PUBLIC ATTITUDE TOWARD BLOC 119 



ness men throughout our largest cities to such 

 an extent that it was ahnost immediately re- 

 flected back to Congress into the minds of rep- 

 resentatives who had not taken the trouble to 

 study the facts themselves, but merely reflected 

 the opinions of their constituents. 



The criticism largely took the form of edi- 

 torial ridicule until there came the first real 

 test of strength of the Bloc in July, when the 

 Senate leaders endeavored to adjourn the Sen- 

 ate without giving attention to pending farm 

 measures. Then a new fear seized upon the 

 city press and they devoted much space to the 

 danger to organized political party action from 

 this bi-partisan movement. The Philadelphia 

 Public Ledger said : 



"The significance in this particular blow lies in the over- 

 riding of party regularity by both Democrats and Repub- 

 licans of the Tarm Bloc' that has risen to power and pride 

 of place in the last two months. This is a class, an indus- 

 trial and geographical group, that has broken through 

 party lines and ignored them. At least one million of the 

 hitherto voiceless American farmers have become vocal with 

 startling suddenness. . . . The farm legislative program is 

 loaded with certain near-radical proposals, nationalization 

 possibilities, and federal regulation schemes. ... In a 

 straight out and out fight the conservatives lost and the 

 Farm Bloc won an important encounter that will bring on 

 a pitched battle." 



