Omaha daily bee., 1888-07-01
NATIONAL CAPITAL GOSSIP.
How the Different Senators Handle
Their Callers.
DANIELS DAILY RECEPTIONS.
Enterprising Pages and their Schemes
The Schoolma'ams and N
Forged Signatures-The
Autograph Fever.

w tllC lOb VI u il0illbCl vi lCHS lew
are more annoying than the custom re-
curing him to receive each constituent
who may happen TO find his way to the
national capitol. Added to these are
the calls of lobbyists, pension-seekcrs
and newspaper correspondents. In the
senate all visitors are sent to the lobby
door which opens upon the reception
room, where Il number of messengers
are stationed to deliver the cards to the
respective senators. If he wishes to see
the caller he invites him INTO the
marbleroom, which opens off from the
lobby and is used us a private reception
room. Here the visitor waits and
waits and ii nally obtains his interview
after the senator suddenly recollects
that somebody wanted to see him.
OBut an audience is not given to every
one. There is a rule that no cards are
to be sent into the senate during the
the morning hour or before = o'clock.
Exceptions to this are only made at the
| request of each senator. and therefore
| quite n crowd of visitors collect after
| that time. OF course the senators from
the surrounding states are all called
upon the most. Senator German, of
Maryland, has from ten to twenty call
ers daily. These vary from personal or
political friends to o~ffice-seekers, sub
scription agents and pensioners. A
great many are negroes who think that
their senator can give employment to
any number of persons.
Next in the number of visitors is
Senator Daniel. of Virginia. He being
Il cripple, has made it IA rule to see no
one until 3 o'clock, and consequently
has from eight to twelve people waiting
for him at that time. He usually
invites all into the marble-room
and coming out, holds a daily reception
which sometimes continues for over an
hour. Many senators, however, posi-
lively refuse to see importunate callers.
Many and various are the excuses sent
out. For the most part they are EEK
ceedingly busy or engaged for the
present." Some answer that they can
not see them, but the greater number
invent replies for such occasions. a few
will move into the next chair and reply
that they are not in their seats. Wade
Hampton invariably says that the roll
is being called and that it is necessary
for him to answer it. OF late, all the
presidential candidates have been very
courteous. granting audience to who
ever might ask for them.
The object of these calls differ widely,
but for the, most part, some Office is de-
sired. At present the democratic mem
bers are the ones so troublcd as these
requests follow the administration.
Book agents are numerous, and at the
same time, the number of pension
agents and pension seekers surpasses
them. Those last mentioned usually
| send cards to one senator after another
with the purpose to interview the entire
.-,n4, NIh,1N all nN.la-,, ~. -.
TEN they dare not abolish it for the rea-
son that important things are often at
tended to in this manner. Besides this.
us each has his eye open for a r~e-elec-
ton, it would be political destruction
TO refuse to shake hands and entertain
his constituents.
-
The pages in the house and senate
spend most of their spare time in pick
ing up odd Jobs by which their earnings
may be increased. They accept tips
from people whom they take TO various
places in the capitol without any pangs
of conscience. On one occasion, an
elderly gentleman administered quite a
sermon to one of the pages who had ac-
cepted money for showing a party about
the building. The young man replied,
unabashed: If wanted morals, | would
have stayed at home. came here for
money and | I'm going to take every
red cent | can get This little speech
entirely silenced the would-be moralist.
OF late, these boys have been making
up sets of the different tariff speeches
delivered in both houses. They 90 to
each member and ask for several of his
speeches. When obtained, they are ar
ranged according to their sequence and
the complete set is sold to some liberal
member. The pages often obtain from
five to ten dollars for their work and
frequently much larger sums are given
by the wealthier men. Among other
schemes, collections of auto
graphs bring quite an amount
to these boys. A large book is bought
and filed with the signatures Of
of all the prominent officials, beginning
with the president and his wife, and in
Guiding those of the cabinet, supreme
court, senate, and leading members of
the house. AS II novelty, one Of the
senators recently had IL photograph
album filed with the photographs of
his colleagues, and had each ones auto
graph placed beneath his picture. This
took so well that the enterprising page
now has orders for several more.
~
Speaking of autographs brings to
mind II good story told by one of the
messengers ENtIh one NIO has ever
received ii public document knows that
in order to save postage the officials
name is written in one corner OF the en-
velope to serve rs a frank. In sending
out thousands of speeches the writing
of this is delegated to some clerk,
though at the present time fac-simile
rubber stamps are mostly used. One
day there was a convention of teachers
held in Washington, and some of the
delegates, in taking in the capitol,
stepped INTO the committee-room of a
very prominent senator. In one corner
were large piles of franked speeches
while the messenger sat at the table ad-
dressing others. The intelligen school
ma'ams Immediately seized a number Of
the envelopes and cut out the name
written at the top. After several had
carried away these mementOes, the mos
s9nger remarked that there was no use
of destroying the envelopes, and that no
would write SOM for them upon a sheet
of paper. The teachers quietly.dropped
them and retired, saying that it was a
fraud to send out speeches with forged
signatures. Y. II.
Bill Nye on PostmastePs.