The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1925-03-06
GEN. DAWES
REFORMS
FADE.
President Pro Tenn Points Out
That Members Have Means
Of Checking Debate
BY WILLIAM HARD

All notion that Vice President
Dawes can persuade or coerce the
Senate into modifying it's rules
faded away today to an almost
invisible minimum when Senator
George Moses of New Hampshire.
the destined Republican president
pro tenn of the Senate, expressed
views which he put into special
statement for this writer as fol-
lows:
81 defy anybody to mention any
genuinely essentially important
and righteous piece of legislation
which ever has been ultimately
kept off the statute books by rhe
present rules of the Senate.
Headed Off FoOlisIiness.
ION the other hand a great many
foolish and possibly disastrous pieces
Of legislation have been headed off
by these rules.
s.The Senate under it's present rules
Is pretty nearly the last citadel OF
free speech in this Republic.
"AIl of US in the Senate sometimes
suffer personally In our favorite
legislative measure, because Of the
present free speech rules. /, for
instance, have been greatly interest
ed in the bill for having the Govern
ment take over the Cape Cod Canal.
1--WE had In this session clear
- = -. C5fN
bill IL we could have got it up. We
were not able to get it up. The bill
failed. Naturally feel bad about
It.
Brake on NOstrums.
81 think it better. however. that I
should suffer some occasional disap-
pointments rather than that the
country In this age Of hasty and Ell.
ratio nostrums and panaceas and
fads and fancies should be deprived
Of the brake which is put upon them
by the Senate's rules of procedure. ]
1T Is to be noted further that
the Senate already has, under Its
rule number twenty-five. perfeetiy
competent and adequate means OF
bringing debate to an end.
Under rule twenty-five, il six
teen Senators sign the request, and
II the request is favorably con-
eidered by a two-thirds vote on the
floor Of the Senate, all debate
closes, and the Senate proceeds to
vote on the bill.
"NOt Going To Be More"
"That is enough. and there is
not going to be more"
Senator Moses is going to preside
over the Senate as its president
pro tenn, whenever Vice President
Dawes is absent.
Further, in the absence Of both
Of both Of them, 1t is Senator Moses
and not Vice President Dawes who
Will name the Senator who is to
come forward to do the presiding.
Senator Moses, moreover, repre-
sents the dominant views In this
matter Of the Republican Party IN
the Senate.
It was with amusement recalled
today that Senator Oscar Under
wood Of Alabama, who has stepped
forward to side with Vice President
Dawes in the matter of putting
more drastic check upon Senatorial
debate was himself the leading char.
acter in the great filibuster which
prevented Republican majority In
the Senate from imposing Federal
-engeance upon lynchings of negroes
In the South.
Prevented All Business.
This filibuster lasted from Novem-
Der 27 to December 4. 1922. 1t pre-
vented all other business by the
Senate. 1t absolutely prevented the
passage of the Dyer anti-lynching
bill.
On November 81 Senator Under.
wood announced openly that it was
a flibuster. He announced openly
that it would continue until the
Dyer bill was withdrawn.
From that day until December 4
Senator Underwood and Democratic
assistants Of his continued to speak
against time and continued to pre-
vent vote.
On December Senator Lodge OF
Massachusetts. on behalf Of the Re-
Iublicans, announced that the DYER
bill would be withdrawn; and there
upon the business of the Senate was
resumed.
Under Heavy Obligations.
The essential basic fact in the
present situation is that both politi-
cal parties in the Senate are under
enormous obligations to the present
rules. II it were not for those rules
there would today be q Federal
bureaucracy throughout the South
regarding all alleged crimes Of VIC.
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