Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1884-07-12
TRICKY ESSMEN.
How "PermlssiOn to Print, is Abused

The recent efforts made both in the Senate
and House OF Representatives to prevent the
publication in future of any speeches in the
Congressional Record not actually delivered in
open session in one Of those bodies has recalled
to me some of the numerous instances, which
others appear to have forgotten, wherein men,
bers of Congress have grossly abused the pry-
leges given them of printing speeches in the
Record, of whose tenor no one is aware except
the printers until they are published. All of us
who have followed the debates of Congress at
all know that the Record is sometimes used as
a medium for free advertising of branches of
business to which the necessities OF the case
upon which an NJ. C. is presumably speaking do
not at all make it obligatory upon him to refer.
There was at least one notable instance of this
during the tariff debate in April last
Two years ago Congressman who now
stands high. as he did them in the estimation of
both political parties. told me that he knew the
following to be a fact: certain member who
had been wOrsted in q controversy with another
In the last Congress in open debate under pre-
tence of correcting the proof sheets of the re-
port OF the debate managed to reverse the re-
suit of the wordy encounter. Hestruck out the
words applause" daughter" and all other
expressions of appreciation wherever they had
been rightlully inserted in his opponent speech,
and put them in his own to suit himself
Until Mr.. s. s. Cox referred to it last week.
most of those who knew of it at the time seemed
to have forgotten how, in April 1880. Stephen
w. DOwney, then delegate in the House of
Representatives from Wyoming Territory. first
copyrighted long and needless alleged poeti-
cal 90 effusOn of his own, and then had 1t
printed as speech fror, himself In the Record.
in which it covered fifteen pages. 1t was os-
tensibly delivered ia support Of bill he had
offered previously, and, in the preamble to this
bill, he incorporated the. sApOstles Creed" in
full as contained in the Episcopal pray book.
The bill was to appropriate $500, coo to purchase
pictures illustrative of the birth, life, death and
resurrection of our Saviour, Jesus Christ. to
adOrn the national Capitol. The poem was
called THE ImmOrtals" and dedicated to the
Congress Of the United States" In it. In spite
OF the violent professions Of faith In Christianity
which he set forth inihis bill, and its preamble
he held frequent and lengthy conversations with
the gods and goddesses Of heather mythology,
and several parts of the wandering verses being
sub-headed Phantasmagora, and containing
weird descriptions of spirits led to the criticism
that while many members of the House of Repre-
sentatives had doubtless chad EN- bad. be-
fore and since, it certainly was unusual to put
"em," snakes and all, into the Record, and
doubtless many rejOiced that Mr.. Downey copy-
righted his variety, and 30 shut of imitatOrs,
Had Mr.. Downey sought a publisher for his
lengthy blank verse Grafton, he would have had
to pay high to get it before the public; but by
putting 1t into the Record he secured for It not
only an appearance in print, but q large circula-
ton entirely free Of cost to himself. He also
made 1t part of the archives to be found in all
libraries where bound volumes Of congressional
debates have place. MISS GRUNDY