The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1921-10-07
NEED YOUNGER
men TO PUSH.
SENATE WORK
Mark Sullivan Suggests
Chairman. Emeritus Place
Be Created for Men with
Vitality Shattered.
mo CHANGE IN SIGHT
BY MARK SULLIVAN

WASHINGTON, Oct. Most of
the trouble about the tax bill goes
straight back to the state of health of
the chairman of the senate committee
which has charge of the framing of
the bill, namely, Penrose, of Pennsyl-
vania
1t is gross mismanagement to at
tempt to utilize Senator Penrose's de-
pleted vitality by making him act as
chairman of the senate finance CON-
mittee, which position involves sitting
in a stuffy room and listening by TIE
hour and by the day to arguments
from long-winded attorneys on minute
aspects of sections of the tax bill
dealing with cigarettes or soda water.
That is not the sort of thing that
man in Senator Penrose's state Of
health is best adapted to, and it IL
unjust both to him and to the public
to condemn him to it.
1t is not surprising, if, after long
period of such experiences, a man
even in the best of health should not
be able to deal adequately in broad
principles or listen with sufficient ur-
banity to varying points of view.
Understands Principles.
Senator Penrose ought to be saved
for different and bigger thing. He
understands sound principles of taxa
tion. No one understands them bet
ter. If he could be given repose and
leisure, and freedom from the haras-
sing attending the chairmanship OF
the finance committee, he could lay
down the outline of good tax meas
ure, as well as any man in the state.
But his time and his vitality have
been consumed with petty details, and
the result is a make-shift measure for
the present, coupled with the an
nouncement that the senate will wait
another year before doing away with
the war time tax measure and writing
a peace time one.
What is true of Senator Penrose is
also true of chairmen &C practically all
the important senate committee. They
are all old men. Their average age
is about 20. What the senate insists
doing with its old men is to make
Them chairman of important commit.
tees. where they have to stand up IN
der the burdensome, narrowing work
which could better be done by younger
men.
Ought to Be Saved
The older senators ought to be saved
for better work than that. By analogy
to college presidencies, there ought tC
be some such institution as chairman
emeritus" Of each committee.
These elderly senators are among
the most valuable men in the body
but their value lies obviously in the
years and experiences which gave
them wisdom, and does not lie IL
their capacity for the dreary detail:
of committee chairmanships.
In this station lies most of the ex
| planation of the present dilatoriness
| of congress as respects taxation, The
/ tariff, and everything else. Every
/ body knows that the public is angry
| about it.
! Every Republican leader who is no
among those responsible for it admit!
/ the condition and exhausts the vocab
ulary of explosive irritation in givins
his opinion of it, The trouble is tina
the fraternity of politicians results il
a sealing of lips. Privately they admi
| it all and admit also their fear Of the
consequences. But publicly they won
! do anything that will hurt anybody!
| feelings.
Ought Not to Hurt.
Properly seen, it ought not to hur
the feelings of senator to be retired
as chairman of committee. 1t is no
! to be presumed that it hurt the feel
! ings of President Eliot of Harvard
when, at the age of 20 or thereabouts
he was elevated from the position o
president of Harvard to that of presi
/ dent emeritus.
i Undoubtedly his tenure of life an,
his usefulness were increased by hi
release from administrative details
which neither called for wisdom no
conferred distinction, In his new pos
ton he could give the world the max
imum benefit of his wisdom and ez
perience. That is the way the senat
chairmanships ought to be looked al
4 No change in the present congres
sional situation is in sight. Everybod
points to leadership by Presiden
Harding as the only solution. Tn
specific suggestion has been mad
that the president should have at tn
White House once or twice a week
meeting similar to his cabinet meer
ings which should include the steer
ing committees OF the senate an
mouse.
i Probably some senators resist tha
as unconstitutional in spirit. Senate
LaFollette, who is a member of tn
steering committee of the senate, prol
ably would refuse to attend, and Sci
ator Borah might conceivably sa
!. that such an institution would be il
: consistent which with constitutions
separation between the executive an
legislative departments of the govern
| ment. But the great bulk of the R,
, publicans, alarmed at the probabl
, consequences of the present conditio
. would welcome such a remedy.
Copyright 1921 by the New York
j E'Naninn Dne&