The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-12-28
6STH CONGRESS
 NOW PROMISES LAMB-LKE CLOSE Bonus Bill, Modified, One
 Of Compromise . Achievements JAP EXCLUSION = IS PROTESTED Tax Reduction And Naval < Increases Added To Record
Rv THOMAS [. STOKES

by IAOMAO !. OlOhEo
 Copyright, 1924, for The Age Herald. ) WASHINGTON, Dec. 27.-Com- !, ing in like lion, the sixty-eighth congress has packed into one year the most sensational and turbulent record in congressional history $ under the domination of militant coalition of democrats and insurg- ent republicans-but also has left on the books several important pieces of legislation, which did not meet with great favor, however, !. with the administration.
 But as stormy as it has been, it is expected to pass out in March as mild as a lamb, mainly because of the over whelming majority piled up for the ad- ministration in the election, which has reacted to discourage democrats and in surgents in the leftover" congress which met in December.
 Ends In Ruin. "
 The year opened with republican in- surgents in both house and senate hold ing up organization of congress through their balance of power until they se- cured certain demands. It ended with four of the insurgent group in the sen ate pushed out into the cold-barred from party caucuses-and with indica- tions that regular republicans 1n the house would treat their recalcitrants Tn the same rough manner.
 The year seethed with a multitude of inyestigations, which will make it stand out glaringly in history. Sensation after sensation poured from the com mittee rooms, where one witness fol lowed another with stories, some Of them sordid, that were broadcasted over the country, particularly from the two major investigations, those. into the naval oil leases and the department of justice.
 Senator Walsh of Montana was the moving force in the Teapot Dome ln- vestigation, which was inaugurated through resolution introduced by Sen ator LaFollette of Wisconsin in the preceding session. The investigation De- gan in the fall of 1923, but it was in the early part of the past year that the lid was pried off
 Senator Wheeler of Montana, col league of Walsh and also democrat, instituted the investigation into the de partment of justice, where the testimony
  spects.
 Three Cabinet Members Fall.
 As A result of the disclosures in these two investigations, three members or the cabinet left the government, Secretary of the Interior Fall, Secretary ot the Navy Denby, and Attorney General Daugherty, and cases brought by the government were still in the courts when the year closed.
 These were two of numerous lnvestk- $ cations in both house and senate. 9th CTS included one into the internal rev enue bureau, instituted by Senator Cou- zens of Michigan, republican, which was revived and was still going on when the year ended another into charges against Senator Wheeler of Montana that he had used his influence with the interior department to secure oil and gas permits for client, for which he was exonerated in the senate after a special investigation, but with a case against him on this score still pending in the courts; the probe into the land fraud charges brought by Senator lief lin of Alabama; investigation by spe- cial committee against charges brought against two members of the house, which exonerated Representative Zihl- man of Maryland, republican, and with ], held action until settlement of case in court against Republican Represents tive Langley of Kentucky, the other member involved, who was reelected to congress; the shipping board investi- gation in the house, still in progress, and numbers of others, some of which are expected to be re-opened before con gress expires in March.
 The legislative situation was snarled and tangled, through the combined op- position to the administration by repub- lican insurgents and democrats, who were responsible, too for instituting most of the investigations and keeping them constantly before the country by speeches in house and senate.
 The LaFollette group in the senate. joining with democrats, prevented the election of Senator Cummins of Iowa as president pro tenn of the senate until they succeeded, after days and days of balloting, in keeping him from retaining the chairmanship of the interstate com merce committee, to which post demo- crat was elevated, Senator Smith of South Carolina.
 Exact Tribute.
 Insurgent republicans in the house also went on the warpath. They pre- vented election of speaker and organi- zation of the house until regular repub- licans gave in and consented to certain liberalization in houee rules, designed to prevent legislation from being pock- eted by hostile committee chairmen. Representative John M. Nelson of Wis consin, who later became campaign manager for Senator LaFollette in his