Morning journal and courier., 1880-03-09
A Woman i'm the Gallery.

COmkIImg Photographed tO the L1fe.
 Washington Letter to the Springfield Republican,
 To go into the House of Representatives is to the uninitiated very much like being let into menagerie, for the atmosphere is very hot and close, the ventilation is very defect- ive-an odor of cigar smoke adds it's burden to sensitive organization-and there is an immense amount of bowling on the floor. This is my impression of it all, although I've listened very intently and tried to become informed in the ways of the government of my country. The Speaker spends most of his time in pounding violently with his gavel, and nobody seems to care whether he pounos or not-he apparently does it for his own amusement. Then with very few exceptions everybody that speaks acts exactly as if he intended to annihilate everybody else. l nev- CT can understand what they say, except by snatches, and what do hear seems to be of very little importance. It does seem so r1d1c- ulous for man to get up and work hlmsef into tremendous passion, swinging his arms, pound on his desk, walk up and down the aisle, grow red in the face and swell up the veins on his forehead, and end with grand peroration about blowing the bugle till 1t resounds again, ,"-au of which I heard and saw the other day,-while all the time other members are reading newspapers, smoking outside the rail, writing at their desks, chat ting with each other and continually passing in and out, while nobody seems to pay any attention to all this exhibition of feeling They seem to take especial delight in contradicting each other datly, insisting that somebody is out of time or order, and on the whole I've come to the conclusion that things couldn't be much worse anyway-and who knows if they mightnt be better-even if women had g place in this august CD body.
 The Senate is better-that Is, they don't rant so violently-but seems slow and stupid, and I've found myself wondering several times what it all amounted to, after all. I L1oar ,oENIa hou ivr %hn nln possible attention for some time, to make out that they've been agitating the question of mud road somewhere in Indiana, and l have heard something about the Indians, and that's all. As our Senator Dawes doesn't seem to have boom even in the far horizon, let's hope that the Edmunds boom may amount to something, and for just this reason, that MT. Edmunds appears to know every thing that is going on, and to listen attentive ly to whatever is being said, as if he really had a conscience concerning State affairs. l think MT. Hoar is the handsomest man in the Senate-GeneraI Burnside may be perhaps excepted-he certainly has more of society air, and is an elegant and distinguished look ing man. Ferry is considered handsome, but the fact that he is the rich bachelor of the Senate and has, moreover, the aroma of g dead and gone end half mysterious love affair hanging about him, may have something to do with that notion, for to the casual eye he is certainly not beauty, although well looking enough; but his beard is very Western and needs trimming. Hummer of Kansas has 8 thoroughly good and honest face, full of pur- pose, although his appearance is unpublished had entirely forgotten about Senator Bruce until saw the other day colored man of dignified appearance walk calmly across the floor of the Senate as if he belonged there. 1 At first I wondered idly if there were colored 1 door-keepers, when down he sat at his desk, and then I remembered. He has undoubted- l ly good-or bad-white blood in his veins the shape of his hands alone would indicate that. He is not of particularly light color, and his hair, although evidently brushed, with pains taking care, is very kinky. I am 1 sorry for him and more sorry for his wife, who, understand, is so white that no one would suspect her colored blood. She is call
 ed upon by the wives of the other Senators, but still it is under protest after all-the old race prejudice clings and will cling.
 Conkling looks exactly like Mats picture ot him as 'sJackdaw Conkling." His face ii handsome in a certain way, but mean, bae and cynical. He looks like man, who, all 1 sweetness in society, would be selfish, snarl ing and snappish at home-in short, what he
 has proved himself, a coward man capa
 ble of compromising woman, and then
 running away. From the curl on his fore
 head to the tip of his aristocratic boot ht
 looks all this-but is no longer "the blonde ! Mephistopheles of the Senate, for he's grow ing gray fast, and looks as if he hated it
 Here is story typical of the vain and small
 nature of the man. A hotel keeper in Wash ington who went to school with him hadn'
 met him for years. One day Conkling wen
 to his hotel to engage rooms, and stood in tht
 office talking to the clerk. The proprieto
 came down stairs and stepped up and helt
 out his hand, saying, ''Roscoe, how are you?'
 Conkling took no notice of the profferet
 hand, but drew himself up and said, II an
 Senator Conkling, sir." You're a damned
 fool, that's what you are,' was the response
 Conkling turned majestically to the clerk, ant
 said. t'Can I have rooms hereP" ''No, sir,
 shouted the irate proprietor, ''not in m.
 house, nor upon any terms" By the way,
 desire to know what essential difference ther
 is between ''d-n' and "damn2" Georg
 Eliot does not think there is any difference.