Salt Lake Tribune | 1918-09-22 | Page 44 | Gillett Scores Party in Power

EILLETT SCORES party 111 mm ! Contrasts War Record of ! Democrats With That of the Minority. " i WASHINGTON", Sept. SI. Representa- ; Uve GUlett of Massachusetts, acting Re- ' publican loader, in a fapcech in the houe 1 today . attacking the war record ' of the Democratic majority, contrasting with it that of. the Republican minority. Speaker Clark, ' - Droeocratic Leader KitchJn and Chairman Dent of the house military committee were singled out for comment on thpir attitude and activities and Chairman Ferris of tbe Democratic congressional campaign committee was accused of unfair criticism of the Republican, Repub-lican, record for campaign purposes. ""Would tbe support of the war hare been any less vigorous if a Republican had been speaker Instead of our honored Champ Clark, who opposed the declara- , tion of war and weat out of h's way to defeat the draft?" asked Mr. Gillett. ' "Would the sinews of war have been any less amply or more sectionaUy provided- if a Republican had been at the head of the ways and means committee instead of Mr. KitchLn. who also voted against the waj- and against the- draft? "Would necessary war legislation have been retarded any more if at that momentous mo-mentous juncture a Republican had been chairman of the military committer Instead In-stead .of Mr. Dent, from whose hands the administration program of the draft had to bd ta ken and carried through by a Republican? And io I might proceed with the other committees." The next congress, Mr. Gillett concluded, conclud-ed, "will have to face the po.-t-war problems prob-lems and becaure of industrial centers being In the northern tats. he argued a Republican congress could better sol-., tbe.e than a Democratic house com-poped com-poped of many southern members. Mr. GfUctt s declaration that the three men who were most prominent as c-rd-gels of preparedness were Colonel Roosevelt. Roose-velt. General Wood and tbe late Representative Repre-sentative Gardner, all Republicans, way greeted with applause from the Republi-can Republi-can side. Under Republican control, he said, con-I con-I gress 'would have willingly granted all necessary war powers and passed all meanires. but that It would not have been under tbe control of the administration. administra-tion. As Mr. Gillett conclude- Mie Republican Republi-can members arose to applaud and cheer.