Evening star., 1933-06-17
Congressional Eloquence.

An analysis OF the Congressional Rec
ord-that is to say, the real Record.
and not the appendix, which contains
much matter that is quite extraneous
to the actual proceedings OF the ma
tional legislature-has been undertaken
by q member of the faculty of George
Washington University and has been
given to the listening world by radio.
Prof. Yeager finds that during the ses-
sion which closed on Thursday night
no less than 36,OOO,o00 words were
spoken, and that these words, If printed
in seven-and-a-half-point type and
laid end to end, would reach from
Washington to New York and seven
miles beyond. So much for quantity!
AS for quality, the analyst Is of the
opinion that q change is to be observed,
that the old-fashioned spread-eagle
orator Is disappearing; that while
standards Of congressional speaking are
declining, style is changing and that
speeches are becoming more terse and
direct. Going back fifteen years, it is
found that in the course Of a year the
Senate had then listened to 100
speeches Of an hour or more, while
during the past session there were only
sixteen speeches in that category.
Does this mean that the privilege of
unlimited debate in the Senate is be-
ing less ponderously exercised? Or does
1t mean that senatorial orators are tax
ing the floor more frequently with
shorter installments. Certainly the vol
ume Of utterance is not abating. The
daily issues Of the Congressional Record
in the course of a session are no less
voluminous than In the past. Indeed,
they are rather more so. Possibly this
Is because Of the leave to print" prac-
tice, with heavier appendix than here
tofore.
The question arises whether a surgi-
cal operation OF appendectomy would
improve or mar the Record. It is just pos
sible that denial Of the leave to print
would result in the inclusion in the
delivered" speeches of much of the
matter that is now relegated to the back
pages. Perhaps the appendix serves as
a safety valve to lessen the pressure
upon what are politely known as the
proceedings"
1t Is perfectly well known that much
of the oratory emitted In the halls of
Congress Is designed for the public
rather than the legislative ear. 1t Is
not actually debate in the proper sense
OF the word. 1t is addressed in large
degree to the folks back home, or, to
use now classical expression, to the
people Of Buncombe County.
No rule of thumb can ever be applied
to reduce the volume Of congressional
doings. No standard of oratory can be
esta bllshed. no censorship other than
that of propriety can be established.
When the voters in State or a con-
gressional district send Representative
to Washington they give him carte
blanche to talk as much and as often
as he is disposed or is able under the
rules Of procedure. They do not measure
his value by the total number of COL
umns his words fill in the Record, but
by the number Of logs he is able to
roll for them, the number Of Offices
he is able to obtain for them. He may
transgress the rules Of syntax, he may
mix his metaphors, he may swell the
printing bill, or he remain as mute
as a clam throughout the session, and
his rating will still turn upon his prac-
tical achievements rather than his elo-
! Quence or verbosity.