The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1922-06-12
CONSERVATIVE
LINE MENACED
BY ELECTIONS
McCumber Has Hard Fight
On Against Frazier in North
Dakota-Lodge Also Up for
Reelection.
COMMITTEE CHANGES
nv MARK SULLIVAN

WASHINGTON, June II. - Inc
writer in discussing last week the
coming North Dakota senatorial pri-
mary was mistaken in saying that if
McCumber should be defeated his
successor as chairman of the finance
committee of the senate would be La
Toilette. The fact is that LaFollette
is the third, net the second Republican
on the senate finance committee. The
second man, the one who would sue
cee6 McCumber if he should be de-
feated, is Smoot, of Utah
Inasmuch as the finance committee
is the one that has charge of tariff
bills and tax bills, and inasmuch as
Smoot is one of the pillars of the con-
servative part of the Republican party.
his presence in the position of chair
man would be even more satisfactory
10 conservative Republicans than that
Of McCumber
The defeat of McCumber in the
North Dakota primaries on the 2Sth
Of this month would merely deprive
the conservative Republicans of one
of their most dependable senators.
From their point of view it would be
deplorable, but not quite so bad as
your correspondent indicated last
week.
Committee Changes
Nevertheless, it is a fact that the
makeup of the more powerful senate
committees and in a general way, the
whole balance of power in the senate
and in the Republican party, is af-
fec-ed greatly by the changes that are
taking place. II we turn to the other
committee, which shares with the fin
ance committee the distinction of
being the two most important COM
mittee in the senate, namely, the COM
nittce on foreign relations, we find
that the first three Republicans on
that committee are Senator Lodge of
Massachusetts, Senator McCumber, of
North Dakota, and Senator Borah of
Idaho Of these the first two are up
for denomination and reelection this
year.
If McCumber should fail in North
Dakota, either at the primaries this
month, or at the election in November,
and If Lodge should fail in Massachu-
setts the chairman of the senate com
mittee on foreign relations would be
Borah. How much that would mean
is too obvious to need recital. Under
the present dispensation, the only
committee on which Borah has the
Craftsmanship is the innocuous one OF
/ interoceanic canals.
Miss Penrose and Knox
Further than this, two recent deaths
have greatly impaired the strength oil
the conservative Republicans in the
inner places of power. Penrose was
chairman of the finance committee and
Knox was chairman of the almost
equally important committee on rules
The men who in all probability will
be their successors as senators from
nsylvania-Pepper and Reed -
even though their intellectual strength
may not be materially less, neverthe
less, under the seniority rule. take
their places, not at the heads of i'm
portant committees, but at the foot
In the same with respect to the Re
publican national committee Penrost
had for years been perhaps the mos
powerful single member. His deatl
has meant a material shifting of tht
balance of power in that body, which
plays more important part in the
directions of public affairs than i!
commonly realized. New of Indiana
had not been in the senate Ions
enough to achieve any important oom
mittee Craftsmanship. Nevertheless
his defeat by Beveridge removes on,
Of the most dependable of the olt
guard senator's
Twilight Coming
All in all, anyone who reflects upol
rha rapid succession of several recen
events in Republican politics must re
alize with much force how rapidly th
twilight of the old guard seems to b.
coming Political disaster seems to b,
in race with death TO see. which cal
do them most harm.
The coming contest between Nc
? Cumber and Frazier is a square figh
between a conservative Republican
and thorough-going radical. Frazie
has been the Non-Partisan League gov
ernor of the state and will have til
backing of the league in the comm
primaries. He is much more radica
than Brookhart, whose success in Obi
has created a sensation.
Copyright, 1922, by
The New York Evening Post Inc)