Evening star., 1923-02-04
D. c. FACES LONELY
NINE MONTHS WITH
CONGRESS REST
Lawmakers Have Been in
Almost Continuous Session
for Past Eight Years.
PRESIDENT WILL VISIT
FLORIDA AND ALASKA
Hughes to Get Chance at Foreign
Policy Without Interference
With Senate.
BY ROBERT IT. SMALL.

BY ROBERT II. SMALL.
Washington is about to try a new
experim ent-that OF running the gov
ernment without Congress.
Congress has been on the job al
most continuously for the last eight
years. But the lawmakers are GO
ing away from here four weeks from
today. and it is safe to say that
everybody, including the lawmakers.
is breathing a sigh of relief
President Harding has no intention
of 'spo ling" the vacation promised
the country on and after March
by calling a special session. If the
ship subsidy bill does not pass, Mr..
Harding will let Congress take the
responsibility He called the legis-
lators into extra session last Novem-
ber to consider the shipping measure
and since that time Congress, es-
pecially the Senate, has been con
sidering everything but the shipping
ines sure
Nothing VIII Force Session.
Nor will President Harding call
special session If some of the big ap-
preparation or supply bills get
Stymied in the jam of the closing
hours. a simple resolution continuing
existing appropriations for another
year can care for that situation, and
probably will have to be resorted TO.
The Sixty-seventh Congress. now
on lis last legs. has broken all rec
ords II has twice been called Snto
extra session. making four sessions
in all. and this has never before
happened in the history of the coun-
try. OF course, there are persons who
will say it has broken records in
other directions, but the only thing
proved and admitted is that the
Sixthy seventh has outdistanced all
rivals in the matter of multiplicity
Of meetings.
1915 Was Bleak Year.
1t is necessary to go back to the
spring of 1915 to find a situation
parallel to the one promised after
March next. There was a congress
sional vacation that year from March
to December, but there has been
virtually no vacation since. In 1915
Congress went home and President
Wilson went TO Cornish, n. H,
pleasant time being had by all. In
1928 Congress promises to go home.
President Harding is going first to
Florida and then to Alaska, hoping
for a bit Of golf in both places, 50
that once more a pleasant time for all
IS in the offing.
From the reports reaching Wash
ington it is quite evident that the
country at. large is looking forward
as keenty to the coming congress
sionaf moratorium as those most I'M
niediately concerned. The business
interests in particular are happy over
the prospects of not being legislated
for or against for a period of nine
long months. Business wants rest
from national legislative activities
and is going to get it. President
Harding has been so advised, and
the President is not given to stir
ring up unnecessary trouble.
Farmers Are Hopeful.
The farmers of the country, who
for SO long have been viewing wash
ington with alarm. are hopeful that
at the end of the coming nine months
Of legislative rest and recuperation
they may point TO the capital with
pride. Certainly this last session of
the record-breaking Congress has
been doing it's best to write some
thing on the statute books of es-
pecial benefit to the agricultural
class. Whether the new credits the
Congress has authorized will solve
the difficulties of the farmer remains
to be seen. The corn belts and the
cotton belts and the wheat belts all
are trying to look on the optimistic
side. Washington hopes their op-
timism will be justified.
Experiment to Ne DiAHcuIt.
Admittedly it is going to be very
difficult to try to run the govern
ment without Congress. Many habits
can be formed over a period OF eight
years. During that time Congress
once again, particularly the Senate
has formed the habit Of trying to
run everything, sticking its fingers
in the governmental fire, no matter
how often they may have gotten
burnt.
Democratic senator's are saying out
loud that President Harding and
Secretary Hughes view the forth
coming congressional absence in the
same light as the old fellow who
was going into town on Saturday
night.
What you going for. Henry?" he
was asked.
Coin to git drunk" he replied.
"and, gosh, how I dread it!''
First Breathing Spell.
As q matter of plain fact the ab-
sence Of Congress will give the Presi-
dent and the State Department their
first real breathing spell since the
advent of the present administration
The Senate has insisted on discussing
the foreign relations OF the country
with a frankness which at times
plainly has proved embarrassing to
the executive branch OF the govern
ment. The Senate took the bit in
it's teeth Immediately after tho peace