The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1942-10-30
Is Congress
Any Good7
Prof. Smith Answers
With Big YES"
Gives Reason For The
Faith that's In Him

Gives Reason For the
Faith That's In Him
BY Z 7. SHORT
Is THE congress Of the United
L States any good at all from
the standpoint Of the welfare Of
the nstionY
Judging by some Of the letters
10 the editor and some Of the
things the outs" have to saw
about the s'ins," the question
might be answered In the neg
alive.
DR.. T. v. Smith. professor Of
philosophy. University Of Chicago,
and a former member Of congress
at large from Illinois, thinks that
would be the wrong answer. His
conclusions, based on experience,
observation and a study OF Ameri-
can history, brought to US through
the Congressional Record. are
particularly interesting at a time
when the national body is facing
the greatest situation in the his
tory of the United States and is
receiving the worst lambasting
ever given to any congress. Fol-
lowing are some excerpts from his
answer:
Yes, congress is some good. II
Is much good. Indeed it is among
the greatest goods of our national
life, for 1t is the most distinctive
thing about our organized Ameri-
can way and It conditions the
freedom OF our unorganized way.
Congress- is the body which
writes large that elemental dis
covery. Nobody can with due
modesty claim to have a monopoly
upon right or justice where justice
il itself in dispute; and that, alas,
is Just the time one is tempted to
claim the monopoly.
Along with that truth goes an
other equally elemental, that in
an honest dispute no man is hon.
est enough to represent an OPP
ponent's point of view. The proof
Of that is that the opponent can
never adequately represent ones
own point Of view. Crucial as Is
this justification for the legisla-
tive way, 1t does not muster its
full weight until the situation
itself is displayed even more
crucially. some might say cruelty.
It is popularity supposed by
those not very knowing in the
ways of the world that when all
parties to a dispute are honest
thew can reach an agreement
which constitutes the solution of
the dispute in question. While
this supposition is in the event
correct, we hope, it is correct only
circuitously and so offers us So
luton at a price extraordinarily
painful to pay.
The price is congress itself with
all its pestiferous ways; its IN
terminable wrangling, its egoistic
showmanship, its bitter partisan
ship, its laryngeal liquidity, Its
disgusting indecision. and its re-
sulting delays. This price is so
great that many honest men pre-
fer the other alternative, the
method of dictatorship. Such an
alternative SOLVES" disputes be-
tween honest men by acting upon
an assumption opposite to that OF
democracy, the assumption, name
ly, that one party to the dispute
is not honest or at least that It's
interests are not legitimate and
therefore need not be taken into
account.
A clear distinction between
what is possible in politics ana
what is not can bring US BACK
with hope to the present congress
That the present congress Is no
worse than any congress OF the
past can be put down as next 10
certain. I state the matter neg
atively. though my own thought
is confidently positive. I mean
that think the present congress
to be the best this nation has ever
had. Certain it is in general that
each succeeding congress has more
educated members than the pre-
ceding one.
The first congress that met was
subject to all the external criti-
cism and to all the internal stress
that harass and haunt the seven