The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1876-01-14
COST OF LEGISLATION.
The Woes of Congre ssmen a How They
are Badgered by Importunate Con
stituents.

are Badgered by Importunate Con-
stituents.
It costs the people of the United
States, says a Washington correspond
ent, about SIC, 900 day to support the
House of Representatives. A session of
J the House consumes from three to four
hours. Every hours work is done at an
expense of $1,000. Every minute of the
session costs $40.
To-day, while bending over the bar of
the Reporters Gallery and studying
with much interest the faces and man
ners of honorable members, heard a
voice, Offering bill to change the name
of steamboat on some Western river
from "John johnson" to "Thomas
Jenkins" Some seconds-every one
taking from the National Treasury con-
siderably more than half dollar-were
spent in the process OF Catching the
Speakers eye." Two minutes We're oc-
cupied by the Speaker in announcing the
bill and by the clerk in reading it. Three
minutes more sufficed to pass it. Thus
the detention of national Legislation in
the Chamber by this little local bill to
change the name of a steam boat cost the
people not less than 5000. This is a
single instance of the thousand petty
matters which proiong the sessions of
Congress for weeks and months. There
are many other instances in which de-
bate on such little bills has arisen and
consumed whole hour of q session.
While Congress as body is thus hec-
tored, its individual members suffer from
opportunities ana demands on their
time and patience of which most readers
have no idea. 1t is supposed that the
peoples representatives are elected to
do their legislation. On the contrary,
most members of the House, and even
some Senators, find that they are elected
to do their constituents errands. Every
lawyer and editor who wants a public
document, every farmer who wants seeds,
every bristly- haired inventor seeking a
patent, or callow author demanding
copyright to print trash; men who have
claims against the Government, and men
and women, too, who want places under
Government; pensioners, people who
have lost money in letters, victims of
lottery and confidence circulars sent
through the mail; pamphleteers and
people with hobbies or schemes of re-
formal write or come TO their Repre-
sentative in Congress asking, begging,
imploring, and often demanding imme-
diate compliance with their requests for
his service, aid, interference. Conse-
quently the time that many member
might and would assign to the study of
measures before Congress is occupied in
answering letters on subjects wholly dis
connected from his Legislative duties,
or in running about among the depart
clerks. The penalty of noncompliance
with requests from constituents is SO
well understood that few Congressman
neglect them. Prompt and successful
attention to them secures votes at the
next election. To waive such attention
is to lose voters. Rich and well-to do
members find it possible to do great
deal of drudgery through hired clerks.
Ben Butler, for instance, used to keep
two secretaries who did nothing but at
tend to this kind of work. But the
poorer members, who having nothing but
their salaries of So, 900 year, are driven
to sit up late at night and rise early i'll
the morning, and consume all their fore
noon in attending, without any fee what
ever, to the personal interests of thought
less, selfish, stingy constituents. Here
are a plenty of patent lawyers, claim
agents and agents of every kind, ready
to do almost anything for reasonable
fees, and hundreds of clerks Ill the sew
eral departments are employed to answer
letters of inquiry and do all business
with the people but members of Con-
gress are selected because they will be
afraid to refuse, and will, moreover,
work for nothing2
am asked 10y several members to pro-
test in the names of Justice and Mercy
against so sore an imposition.