Evening star., 1925-04-24
DAWES TO CARRY
FIGHT TO STATES
Plans to Invade Those Where
Senators Are Non-Com-
initial on Rules.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.


Vice President Charles G.. Dawes in
tends to carry his fight for a change
in the Senate rules directly to the
people of those states whose repre-
sentatives in the United States Senate
have not yet announced their support
Of his proposal.
Arrangements are being made, fol-
instance. for mass meetings in Kan
sas, in an effort to influence the peo
pie to persuade Senator Charles Cur
tis, majority leader of the Senate, to
agree with Mr.. Dawes viewpoint.
Senator Capper OF Kansas has an
nounced his support Of Mr.. Dawes
and the Vice President is not content
TO have one Senator from Kansas, but
wants particularly the majority leader
with him.
Curtis Heads Rules Committee.
Mr.. Curtis is also chairman of the
Senate committee on rules, which
would have to consider the change
and recommend or disapprove it. A
resolution embodying Mr.. Dawes
ideas was introduced at the last ses'
sion by Senator Underwood of Ala
bama, and will be reintroduced when
the Senate meets again.
The Vice President has not said
as yet what other States he plans
to invade. He has several dates
ahead and will not hesitate to appeal
in every instance to the people to
write letters to the Senator in ques-
ton, urging him to support the
Dawes proposal. He hopes to carry
on his fight good-naturedly and with
out personal hostility to any one, but
he thinks that he can get more &C
ton by arousing the people to In
fluence their Senators than by person
al conference himself with the Sena'
tors.
Has Short Time.
Mr. Dawes is aware of the fact that
when once the Senate reconvenes he
will not have an opportunity to
absent himself from that body and
make speeches and that his sole op-
portunity lies in the interval that
must elapSe before Congress comes
back here in December.
The Vice President has no objec-
tion interposed to his course by Presi-
dent Coolidge, though the latter re-
frains from making any public state
ment in support OF the Dawes propo-
sails. Mr.. Coolidge, as a member of
the executive branch of the Govern
ment, is said to feel that it would be
improper for him to discuss the rules
of procedure which, under the Con-
Stitution, are matters solely for the
two houses of Congress to determine
for themselves.
Mr.. Dawes, on the other hand, is
really a member of the Senate and
has the right to cast a vote in it.
He also has the right to speak to
the Senate in interpreting existing
rules, and some observers would not
be surprised If Mr.. Dawes broke an
other precedent by using his oppor-
tunities for comment to point out
to the Senate defects in existing
rules and urging a change.
Since the Vice President stirred up
the discussion of changes in the rules,
some suggestions have been advanced
that If he would modify his proposal
so that cloture could be brought
about quickly in the last 10 days of
a session in which the adjournment
date is fixed, his proposition would
stand a better chance of winning
out. Sentiment against one-man Ill
1busters in the last few days of a
session is pronounced inside the SEN
ate itself, but there is no chance of
any proposal being carried which
would give the majority the power
to impose cloture at ANY time, as is
done by the rules of the House.
Copyright. 1925.l