The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1921-03-26
NATION HOPES
FOR MIRACLE
FROM C. 0. P.
Republican Leaders Realize
They Have Promised to
Solve the Insolv ble-
Lodge Faces Hard Task.
SENATORS MOBILIZE
BY MARK SULLIVAN

WASHINGTON, March 26.-The Re-
publican leaders are mobilizing to get
things done at the coming session of
congress. They need to. They know
that the expectations which the coun-
try has Of them are enormous. To
some of the more cautious Republican
leaders, the country's expectations are
almost terrifying. The country al
most expects the new administration
TO make miracles.
The expectations are largely in
herent in the situation, but all agree
they are based on the promises and
implication of promises, which the Re-
publicans made during the campaign
last summer, as one of the Republican
leaders expressed it, after he had
spent several days studying the gov
ernment's financial situation and the
country's business situation; We
have promised to solve the insoluble." "
Have Poor Record.
Not only are the Republican leaders
apprehensive about the things the
country expects them to do in the COM
ing session. In addition they are un-
comfortably conscious of having made
a poor record in the recent session.
To be sure, so far as the recent ses-
sion is concerned, the Republicans
have an alibi which they rely on rath'
er too much, in the fact that they
did not then control the presidency
While they controlled the house and
the senate the Democratic president
was able to veto anything they DID
But the serious faults of the recent
session were not of character that
can be blamed on President Wilson
vetoes. 1t is true some of these vetoeS
we're unjustifiable. After an immlgra
ton bill had been passed in the senate
by a majority of 80 to one and had
been passed in the houseby vote OF
seven to one it was discourag1ng tc
have all that work go for nothing be
cause the president allowed the bill
to lie on his desk and thereby in ef
feet be vetoed. But the sufficient an
swer to this is that the Republican
house and senate ought to have pass
ed the bill before the last 10 days ol
the session. If they had done thai
Fsthey would then have had time to re
pass the bill over the presidents veto
Were Dilatory.
Moreover, there were serious de
fects in the work of the recent ses
sion which had nothing whatever te
do with Mr. Wilson's vetoes. The re
cent session did not even pass all the
appropriation bills which Mr.. Harding
had begged them to pass in order tt
have the ground clean for the new
regime.
The truth is that in the recent ses
sion there was objectionable dilatori
ness.
Having their majority of % the Re
publican leaders are now getting read.
to achieve compactness and speed
They have reorganized their steering
committee. This is not an officia
committee of the senate, but really ;
committee of the Republican party. l
will be responsible for the program
1t will fix the order in which legisla
tion shall come up, and it will be re
sponsibe for the speed with which leg
islation is pushed through.
Lodge Getting Old.
The chairman of the committee i
to be Lodge, of Massachusetts,. Sine
Lodge is also chairman of the Reput
lican caucus and in addition Chairman
of the extremely important foreign re
lations committee, it is obvious tha
the senior senator from Massachusett
is going to have an extremely arduou
summer
No one need envy Senator Lodg
his honors when you consider th
price he must pay in hard work. H
is II years old While he is one c
the wiriest men of his age that eve
sat in the senate. friends of his car
not help being conscious that the jo
of leadership of hot summer Sc:
sion dealing with the tariff has FIRE
quently laid younger and stronge
men on their backs.
Whether Lodge. even with the con
Portable majority of % behind hin
will develop the personal lalities {
leadership necessary remains to
seen. Lodge was never cut out to
a boss in the sense that Aldrich wa
or Cannon was. His personality doe
not include the kind of ruthless dri7
ing power that makes a dictate
Lodge will be the trading. concilatin
type of leader. He will go with tn
waves rather than try to master then
Penrose is III
Normally, Lodge ought to be abl
to expect strong assistance from Sci
ator Penrose. who as, chairman {
the finance committee, should hav
much to do with leading his party i
the taxation and tariff fights. Bl
Penrose is an obviously sick man.
Ledge undoubtedly will have, {
course. a good deal of aid from Pres
dent Harding. This aid can hardl
be oyerestlmated, for the circun
stances are such and Mr. Harding
adaptation of himself to the crcun
stances is such that he has stron
hold That hold will, to a degree. b
a steadily diminishing quantity
proportion as the Offices are file
and the senators cease to be unde
obligations to the president for pa
ronage.
Copyright, 1921, by the New Yor
Evening Post, Inc)