Evening journal., 1922-05-20
at the hands of the President.

at the hands or the President.
Confidence on the part of these
Senators that bonus bill will be
passed by both houses and become a
law has been appreciably modified
The best they seem TO hope for now
is that they will be able to put a
bonus bill through the Senate in
some form and return II to the
House OF Representatives.
Inasmuch as the Senate Finance
Committee has eliminated from the
bill passed by the House most of the
features that encouraged its passage
In that body, there Is certain to be a
protracted conflict in conference.
Representatives who surrendered to
the threats OF political reprisals and
voted for the Fordney bill are rap
| idly losing their enthusiasm for it.
The most probable result of an
attempt to reconcile the differences
between conferees representing the
two houses would be a deadlock
This is predicted by Representatives
who have squared themselves with
the soldier boys" by voting for the
bonus. It is the purpose of these
men to insist upon the acceptance of
the House bill in its original form,
because of the insistence of the
American Legion officials who die
tated the framing of the measure.
Bonus claimants headed by legion
officials much rather would have the
House bill than the McCumber or
Smoot measures, over which the
Senate Finance Committe is divided
The reason is that the House bill is
regarded as being "more liberal"
than either of the other projects.
Would Reverse Their Votes
Another reason that will probably
influence the lower house to insist
on the acceptance OF its bill is the
conviction OF many members Of that
body that the judgment of Illinois,
Indiana and Pennsylvania voters
has clearly reflected overwhelming
opposition to the bonus. A great
many members of the lower house
have recently expressed their pur-
pose to reverse themselves If the
bonus should again require their at
tention.
Representatives who voted against
the scheme in the first instance are
confident that a sufficient number
OF their disillusioned associates will
join them in opposing the acceptance
of the Senate bill and certainly pro-
vide enough votes TO render the
repassage of the bonus measure over
the Presidential veto decidedly inn
sa eaI
by Senators opposed to the bonus
that any effort in that body made
to override a veto would absolutely
fail.
Representatives of the bonus
claimants who have spent months
and money lobbying for the bonus
measure, admit keen disappointment
over their failure to defeat Senator
Pepper. They are much less conf
dent now than they were a week ago
that a bonus bill will ever reach the
President, although they still as
sert their conviction that one will
get through the Senate.
Spokesman for the bonus claim
ants are greatly incensed against
Senator Pepper for having exposed |
the fallacy about the political power
Of legion officials. Decisively repud- !
lated in the Pennsylvania primaries. |
bonus promoters are preparing to
carry their fight against Mr.. Pepper
into the elections.
Edwin S. Bethlehem, legislative |
chairman of the Veterans of Foreign
Wars and one OF the most active
promoters of the bonus raid, in COM
menting on the Pennsylvania re-
suits today said that many of the
ex-service men in Pennsylvania
voted for the Democratic candi-
date and we will carry our fight into
The fall elections and keep Pepper
put of the Senate"
John Thomas Taylor. legislative
agent of the American Legion, ex-
pressed ignorance of the Pennsyl-
,ania primary results. He limited
lis comment on the bonus to the
prediction that the bonus bill will
,e passed very soon and the Presi-
lent will sign it,"