Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1880-01-23
Peculiar Claimants.

which indicate that Little Miss
Flite," the persistent suitor in the
English chancery court might moi
have been a mere creation of toe
authors brain, but a living reality,
as was claimed for Squeers, the
Yorkshire SchoolmaTter. They will
be read with keen relish by those
who retain remembrance of. the
peculiar characteristics sati1ized by
the great novelist:
Among the army of claimants arc
several who are so remarkable in
their general appearance or manners
that they ore known to oil whose bus
mess brings them to the Capitol. VI
these. Mother Brown, as she is
called, is the most famous. She is
not a bad looking woman. of about
60 years of age, and is always partic.
ular about having her snow-white
hair nicely fixed up in curls which
hang on both sides of her face.
Mother Brown is attired in a "notb
wear" and he's all manner OF
garments on her, with ribbons of all
hues hanging FROM every place she
can pin them. II her hair was
black, her makeup would be that of
splendid.locking gypsey. In col
ors and ribbons she runs to bright
reds and yellows. Mother Brown,
! Notwithstanding al! these good
points, is generally regarded a, an
annoyance or nuisance. Her life is
devoted to one continual worry of
the members of the Committee Of
Claims. Her claim results from
some kind of service rendered dur.
ing the war, and does not amount to
anything. There has never been a
favorable report made on it yet,
which is pretty good evidence that
there is nothing in it. On this i'm
aginary claim she has been hanging
about the halls of the Capitol, to my
personal knowledge, for sixteen
years. She comes as regularly as
the session, and departs the day the
adjournment takes place. It is gen.
ally agreed that she is not as sound
in the head as some others who are
almost as much about the Capitol,
though she can hardly be called in
sane. How she lives no one knows,
though there is belief that she has
q small income from some source
which about pays her living ex-
penses. She travels to and from the
city on her muscle-refusing to pay
cent until Congress has passed her
claim. Mother Brown is of the
opinion that there never have been
but two good men in Congress since
the war; one Of them was Andrew
johnson, the ex-President and Sem
ator from Tennessee, and Blue Jeans
Williams, formerly Representative
of Indiana and afterward Governor
of the State. Mr.. johnson was tie
only Senator who would listen to
Mother Brown as long as she want
ed to talk. Patterson, who was q
Senator. from Tennessee when John
son was President, was also O good
listener to her, but he would laugh
at her the moment she left. She
caught him in it several times, and
from that moment swore vengeance
towards him. Old Blue Jeans, how
ever, would listen to her and advise
with her on the claim. He had
way of getting rid of her by intro
ducing her to some other member,
and, while they we're talking, of
slipping away.
Another remarkable case is that of
the Lady of the Lake-the name
another woman claimant goes by.
She is an Eastern woman, old maid
ish in looks, and wears corkscrew
curls. Her back is as straight as an
arrow. Her claim, also, is largely
of an imaginary character. She has
been o regular attendant for at least
ten years. The Lady of the Lake
seldom speaks to anyone, while
Mother Brown is talking almost all
the time. From this fact some know
the Lady by the name of the Woman
with the Iron Jaw. They are great
characters in their way and help to
make up the scenes that make the in
side OF legislation so interesting to
many. There are two wooden-legged
women, one of whom uses crutches,
who can frequently be seen about the
building.
DIR. Mary Walker, who is proba-
bly, better known or more written
about than any other lady in this
country, is also quite o famous
claimant. She has two good ones
that will yield, some day. Her big
claim is for services as q surgeon
during the war. Under some hitch
in the law, although she rendered
the service, being woman she could