Evening star., 1924-01-13
TITANIC FIGHT SEEN
in HOUSE AS MONTH
RULES TRUCE ENDS
insurgents and Democrats
Plan Combined Onslaught
on Republican Program.
SIMILAR COALITION
IN SENATE FORECAST
Entirely New Tax Reduction Plan
May Be Wrought and Pre-
sented to President.

While House republican insurgents
and democrats were mapping plans in
a series Of conferences yesterday to
combine their attack tomorrow or
the organization republican program
for amendment Of House rules, indi-
cations were increasing that control
OF tax legislation, railroad legisla-
tion, the soldiers bonus bill and
other measures would be strongly
contested by a like coalition in the
Senate.
In the House the fight will mature
tomorrow when the question OF
amending rules comes up auto
matically. Representative Garrett,
the democratic leader. announced
yesterday that the minority's attack
would center on the republicans re-
fusal to revoke the so-calIed Under
wood rule and their insistence that
discharge Of committees from juris-
diction over legislation shall be pos
sible only on petition OF $50 repre-
sentatives.
Meanwhile. the insurgent bloc de-
cided to press further for "liberaliza-
ton of the House rules, and Repre-
sentative Nelson OF Wisconsin, leader
Of the insurgents, went over the stu
alton with Mr.. Garrett with the view
of securing a combination strong
enough TO rout the republican or
ganization.
Senate Fight Forecast.
The Senate fight to come was fore
shadowed last night by expressions
from a number of the Senate insur-
gents that the combination last week
between their forces and the demo-
Gratis. which elected Senator Ellison
D. Smith of South Carolina as chair
man Of the Senate interstate com
merce committee, was only the fore
runner of an entire program OF pro-
gressive legislation which will be
jammed through Congress by a sim
liar coalition and presented to Presi-
dent Coolidge. Already, it was said
plans were being made to bring
factions to frame the tax reduction
bill when 1t reaches the floor of the
Senate in accordance with their ideas,
rather than with the Mellon plan.
The group OF republican progress
sives which will vote with the demo
Gratis on the tax neutrality-suspicious.
ly against the reduction OF surtaxes
on. large incomes, as proposed by
Secretary Mellon-it was pointed out,
will be far more numerous than the
group which Joined the democrats in
electing Senator Smith
Conzens Against Plan.
Senator Couzens of Michigan. for
example. is conducting a vigorous
campaign against this phase of the
Mellon plan, and a number Of other
republican senators-outside of those
who Joined the democrats in the
interstate commerce committee cleo
tion-will side with him in his opposi-
ton.
Interest was added to the fight
tomorrow in the House by the at
titude of Representative Longwcrtb,
the republican leader, and Chairman
Smell Of the rules committee, both Of
whom, in the face of the de emocratic-
insurgent combination. declared they
would make no compromise.
Mr.. Longworth said that it would
be better If the proposed rules
changes provided that a majority of
House members should sign petition
before motion to discharge a com
mittee was permissible. The pro-
posed minimum of $50. he added, was
a concession below which 1t would be
unwise to go If the majority was to
have control of legislation and blocs
were not to be allowed to obstruct
it's program. Mr.. Smell. whose COM