The New York herald., 1922-03-26
SUNDAY. MARCH 20. 1922.
To the Folks Back Home.

The bonus measure jammed
through the House Thursday will not
find the going so good in the Sen
ate. 1t will not have the advantage
of the gag rule tactics by which 1t
was shot through the House. The
Fordneys, the Mondells and the Long
worths clapped the lid on the bill
so bard that no alterations could
be made in it. No discussion was per-
mitted save a limited discussion of
four hours which was mere travesty
considered in respect Of measure
that would check out billions and
billions Of your money.
No measure of any considerable
consequence should be denied full
discussion, honest discussion, and no
measure Of any considerable conse-
uuence should be denied amendments.
This bonus measure was denied both
of these--a measure Of the most tre-
mendous Importance both in respect
of the principle involved and the
many billions of dollars involved.
Just what will happen to the bill
in the Senate cannot be forecast. 1t
is the opinion of THE New York
HERALD, however, that it will not get
through the Senate without radical
amendments, IL at all. And IL rad
ically amended will the Fordneys, the
Mondells and the Longworths accept
the changes? 1t may be that any
thing will be acceptable to them IL
it means the passage of the bill
through both houses, and this would
mean the very thing they most want
passing the buck to the President.
II this happens the President, in
the judgment Of THE New YORK
HEaaLD. will veto it. The President
has made himself very clear with
respect to the whole bonus question
and5he has not shifted his position in
any measure whatever. He has said
right along that he would approve a
bonus measure carrying a provision
fora sales tax as a means of raising
the money to pay the bonus. He
stands exactly where he has stood
throughout the entire bonus discus
sion,
II was a sorry piece OF work your
representatives did in the House
Thursday and sorry spectacle the
large majority Of that body made
of themselves. Three hundred and
thirty-three men voted for the loot
and to their own political advan-
tage. 1t was case Of buying the
ballot box and buying 1t with your
money; a case Of buying the ballot
box to their eternal shame, eternal
disgrace.
Seventy members OF the House, OF
stout heart and right heart, voted
against the bill. We say stout heart,
because the weak ones covered un-
der the lash Of the Fordneys, the
Mondells and the Longworths, and
fell into line with the Treasury
looters.
In this situation your work is cut
out for you. Your duty is clear II
YOU have that interest in your Gov
ernment which citizens must have
II fit for a republic. Your duty to
yourselves and to your Government
as citizens is to get rid OF these
Treasury raiders--to get rid OF these
politician-statesmen you have been
sending to Washington, who make
politics their chief business and play
You for the fool.
The time has come, men and
women. for you to put stop to this
whole rotten political business; the
time has come for you to send honest
purposed men to Congress-serious
men who pur your interests before
politics. who put patriotism before
their own miserable political in
terests.
There is just one way for you to
handle this matter, that is through
organization. There Is no other effec-
tive way OF handling 1t. The power
Of organized forces is the power that
wins.