Evening star., 1932-03-02
WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS

June is still some distance off, but
already congressional speculation has
started on the question of adjournment
date, and specifically whether Congress
will be ready to quit before the ma
tional conventions in Chicago, or
whether a 30-day recess will be in or
der during convention time, and Gen.
greSs will be sitting in Washington
| through hot July Senator Watson,
Republican leader in the upper branch.
ever an optimist, says he feels sure
i Congress will have completed its work"
by the end of May. The Senatorial
pessimists do not share that opinion.
| and foreSee many months of work
ahead on the tax bill and the Demo-
cratic tariff bill, the World Court,
Muscle Shoals, the Davis-Kelly coal bill.
| Philippine independence and host of
other controversial measures Of major
! Importance. Some argue that 1t will
be good Democratic strategy to keep
Congress in session through the Sum-
mer to bedevil the administration and
as political forum. There is nothing
| In sight yet to support that view. The
! Democratic machine in the House has
been driving through the legislative
program with astonishing speed. SO
| far as the House is concerned, if the
present rate is maintained its decks
will be cleared by mid-May. II leg
| islative log jam ties things up, and
holds Congress here, 1t will be in the
upper branch. The underlying fact Is
| that the members of neither branch, at
! heart, want to return to Washington
| after the Chicago conventions If they
can help it, and the avoidance of that
course lies wholly within their own
hands. Hence the favorite present
guess as to adjournment date Is June 10.
Congressional repartee in debate in
the House last Monday. Representative
Homer C. Parker of StateSboro. Ga, to
Representative Charles L. Underh!l OF
| Massachusetts,: Il suppose the gen
| tlemanS ancestors landed on Plymouth
| Rock. 1t is a pity that Plymouth
Rock did not land on him. The gen.
| tleman is notorious for his matchleSs
egoism and conceit His arrogance is
inexcusable What right has the down
Eastern Republican aristocrat from
Massachusetts to speak for the Demo-
cratic party?" Representative Underhill
| to Representative Parker in reply: Il
| am a son of the South and proud OF IT..
| Nv only college cheer Is 'rah, rah,
night school, And I am blacksmith
| by trade" The clash was the renewal
| of a feud which began some days
earlier when Representative Parker
shouted at Mr.. Underhill that the Az
lanta Constitution had recently carried
an editorial in which was the phrase,
"to hell with Massachusetts" and that
! he fully subscribed to that sentiment.
| X 4
Representative Parker, the hero Of
the incident related in the preceding
paragraph, is a newcomer to Congress,
! obtaining his seat in special election
lass September According to the Con-
gressional Directory he Is the son OF
| William Cling and Sarah Belle Mattox
| Parker and the grandson OF Hampton
| Cling and Catherine Baggs Parker ana
| of DR.. John Homer ana Lucinda Shei-
field Mattox of Homervllle, Ga, ana
was christened Homer Cling" He IS
| a graduate Of the Stateshoro High
! School, a Baptist, Mason. Eagle, Elk,
! Phi Delta Theta, and retired brigadler
general of the Georgia National Guard.
! Representative Parker says: Il flnd now
! that many OF our Democratic Senators
and Represent tives are beginning to
I think as I think and some Of them are
! beginning to talk as I talk"
| !; :; y x
With all the coinmotion being raised
in Congress en- the question Of govern
mental economy in general and a pos
sible cut in the salaries Of members Of
! Congress in particular, it may be timely
| to shatter the conspiracy Of silence that
is nearly always observed in congress
SIGNAL debate with reference to Their
! Cthsr perquisites. The $4,000 salary.
which Is now the bone of contention, is
only one item Each member of the
| House has an allowance or $4,000 per
year for stenogrsphic and clerk hire.
iowance for this purpose of $4,000.
This is wholly apart from and addi-
ticnal to the patronage" enjoyed by
the majority party in each branch, in
the disposal Of jobs in the legislative