River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1884-01-24
THE CONGRESSMAN.
Who and What They Are as Shown
by the New Congressional Direc-

Who and What They Are, as Shown
by the New Congressional Direc-
tory.
Washington correspondence OF the Chicago
Journal.
The new congressional directory is az
interesting study. OF the 400 members
Of the new congress, counting both
House an Senate, nearly 200 are new
men. Naturally there is a curiosity to
see what they have to say of themselves.
The compiler of the directory sends out
notices to the members of each new
congress asking them to send him
sketches of their lives, their age, bus
mess, the offices they have held, etc.
These autobiographies, analyzed, com
pared with each other, and the state
ments they furnish aggregated, furnish
some interesting data. Perhaps the
feature most likely to strike the average
observer in looking over the long list is
the very large proportion of lawyers.
OF the 4Gl members Of house and senate
2s0 are lawyers. Perhaps it is quite
proper that the lawmakers OF
the nations should he the students
Of the law. That is the
general impression, and probably the
correct one. Next to the law the manu-
facturers seem to be the most available
congressional material. There are about
forty manufacturers" In congress. Some
make pottery, some iron, some wood
pulp; journalism comes next IN popular
favor, though the number of Journalists
in both branches Of congress only reach
es about bakers dozen, or per cent.
of the whole. There are half dozen
larmers, couple OF doctors, three or
four railroad men, and one druggist.
There are no preachers in this congress,
though the preacher element of last
congress seemed to size up about as we'll
as the average. In the south the law
yers seem to be more popular rs law
makers than in the north, IL possible,
scarcely any of the members from that
section representing any other calling.
1t is rather curious, and fact not es-
pecially pleasing to record, that but one
third of the members enjoy that reQuis-
tie for accomplished law makers, col
legiate education. Out of the 40l mem
bers less than 15) are graduates of any
college. A larger portion OF the south
ern members are graduates than the
northern men. Of the southern MEM
bers nearly 40 per cent. are graduates,
while in the north as an aggregate, the
proportion is little over 30 per cent.
Even boosted New England only sends
80 per cent. of graduates, and Massa-
chussetis but IS per cent, while New
York has per cent. In the senate
little over - percent are graduates.
While there are nearly 200 new men,
bers, the aggregate legislative expert
ence OF even this congress Is something
quite wonderful when taken In such
form. There are many men who have
seen as high as ten years in congress, in
one branch orthe other, and few who
have more than doubled that. Randall
is entering upon his twenty
first year In the house; Cox
has had twenty-one years there al
ready and Kelley twenty-five. In the
senate Anthony, Dawes and Sherman
boast twenty-six years in congress
apiece, part of each having beeri in the
house, before going into the senate,
while Morris leads with twenty eight
years. service. The aggregate number
of years in congress of members oil the
senate is 27l, while the aggregate service
of the house members is over 500 years,
making a total of congressional expert
ence in house and senate of yearly 400
years. Besides this fully half of the
members have served in state legisla-
lures before coming to congress, and
their aggregate experience there has
been nearly 600 years, making grand
total of legislative experience In both
branches of congress of = 900 years. And
vet we talk of this as new congress"
and one with little legislative expert
ence to guide 1t.
1t is We easy and sounds very nice,
too, to talk about the North remember
| ;x,r has oolIiaro lint tho fact 10 fhOf
far as congress goes, the north does not
remember her heroes with anything
| like the affection that the south does.
| Of the southern members of the house,
oyer 40 per cent were in the confeder-
| ate army, while among the north ern
members only % per cent. we're In the
Union army. In the senate the differ
ence is still more notable, the percent
age of southern senators who were in
| the confederate army being over q y, and
of the northern members only 81 per
cent were in the Union army. Five
members will have reason to refrain
from voting if the bill to pension the
Mexican veterans comes up, for that
number were in the Mex lean war-Wil-
iams of Kentucky, Logan OF Illinois,
Maxey of Texas, George of Mississippi
and Forney of Alabama. One northern
man, by birth, is in the list of ex-Con-
.ederateS-Nan Eaton, OF mississippi.
He was born in Ohio, and lived there,
it appears, until after he became of age;
was educated there. went to Mississippi
at the age of p, and when the war broke
out, thirteen years later, went into the
confederate army, serving through the
war on that side" as he puts it.
There are twenty men in the house
who are over go years old, and three
who are past 20, though Waite, of Con-
necticut, who is "A, is still the oldest
man. In the senate, Morrill, is the old
est man--73. The average of members
Of the house is 40 years, those from
the south averaging 40 and from. the
north 81. The average OF the members,
when first elected TO congress was Al.
Arkansas sends a full delegation OF
ex-eonfederates and Alabama sends all
bnt two from the same army. IL Is
worth while noting there are Six mem
bers of the confederate congress in this
congress-Dunn, Singleton and Parks
dale in the house, and Pugh, Garland
and Voct in tho sonata There IL also q
member of the confederate
cabinet, Reagan, who was postmaster
general. There are three or four who
we're members Of congress of the United
States when the war broke ont, who
withdrew and went with the coRfeccr-
acy aud now are back in their old seats.
There are twenty-four foreign-born
citizens in the h use and senate, some
fifteen Of them being from Ireland, the
remainder representing nearly all parts
of the world, not emitting our neighbors
on the south as one OF the new members
is native of Brazil. New YORK IS the
birthplace of So members of the house,
Pennsylvania of 80, Ohio, 81; Kentucky
and Virginia, II each; Massachusetts
and Tennessee, u each.