The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1923-03-03
HARDING jOYED
ASSESS|ON
ENDS
Pleasure Of Executive Undis-I
guised as Legislators Leave
For Nine Months.
BY International News Service.


An exodus OF notables such as the
National Capital has not witnessed in
years began here today with the
passing into history of the turbulent
Sixty Congress.
For the first time IN eight years
Washington is going to have a pro-
tracted period without Congress in
session. President Harding has ex
pressed the opinion publicly and
privately that what this country
needs" is not "a good five-cent
cigar" as Tom Marshall said, but
"a relief from Congress" And under
no circumstances now conceivable
will he summon the Sixty-eighth
Congress into session before the con-
stitutional time of converting next
December.
Free of Congress Nine Months
For nine months, therefore, the
Administration is going to conduct
the business of government without
Congress- prospect that PresidenE
Harding and his Cabinet 1ieutenants
look forward to with undisguised
pleasure. For nine months they can
proceed with the administration of
government without being "resolu-l
tionized by either Democrats or in.
surgent Republicans; critics will be
deprived of their public forum, and
Washington will settle back to the.
summer "normalcy" of pre-war
days.
President Harding frankly believes
the country is tired of having Con-
gress continually on the job. He
believes the ni1e-months' recess will
q ind IF nd
alton which general business
throughout the country has not been
able to obtain with the national law
makers constantly creating fresh
issues and new legislation. He be-
lieVes the recess will provide cool
ing off" process in which some of.
the controversial issues that now
loom so large on the national.
horizon will lose a great deal OF their
terrorizing aspect.
Has Three Good Reasons.
1t is no secret in Washington that
| the President has been actuated in
giving the country rest principally
because of three things: ID the in
ternat1onal situation, now extremely
| critical and daily becoming more so;
" the railroad situation, and 90 the
coal situation.
President Harding and Secretary
of State Hughes have had the SEN.
ate to deal with continuously since
they came into office two years ago.
They have had to proceed with great
caution, and sometimes with no little
embarrassment, in the conduct of in
ternatlonal relations because of Sen
atorlal criticism and speech making.
Few steps taken by the Administra-
H4V-T 10 4 lot;
escaped the close scrutiny AID often
the acrimonious opposition OF not
only Democrats, but insurgent mem
bers of the ma io~''~-
That there are critical weeks ahead
in the field of international relations
is generally recognized. Both Presi.
| dent Harding and Secretary of State
Hughes are keenly DESTROYS of hav-
| ing clear field in the existing stu
alton.
Trouble to Adjust Itself.
In the railroad situation the
President and his advisers recog-
niZe that if the new Congress were
called Immediately into session it
| would at once become involved in
the acrimonious fight over new
regulatory legislation. Much of
the trouble that now exists in the
| industry will automatically adjust
itself in the long rest ahead, they
| believe. In any event there is a
manifest desire on the part of the
Administration to grant the rail-
roads an opportunity to put their
house in order" before attempting
new regulations.
| What is true OF the railroad stu
alton is also true in large measure
in the coal situation, the President
believes. That there will be no re-
currence this year OF the disas-
trous strike of 1922 is now assured.
| Given a full year TO repair the
damage of that great strike, and
a full working year to again pile
up immense reserve stocks of btu
minous and anthracite coal, Admin
istration officials believe the coal
situation will largely adjust itself
When the new Congress convenes
next December it will have before
it the findings of the Federal Coal
Commission, Of which John Hays