The Birmingham age-herald., 1922-09-24
CONGRESSMEN 60 HOME: WORRIED 4TO
 FACE THE MUSIC"
Soldier Vote to Count--Tariff Will Be Issue--Republican Maiorities Will Likely
 Be Reduced
By ROBERT T. SMALL Special Correspondent of The AEe-Herald (COpyr1ght, 1921, by The Age-HeraldD

(Copyr1ght, 1921, by The Age-Herad-)
 Washington. September 23.--Con- gress has gone homo Ito face the music" It has gone home to face the first test of that bugaboo. the soldier vote. For while Congress bravely passed the bonus bill, while the House even went so far as 10 override the presidential veto, the measure was killed in the Senate, the hopes of the veterans for an ''ad,' justed compensation" were dashed and now if the soldier vote can en- compass 1t, somebody must suffer
 It is admitted that the soldiers cannot strike directly at the Presi- dent for his veto. They can reach him only through the representatives of his party in the Congress. Some of the representatives have gone home distinctly worried over the situ- ation, while others are inclined to discount the effect of the soldier vote in the various districts.
 Of the 35 senators who voted to sustain tho Presidents veto, or wore paired to sustain it, only seven are up for reelection in November, and of this number three have no cause for worry. They arc Senators Pep per and Reed of Pennsylvania, re- publicans, who are assured of tre- mendous natural majorities, and Senator Swanson of Virginia, demo- crat, who will win by the unusl ma jority in the Old Dominion.
 The senators who are likely to face whatever amount of wrath the soldiers are ahiA to muster n the campaign are Calder of New York. France of Maryland and Freling- huysen of Now Jersey, republicans, and King Of Utah democrat. Sen ator FrelfnRhuysen is in the position of having to win as yet his nomina tion and very serious fiyf. is be- ing made against him in tho Mos quito state. The soldier vote natural ly is heavy in New York and New Jersey and the fate of the senators in those states will be watched with a great deal of interest.
 Veteran Opposed Bonus
 One thing that heartens the sena- tors and representatives who are in- clined to be bit nervous over the soldier vote, Is the fact that the only World war veteran in the Senate, young Major Reed of Pennsylvania. not only voted against the bonus, not only voted to sustain the Presi- dents veto, but spoke against the measure in very strong terms. Sem ator Reeds speeches already arc in great demand for campaign purposes and will be widely used.
 The democrats are going to make the bonus as much of an issue as possible with the idea of confound- ing the republicans at every possible turn. A number of democratic stall warts, Including Senator Underwood, voted to sustain Mir. Harding in his evto, but some of the mora active fia Ne- speeches in the Senate with the sole idea of using them ter on the stump to 'pillory" the republicans, who
 deserted the soldier boys in their hour of need"
 The closing of Congress was a de. cidedly solemn occasion. Already the printing presses are busy grind ing out praise of the new tariff bin Tor the consumption of the sovereign voters, but the congressman don't appear to Do as sanguine as they they sound.
 The adjournment of the House was solemn, for it is fully realized that many of the members now in 1t are racing almost certain defeat at the polls. The republicans are fully prepared for serious cut in their majority. but claim they will retain controli by safe figures. The land slide, or earthquake, or whatever you choose to call what happened In IszO, swept many a republican into the House of Representatives from districts normally regarded as demo- cratic. It is admitted that most of these districts will get back to "nor- malcy" on November 2, and there- fore. many republican faces will be missing when the next Congress as- sembles.
 Tariff ns Issue
 While the present Congress Is ex- pected to be judged almost wholly by the tariff law signed by the President on Thursday. and while that tariff is being proclaimed today as the greatest achievement of the session which began in April, 1921, and is just now ended. there really was no plank in the republican plat form of 1920 which promised such drastic tariff legislation. It was Mir Harding. in his campaign sneeches, who really pledged the party to tariff legislation and 1t Is quite natural that he should lead the chorus of republican praises which ia being broadcast from Washing ton in every direction as the Con- gress campaigns get under way.
 The republican platform expressed some misgiyings as to whether a revision of the tariff would be mad 9 immediately. because of the involved condition of world affairs. President Harding felt no such misgivings and when he called Congress into special session month after his inaugura- tion, he urged the tariff upon them as one of.the real needs of the nation.
 The tariff fight in the present campaign must be largely an aca- demic one, for the bill will not have been law long enough to prove the merits of its prota gonists or the de- merits of It's antagonists. The latter are waging hard fight and the re- publicans are faced with a defensive issue.
 defensive issue is not tho most happy one to have in a campaign at time when public mood is generally against something or somebody.
 
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