The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1921-09-30

Especial Dispatch TO Inc HeIOfmeF.J
Copyright 1921.
WASHINGTON, Sept. 30.-The United
States senate is getting wise" to publicl
sentiment. The few weeks of recess gave
many senators an opportunity to confer
with their constituents. The widespread
dissatisfaction with the long time it has
taken to get a new tax bill is one of a
number of reasons why a group of Re
publican senator's met at the home of
Senator Frelinghuysen of New Jersey the
other night and talked ways and means
of speeding up legislation.
| Details of the meeting are just leaking
out One after-effect was a conference
| with President Harding about the neces-
| sity of drawing up clOture rule to limit
debate in the senate. This has been up
before President Wilson thought he had
accomplished something when at the be-
ginning of his second administration
new cloture rule was passed, but 1t takes
| IS senators to sign the petition and then
la majority vote to invoke the rule 1T
has been of little effect. Mr.. Harding is
naturally anxious to see the legislative
machinery of the government oiled up.
| He isn't trying to dictate to congress
what its rules shall be but as a former
|
sought.
Absenteeism Real Trouble.
But the real trouble in the senate is
not durable by cloture alone. Unlimited
debate has its advantages as well as disad-
lyantages. Filibustering has been INDUCED
in very largely to prevent a vote being
taken when many senator's are absent
from their seats. AbsenteeiSm is the real
problem that has to be solved-how to
iYT,a 10 Gny1af Trs- Gfqv IN IN M
a day goes by that the senate doesn't have
to call for a quorum whereupOn members
come scurrying from their offices, list
lessly answer a roll call and go back to
their offices again in another building
hoping nobody will call a second time for
q quorum.
\ clOture rule will be bitterly fought by
the minority. Half the strategy of polit-
zeal parties is speech-making in the sem
ate. The Republicans won their last
campaign, it Is conceded by Democrats,
largely through the attacks made by Sen
atOrs BOrah, johnson, Brandegee and
Lodge in the open senate. 1t is the min
Ority which benefits by unlimited debate
while the majority. always anxious to
accomplish results. chaffeS under the de-
lays incident to prolonged discussion.
Have Tried 1t Before.
1 There have been periodic movements to
limit debate. They come every time legis-
lation is delayed and an impotence arises
from the country. This time the failure
of congress to pass either a tariff or a
tax bill since it went into session last
spring is weighing heavily on the minds
of Republican leaders. The house, with
rules limiting debate. functOned smoothly
and passed both tariff and a tax meas
lure. Both have to be revised and prob
ably will be rewritten in the upper house,
but the fact is the public did its job while
tla 70 hos ton for hot
why a group of Republican senators are
so active in advocating clOture.
But aside from the suggestion of limit
ing debate, there is a very interesting bit
of controversy going on under the surface
with respect to Republican leadership in
the senate. Mr.. Lodge, of course. will
soon be absorbed while his duties as a
member of the armament commission
which acts under specific instructions of
the President. Temporarily, at least, Mr..
Lodge will be working for the executive
branch of the government. The struggle
for possession of Mr.. Lodges job as Re
publican leader is becoming intense.
Senator Jim Watson of Indiana and Sena-
tor Curtis of Kansas are equally promi-
nent in the race. Then there are the in
Surgent senators to be considered They
are not over enthusiastic about either
Senator Watson or Senator Curtis. who
| represent the conservative wing of the
party commonly called ''standpatters''
The truth is the latter element is in the
majority in the senate and the reelection
of Senator Bursum in New Mexico has
encouraged them to believe the country is
with them. While the sO-called progress
sive group takes issue with that state
kment, the fact is the stand-pat Republi-
cans have the votes to select any one of
their number as leader.
This is a critical week in the legislative
situation. But the conferences among
senators in both the Republican and Dem
| ocratic parties indicate that the sparring
for positions will soon be over and that
lines of cleavage will soon be made more
distinct. The voice of the country de-
handing more action and less talk is be-
/ ing heard.