Evening star., 1923-12-02
Declares Strength Sufficient
to Tie Up Speakership if
Demands Are Denied.
SENATE ORGANIZATION
VICTORY FOR OLD GUARD
Liberal Members Not Present at
Session Which Elects Lodge
as Leader.

The progressive bloc made its first
major attack yesterday in it's cam
paign of insurgency against the re-
publican leadership of the new Con-
gress
In the House, where it's numerical
strength is greatest, it openly but un-
successfully opposed Endorsement of
Speaker Gillett as the republican can
didate for the speakership and an
nounced there were votes enough in
sight to block his election unless i'm
portant concessions in committee as
signments and modifica ton of House
rules We're made by the party organ
ization.
On the Senate side the opposition
was of a passive character. When
the republican senator's assembled to
re-elect Senator Lodge to the major
ity leadership they found that not a
single member of the bloc had re-
sponded to the party conference call
and that Senator Borah also was
numbered among the missing.
Democrats Consolidate.
While the breach in the majority
party thus was widening, the demo-
Gratis were consolidating thef posi-
tion in the hope of taking whatever
advantage may be offered by the situ-
alton of their opponents.
House democratic members met last
night and agreed on Representative
Garrett of Tennessee as the party
candidate for Speaker, but the meet
Ing was only formality, since the
selection had been agreed upon
months ago.
The democrats of the Senate, who
also have settled all their differences
over leadership, will hold brief con-
ference tomorrow just before the Six
ty-eighth Congress convenes.
Developments yesterday indicated no
disposition on the part of republican
organization leaders of the House or
Senate to make concessions to the In
surgents. On the contrary, House
leaders declared they would be party
to no negotiations and were prepared
to let the progressives show what
strength tAey could poll on the first
ballot-for Speaker.
Lodge Ignores Bloc.
While organization leaders in the
Senate made no pronouncement, they
adhered to their original plan of
leaving to the opposition the initia-
tion of any Senate organization fight.
Also Senator Lodge, in filing the
two vacancies on the committee on
committees. did not give representa-
tion to the progressive bloc.
Representative Longworth of Ohio
was elected republican leader of the
House without opposition. but two
candidates were nominated for
Speaker against Gillett-Cooper of
Wisconsin. a leader of the progress
sive bloc, and Madden of Illinois,
chairman of the appropriations COM
mittee. Gillet received 100 votes,
Cooper 15 and Madden s. while one
vote was cast for Little of Kansas.
Voting for Cooper were Clague,
Davis Keller and knutson of Mime
sofa, La Guardia of New York, Sin
clair Of North Dakota, and all repub-
lican members of the Wisconsin dele
cation except Cooper, who cast his
ballot for Madden, as did Gillett,
James and Woodruff of Michigan.
King. Michaelson and Reid Of Illi-
nois, and SchslI of Minnesota SprouI
of Kansas cast the one ballot for
Little.
See Deadlock Certain.
Leaders of the progressive bloc as
serted that when the vote comes for
the election of a Speaker they will
be able not only to hold the fifteen
who voted yesterday for Cooper, but
will draw enough strength from those
supporting Madden to make certain
a deadlock.
With eleven republicans of the total
membership of 225 absent yesterday,
republican leaders estimated that at
least half this number would be un-
able to attend the opening session
of the House, thereby making the
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