The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1922-07-06

said" adds h post, that he was Op-
posed to a bonus bill calling for a
large immediate cash outlay unless
..e bill carried tax provisions to meet
the expenditure" The Post believes
that the presidents objections have
been pretty well met by the bill as it
now appears in the senate, n the
editor adds by way Of further com
ment: Until the president says him
self, therefore, no n ear say for him
that he is opposed to the bonus bill as
it passed the house, or that he will be
opposed to the bonus bill as finally
agreed upon by the W houses"
There are plenty Of differences that
may be drawn from this statement.
In the first place IL there is such a
thing in existence as an "administra-
ton organ" it is the Post, owned and
edited by President Harding's per-
sonal friend, +. b. Mclean. 1t is evil
dent that the president it not going
to be held responsible for the fate of
the bonus, or permit a condition that
would justify saying that it was
passed lin spite of him" The fact
of the matter Is that the president has
tempered down some Of the efferver-
escence of politics that dubbed in the
bonus bill. Having accomplished this
he will likely be content to let the
bill take its curse when it's place is
reached in the regular proceedings of
congress. That place, it now seems,
will be when the tariff bill is dis
posed of.
There is disappointment in store for
people who live on the Great Lakes
and who have been expecting early
action to bring about the deepening
of the channel in the st. Lawrence
river to permit of a deep waterways
route connecting the lakes with the
Atlantic ocean. While the deep
waterways advocates were fighting
opposition from New York state 1t ap-
pears that in Canada there was an
ever-increasing opposition to the use
OF the st. Lawrence. For just as
New York thought it would be af-
fected In dominating the shipping
business SO Quebec figures it out that
it, too, would get the worst Of it il
the Great Lakes and the st. Law
renee river were used as the chan
mel for world commerce. New York
ers worked to hold up Legislation at
Washington, and while that was going
on q genuine blockade was accom-
nIiGhnH I'm ranndo Tho ra.,,lt 80 tI,n
blockade has been the %declination of
the Dominion government to negotiate
a treaty between the two countries in
order to clear the way for the lakes
to-the-ocean route. AS matters stand
the United States is powerless,
thwarted by a friendly foreign govern
ment, and is therefore unable to go
ahead.
There are those who claim that an
all-American route is feasible, and
they would cut across New York state
with a canal that would connect the
Great Lakes with the headwaters Of
the Hudson river. But this plan has
not yet won popular approval, and Is
not known as Is the st. Lawrence
project. AS a result the inland water
ways appears to have been side
tracked"
1t is hot and sticky in Washington,
and lassitude and latitude are get
ting III their deadly work as the
a~rch-enemies of progressive politics.
The weather makes loafers Of us all,
and there is no exception even among
the statesmen who yearn for their
neighbors and the comfortable COM
forts for them back home" But the
mills Of the congress have been grind
ing exceedingly slow, and there Is
still lots to be done before the cares
OF the government can be laid aside
by those who are chosen representa-
tives of the sovereign people. Where
presidents get all their energy has long
been a mystery and a woe to the 500
ELECT" on Capitol Hill. who, just as
they are preparing to get away every
summer are told that there is still
another big job to handle. This year
1t is ship subsidy. President Harding
went off for a weekend on the May
flower and when he got back to Wash
ington the dearest think he could
think Of was the task of saving the
American merchant marine.
OF course congress has long known
that there Is a problem to meet with
regard to the merchant marine. but
congress thought next winter or next
year would be soon enough. Even now
they cannot understand why, after
waiting q half century for Q merchant
: marine. that there should b. such .