-+ +--------+ +--------+
Senate
1893 1897 1901 1905 1909 1913
+------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+----+-----+-----+-----+------+------+
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
+------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+----+-----+-----+-----+------+------+
House
1895 1899 1903 1907 1911
+---+ +---+ +---+ +----+ +---+ +----+ +----+ +----+ +---+ +---+ +---+ +---+
|53 | |54 | |55 | |56 | |57 | |58 | |59 | |60 | |61 | |62 | |63 | |64 |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| C | | R | | R | | H | | H | | C | | C | | C | | C | | C | | C | | C |
| r | | e | | e | | e | | e | | a | | a | | a | | a | | l | | l | | l |
| i | | e | | e | | n | | n | | n | | n | | n | | n | | a | | a | | a |
| s | | d | | d | | d | | d | | n | | n | | n | | n | | r | | r | | r |
| p | | | | | | e | | e | | o | | o | | o | | o | | k | | k | | k |
| | | | | | | r | | r | | n | | n | | n | | n | | | | | |(?)|
| | | | | | | s | | s | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | o | | o | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | n | | n | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| D | | R | | R | | R | | R | | R | | R | | R | | R | | D | | D | | D |
+---+ +---+ +---+ +----+ +---+ +----+ +----+ +----+ +---+ +---+ +---+ +---+

During only three of the ten Congresses between 1875 and 1895 did either
party control the national government. The Democrats were in possession
only once, in the 53d Congress. The Republicans controlled the 47th
Congress by manipulation of senators, and the 51st by Reed's drastic
rules. Most of the partisan legislation of twenty years was enacted
during these three Congresses.

A new and not a better type was brought into American politics by the
Civil War. Notwithstanding the bad manners and excesses of ante-bellum
politics, the leaders had been men of defined policy, only occasionally
reaching high office through trickery or personal appeal. Now came the
presence of an intense issue which smoothed out other differences,
magnified a single policy,--the saving of th