St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1878-01-04

exclamations as "Golng to the party
tonight 7" "Have a good time last
night ?'' "YOur wife coming down ?n
''Win Miss j. be there ?" greeted my
ears. A bevy of schoolgirls sixteen
years old could not have been more
completely absorbed in discussing the
merits of parties and amusements, tOi-
lettes, good suppers and the attractions
of the opposite sex than were these
grave and reverend Senators and Rep
resentatives, many of them past middle
age, and with gray hair crowning fur
rOwed brows. Not word did | hear
of important public issues. One group
of men, with no women near them to
lower the conversational standard, might
be engaged in discussing grave matters
of state. On approaching them, how
ever, and overhearing such remarks as
''Miss H. said last night she knep you
were bachelor by the way your neck
tie was fastened on" and "You made
quite an impression on Mrs. K; she
said she hadn't seen so distingue look
ing man she didn't know when," the
fond delusion was dispelled. Some of
the members sat at their desks and
wrote letters, but | didn't see many
studying up their collection of printed
bills, nor hear any conversation past
the comprehension of the average wo-
man. Members came and went, but a
goodly proportion spent the afternoon
in the Capitol, smoking, talking, loung-
ing or writing, till the shades of night
began to fall. Some dispersed to COM
mittee rooms, where the important
thinking and discussing of legislative
work is supposed to be done. Bills in
troduced are referred to some one of
several committees who investigate and
report, and whose advice is generally
followed, apparently without further
thought, unless it be in reference to a
matter upon which strong feeling exists
or personal or pecuniary interests are
involved.
One of our strong minded Western
women lawyers was present, lobbying
for some bills of her own drafting con-
| ccrniag jail regulations, e,rrd Pro~-iIin &
for the working of the prisoners therein [;
also for the security of additional relief
to married women with viviOus hus-
bands. As she was to have hearings
before several of these committees, |
was smuggled in with some Others to
their sessions. | was surprised to find
| that the members of the committees
seemed to be unaware of the contents
and even of the existence of these bills
| till she called their attention to them.
| While she read them, and explained
the necessity for such changes in the
laws as she asked, some listened, some
lOunged, and one or two got up and
went out. A few asked intelligent
questions, and showed a real interest
in the subject under consideration but
many looked bored at the necessity OF
having to give ten minutes serious
thought to question upon which they
would soon be called to legislate, and
which involved the well-being of thou
sands of their fellow mortals. WheI
the lady inquired after the fate of an
other bill intended to accomplish al
object similar to one of hers, the chair
man of the committee could not re-
member fol the life of him whethe
they had recommended its passage o.
its indefinite postponement and no
one of the members present could hell
him out of his dilemma.
A general principle seemed to prevail
to the effect that if a bill involved til,
consideration of an important subject
mending its indefinite postponement
as the members of committees did no
consider it any part of their business tt
waste their time in investigating i'm
portant subjects when there were 81
many parties that mast be attended
cigars that must be smoked, ladies tha
must be entertained, and political anC
pecuniary interests of their own which
hn l., / NJ
out in my first few days at the capita
what some of those important matters
of state which must take precedence o
temperance legislation, justice to wO
men, and social, civil and political re-
form, were. They were that Senator
A. should have good time, and Hon
orable B. G. should extend his influence
and increase his popularity, that Esquire
d. and his associates should make ;
few thousands by new turn in tht
corporation laws that E. should be the
next Senator to Washington, and so b'
able to give F., G. and H. valuable col
lectorships that |. should be Stat,
Attorney, and j. Chief Justice, so tina
he could pay off influential creditors
and that X. should be reelected Gov
ernOr and so help the remainder of tn,
alphabet to the various things the,
wanted. l could understand it, if l an
woman
One day delegation of ladies from tn
, Woman's Christian Temperance Uniol
visited the Legislature with a petition
numerously signed asking for a Law
, forbiding the sale ofintoxicating drink
in any locality unless authorized b,
! vote of majority of adult citizens O
both sexes. In the face of a strong an,
, violent opposition the rules were cour
teOusly suspended for half an hour t.
! allow the ladies to present the petition
3 and speak in favor of the Legislation
r asked. The quiet, thoughtful, and un
answerable argument made by the la
5 dy who led the petitioners was respond
ed to by vOlley of yells and grOan
} from the opposition and so great wa
the confusion that an adjournmen
was rendered necessary. Here, again
5 l was reminded of the county Jail
t though the inmates of that humble in
stitution usually wait till the member
, of the Christian Association are out G
| hearing before giving vent to thei
emotions. No other reply was eve
made to the arguments of this lady
though the petition was not granted
doubtless owing to those same profoun
: reasons which we women are not sup
posed to be capable of comprehendine
A bill inaugurating certain measure
of prison reform, recommended by tn
State Board of Charities and Reform
5 was defeated simply because it involv
ed an important question upon a sub
ject which the members knew nothin,
about, and couldn't be bothered to in