-
propriations committee is Representa-.
tive Charles r. Davis of Minnesota. who
has been a member of Congress for ter
consecutive terms. The principal con.
tender within the committee. for chair
man is Representative Martin B. Mad
den of Illinois. a member Of Congress
for ten terms, but not consecutive.
| Representative Davis has been a mem.
ber of the appropriations committee fol
ten years, and during all of that time or
the subcommittee in charge of District
appropriations. of which he has beer
chairman for three years. He has
always taken a deep interest in Dis
trict affairs. and it is thought that il
his own preferences were consulted he
would like to continue as the Distric,
chairman.
Representative Davis friends claim
that If a vote We're taken in the COM
mittee on committees, among the House
members or in the appropriations COM
he would be chosen chairman.
| While the perplexed republican lead
ers are postponing action on the ground
that there is no need for haste ir
choosing a chairman because there viii
be no appropriation bills TO consider
for several months. Representative Davis
is of contrary mind. He has urged
upon his colleagues that the chairman
should be selected now. SO that the
committee can work in close co o-opera
tion with Budget Director Dawes anG
with Controller General McCarl in work.
ing out an economic and efficient fisca
system. THE appropriations commit
tee should work all summer just al
hard as General Dawes says he is going
to work. said Representative. Davis