Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-08-17
MIR. DUNHAMs TURNIP SEED.
The Bulky Present He Received from
Washington.
Chicd0O Tribune.

1t is good thing to he a Congressman.
There are features to it which amply com
pensate for the toll and trouble of the
campaign, for the abuse received. the
money expended, the bad liquor drank,
and the broken friendships which follow
in the wake of broken promises.
Congressman Dunham's heart swelIed
within him with some such feeling tbe
other day when mail wagon drove up to
his house and he was informed that it
was full of matter sent to him from Wash
lngton. The contents of the wagon turn
ed out on examination to be vast num-
ber of parcels and bags, all neatly done
up and decorated with much red tape and
sealing-waX. There We're in all over
thousand packages, which, when piled up.
occupied the spare room of the house. and
were for time source of much interest
to the family. After an inspection of the
stuff 1t was found that it was rather more
monotonous than was altogether pleasant
that there were 800 packages of turnip
seed and 100 quarts of wheat-quite as
much turnip seed, certainly, as any one
man is entitled to receive from his cOun-
try.
Mr.. Durham is fully aware that an
office is public trust and must not be
used to further private ends. He saw
that 1t was not proper for him to take
these seeds and this wheat, which had
been sent him for his constituents, and
use them for his own purposes. To use
eight hundred packages of turnip seed for
his own table, while everybody else in
the First district had none, would be
shameful thing, and if he were caught in
1t 1T would defeat him for reelection.
But at the same time he did not
see how division could be fairly
and squarely made, even among
the Republican members of his house
hold. 1t occurred to him that the wheat
might be adVantageOusly used to supply
the bucket shops with a commodity
which they do not generally have on
hand, in spite of their statements to the
contrary, but then he reflected that it
would hardly do for a member of the
Board of Trade of his standing to have
anything to do with the shops in ques-
tiOn. The only farmer in his district
whom he could think of was ''Long John"
and he, unluckily, was down East, or
Mr.. Dunham would have taken counsel
with him on the subject.
The proposition has been made to the
Congressman by a man who has more in
genuity than he has principle, that he
take these turnip seeds, have them done
up in small packages and labeled with at
tractive names, and then send them out
to the ladies of the South Side as flower
seeds just received from Washington. 1t
is so late in the season, it was said TO him.
that no one would sow them before next
year; that half of them would be lost
by that time, and tEe ladies of this city
are so unskilled in such matters that they
could not tell turnip shoot from a Leu
canthera asterOpOides, if such were the
fanciful name on the label. This sugges-
tion is still under advisement, so that if
any one is offered flower seeds by the Con-
gressman it will not be wise to put much
faith in them.
But, in the meanwhile, if any person
wants any wheat or turnip seed in small
quantities he can get it by calling at the
once OF Mr.. Dunham and making affida-
Wit that he is duly qualified farmer of
the First Congressional district of Illinois.