Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-01-30
Capital Sidelights

the effort by Senator Reed of Mis-
souri, TO insert 1t as a rider on the
deficiency appropriation bill, has
focused attention on the ways and
| means committee.
This is the ranking committee of
the House, the revenue raising COM
mittee, the policy committee and the
| outstanding committee for partisan
| political cleavage. 1t was the first
committee appointed after the organ
| ization of Congress in 1889, on the
motion of James Madison, who be-
| came its first chairman. 1t was made
standing committee in 1902. Orig
inally II considered both revenue and
appropriation legislation, but in 1865
the appropriation duties were intrust-
ed to the appropriations committee,
which, following the passage Of the
Federal budget act, was enlarged and
reorganized
The present jurisdiction of the ways
and means committee consists of all
revenue raising measures, such as the
tariff, income taxes, excise taxes on
tobacco, etc, and all bond legislation.
| It also has jurisdiction over adjusted
| compensation. and only recently it
| took Jurisdiction over a bill propos-
| ing the settlement of all of the claims
arising out of the World War. Juris.
| diction In the latter two cases was
given to this committee primarily be-
cause Of proposed bond Issues or he
| cause Of taxation features involved.
], The work of the committee at the
present time Is variegated and occa-
| sionally extremely involved For In.
| stance, during this Congress the com
| rnittee considered legislation amend.
| ing the revenue laws; bills refunding
the foreign debts. amendments to the
soldiers adjusted compensation act,
| legislation creating a bureau of Gus
toms and bureau of prohibition In
the Treasury Department, legislation
which would provide for the payment
Of awards by the Mixed Claims Com
mission. for the return of alien prop.
erty. and the payment of the claims
| OF German nationals against citizens
| OF the United States, and numerous
| b1lls proposing minor amendments OF
the revenue or tariff laws.
Inc ways and means committee In
now considering legislation which win
| conserve the supply of medicinal whis.
KY In the United States by organizing
corporation for the. manufacture of
| whisky for medicinal use when the
| present supply is exhausted about
-FOUR years hence. Tariff legislation.
Of course, of the type that would affect
rates has not been considered. Under
| our modern method of tariff making
this Is one of the most difficult tasks
| the committee has before 1t. In prep
aration for tariff legislation a period
| OF at least six months Is required even
| before the committee goes into hear
ings. After extensive hearings the
committee goes into executive session
| To thrash out the details of the bill.
| ON tariff laws prior to the 1922 act
approximately nine months of delibera.
| ton occurred between the time when
| hearings We're first held and the date
| OF enactment of the law. The writing
Of the 1922 act on the same basis. re.
CURED approximately two years-the
| hearings beginning in January, 1921,
IN the Sixty-sixth Congress and the
law being enacted In September, 1922.
IN the Sixty-seventh Congress, This
gives some idea of the scope of the
| work. ;,
| The work of. this committee has in.
| creased five-fold since 1914. MANY of
| the problems before 1t today are out.
| growths OF the war. Vacations be.
| tween sessions are now the exception
| rather than the rule. This year the
| comfslttee met in October to formulate
the war claims legislation before Con
gress met In December. The office
| force did not go home for three DAYS
when the last tariff bill was In its final
| stages, being busy on preparing some
4Ss amendments and the conference
lreport. At that only one mistake was
made, which was caught and correctef,
before the btu was engrossed. by q
joint resolution.
| The statue of Gen. Robert e. Lee
leader of the Lest Cause" which
stands In Statuary Hall in the Capi.
| toi as gift to the Nation from the
! state or virginia, has never been
formally accepted by Congress. The
| nrst time that any eulogy of Lee was
| spoken In Congress on his birthdav
was on January 10. the 10th ami.
versary OF his birth, when Representa-
tive n. Walton Moore of Virginia ad.
dressed the House, and another speech
| oy Representative Ross Al. Collins of
mississippi was printed In the Record
which had been delivered before the
Lee Camp of Confederate Veterans 1T
Alexandria, Va.
MIR. Moore emphasized that recently
eminent writer's on both sides of the
| ocean nave been freshly treating of
| the hves OF two Virginians, of the
same ancestry to which John Mar.
shall, the great Chief Justice of the
supreme Court Observation-Disclosures
and Lee. eo''
| The commentators on his career 40
commander-in-chief of the FORCES ~
the Confederacy manifest an aston
fishing unaninity of opinion. In 1e3s.
In his work on Lee the Soldier. the
Englishman, Sir frederick Maurice,
Read and reread,' said Napoleon
/ sfhM 90 nm ar~,~~ - - --SS~est
| nibal. Caesar, Gustavus. Turenne.
Eugene and Frederick Take them a.
your models, for 1t is the only means
OF becoming great leader and ma s.
ter1ng the secrets OF the art of war
To that select band of great com.
| manders the name Of Robert T.. Lee
must be added. His exact preredanrs
among them I will not attempt TO
determines, but that they have received
him as a soldier worthy of their fell.
| lowship do not doubt"
| Last year another Englishman. Da.
vid Knowles, in his work on the
American Civil War, placed Lee high
on the roll of the worlds greatest
captains, believing that he ranks mot
| far below Caesar, Hannibal. Cronn.
/, well, Condo, Turenne, Marlborough
and Frederick the Great In, another
book. also published last year, entitled
| Campaigns of the Civil War" an
accomplished Massachusetts, author.
Walter Geer. ranks Lee even higher
than Maurice and Knowles He places
him as one OF the six great com.
manders of all history. the others
being Alexander, Hannibal. Caesar,
Frederick and Napoleon.
Thus he stands out In the estima-
| ton OF those not of the South and
| not advocates of the cause for which
Lee fought, who are best able to
furnish a Just estimate Of the vir-
ginia gentleman and soldier.
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