The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1884-01-25
THE G0NGREssMEN.
VINO and What They Are, as Shown
Dy the New Congressional Direc-

Vhe new Congressional DireC-
tory.
washington correspondence of the Chicago
Journal
Inc new congressional directory is an
interesting study. or the 400 members
OF the new congress. counting both
House an Senate, nearly 200 are new
men. Naturally there is curiosity to
zee what they have to sayof 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.
VI the 4Gl members of house and senate
$50 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-.
tacturers 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
:avor, though the number of journalists
in both branches of congress only reach
es about bakers dozen, ora per cent.
of the whole. There are half dozen
farmers, a 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 as law
makers than in the north, if possible,
scarcely any of the members from that
section representing any other calling.
1t is rather curious, and a fact not es-
pecially pleasing to record, that but one
third of the members enjoy that reouis-
ite for accomplished law makers, col
legiate education. Out of the 40l mem
bers less than 15) are graduates ofany
college. A larger portion of the south
ern members are graduates than the
northern men. or the southern mem
bers nearly 40 per cent. are graduates,
while in the north as an aggregate, the
proportion is little over 50 per cent.
Even tboasted New England only sends
80 per cent. or graduates, and Massa-
chusset's but 5S per cent, while New
York has - per cent. In the senate a
little over 40 percent are graduates.
While there are nearly 100 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 nigh as ten years i'll congress, in
one branch or the other, and few who
have more than doubled that. Randall
is entering upon his twenty
first year III the house; Cox
has had twenty-one years there al
senate Anthony. Dawes and Sherman
boast twenty-six years in congress
apiece, part of each having been in the
honse, before going into the senate,
while Morris leads with twenty Ell. hit
years service. The aggregate number
of years in congress of members OF the
senate is 27I, while the aggregate service
of the house members is over 500 years,
making total Of congressional experi-
ence in house and senate of yearly 400
years. Besides this fully half of the
members have served in state lessla-
lures before coming to congress, and
their aggregate experience there has
been nearly 600 years, making a grand
total of legislative experience in both
branches Of congress OF 2 900 years. And
yet we talk OF this as q new congress"
and one with little legislative expert
ence to guide it.
It is very easy and sounds very nice,
too, to talk about the North remember
ing hel soldiers, but the fact is that. so
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,
over 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 60, anC
of the northern members only 30 pei
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 tina
number we're in the Mex ican war--Wil
liams of Kentucky, Logan of Illinois
Maxey Of Texas. George of Mississippi
and Forney OF Aaoama. One northern
man, by birth, is in the list Of ex-Con
Ieuerates-yan Earon, OF Mlsslsslppl
He was born in Ohio, and lived there
was educated there, went to Mississipp
at the age of %, aud when the war brok
out, thirteen years later, went into tn
confederate army, serving Through tn
war on that side," as he puts it.
There are twenty men in the hous
who are over 60 years old, and three
who are past 20, though Waite, Of Con
necticut, who is "a, is still the oldes
man. In the senate. Morrill, is the old
est man-73 The average of member
of the house is 43 years, those fron
the south avera ying 45 and from tn
north 81. The average OF the members
when first elected to congress was Al.
Arkansas sends full delegation G
ex-confederates and Alabama sends al
bnt two from the same army. IL !
worth while noting there are six mem
bers of the confede rate congress in thi
congress-Dunn, Singleton and Parks
dale in the house, and Pngh, Garlan
member of the Confederat
cabinet, Reagan, who was postmaste
general. There are three or four VIII
we're members of congress of the Unite
States when the war broke out, VIII
withdrew and went with the coafede
acy aud now are bach in their old seat
There are twenty-four foreign-bor
citizens in the h use and senate, som
fifteen of them being from Ireland, til
remainder representing nearly all par
of the world, not emitting our neighbol
on the south as one OF the new membel
jsa native OF Brazil. New York ls tt
birthplace of 35 members Of the houss
Pennsylvania of 33, Ohio, 81; Kentuck
and Virginia, III each; Massachuset'
and Tennessee, Il each.
John w. Garrett, President of the
and O. Railroad, has SCI. 3 Christm
cneck for $4,000 to the poor Associ
don," of Baltimore.