The Republican journal., 1869-04-22
A Congressman Hunted Down.

cataract OF fire.
A Congressman Hunted Down.
Washington Correspondence Cincinnati Commercial.
was at work in my room yesterday,
when tall specimen Of upright humanity
stalked in.
care you D. F.?" it asked.
Since entering upon my vocation of cor
respondent-I mean truthful, independent
respondents regard that quest Jon with
suspicion. quietly reached out, and in
careless, graceful manner put my right
hand on paper weight of few pounds,
made OF "black diamond homogeneous cast
steel, bent cold," for the use of the learned
Committee on Commerce, and regarded nv
visitor closely.
lie was man of about lifty-six, with
bald head, curious sharp little eyes, and un-
decided nose, and chin that retreated into
a paper collar. His clothes were of what
we call store goods in the Far West, and
had evidently exhausted the genius of d vii
lage tailor. His legs were slender and
shaky, not from age, but from habit of
never Strengthening them at the knee. l
said to myself, *his is not fghtist. He
shufies though life. He has shuff1ed into
office. SO | released my hold on the paper
weight, and boldly responded:
''That is my name, sir.
81 am Mr., member of Congress
from. | have read your letters. Mr..
-, the editor of our paper, told me to
look you up"
81 am glad to know you, sir. Take a
seat. What Can | do for you:"
81 want some passes" he said earnestly,
seating himself.
"What sort of passes
"Ralroad.'
81 fear / cannot help you in that way,
Mir. | had a pass for myself and fam
lily from the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
but because, in return for the compliment,
l said the President had a locomotive in his
belly, | am cut off. But why do you want
passes? Are you preparing to run away %
81 wish L could,' he answered sadly. Il
wish could. No, that is not it, / am run
down by office seekers from my district.
They pile in on me at my boarding house.
| have been sleeping every night on my
bedroom floor They follow n,e about,
and chase me down. They have smoked
all my cigars and drank up all my whiskey
and now they are getting out of money and
want to borrow. | heard where to find you
made an excuse to go into an alley, and l
ran away. A police officer thought l was
thief, and ran after me. l told him was
member of Congress, running from the
oflice-seekels. He said that was rough, and
let me 60. There is one-a womau-worse
than all the rest. She wants the best post
office ! have. What in the Internal links
does Grant mean by setting such an exam
pie! All the females in my district are
writing to me, and two hundred will be
here, somehow, if we don't repeal this fool
lish law and fill the offices. This woman
torments my life out; and yet, if l give
her the office, won't dare 90 home. She
follows me up like Satan. | can't sleep,
can't put on clean shirt, she hops in on
me SO unexpected. Now, if had a railroad
pass"
'How would that help you?"
81 believe, if could say to her, can't
give you an Office, but here is railroad
pass, she'd take it and go. But, Lord love
you, want hundred. They're getting
out of money, ! tell you, and if only had
EN-. Now, can you help me? You news
paper men always have lots of passes.
The editor in our town hasn't paid railroad
fare for more'n twenty years"
had to assure my poor friend that l
really could not help him. suggested to
him to get sign painted, "Small pox in
this house" and put it up over his door.
''Pooh," he cried, edo you suppose they'd
care for that? Every bloody one of 'em
would get vaccinated, and work in on me.
Cholera would not keep 'em off. wish I'd
been sunk in eternal thunder before l con-
sented to come to Congress. Consented =!
worked like mule for it. It cost me
all of $800-more fool l. What can l do |!
My neighbors and constituents wanted
national dog law, for the better protection
of sheep, and to raise the price of wool.
Why it would take fellow two years to
learn the rules, and don't think I could do
a hooter. But cuss these office-seekers.
"You are safe on the floor, however"
"Devil bit. They get around the doors
and send in their names. They run up in
the gallery, to see if I'm there, and then
down they come. | hid in the barber shops
every day for week before they found me
out and then Littlebang, who wants to be
minister to Europe, wrote home to the pa
pers and said had been made standing
committee on hair"
How long my friend would have contin-
ued his lamentations I cannot say, but he
was interrupted by an arrival of sixteen of
his friends, and left very detected. DIP.
~ say, Sam, if tells you a lie, why is
dat like my ole arm chair?" II doesn't