The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-12-26
THE LIVES OF coNeREssMEN.
How They are Written Up for the
Congressional Directory.
From the Washington Star.


From the Washington Star.
The United States government does not
issue from its gigantic printing and pub
IN such great immediate demand as the
| congressional Directory. Ten thousand peo
nle want the paper-covered result of Mr.. w.
n Michaers industry, and, like the folks
who want pistols in Texas, they need them
4 suddenly. Senators and representatives
4 have hourly use for it, society leaders yearn
for its appearance because it shows what
statesmen have wives and daughters with
tbeul-no calling list can be made I'D with
4 ont its aid; compilers of state blue books
and authors of almanacs await its coming.
/ d the general public which is on a visit TO
Washington scans its pages with interest.
The ORIGIN OF THE PUBLICATION.
Tho first Congressional Directory was
issusd in 1927, and was then a little 8 bv
! affair which was but little more than a list
of senators and representatives. TWEEN
ty-four very diminutive pages were barely
4 filed even with the large type which was
then so universally used. In those DAYS the
postmaster of the II ouss was the Editor and
compiler of the document, and as its prem
aration and publication brought to that
official neither solid reward nor fleeing
fame, but little brain power was used in
its compilation. The man who brought it
out of the darkness was the late Ben: Perley
Poore, whoss duty it became, as clerk on
the joint committee on printing, to under
take the publication of the Directory,
Major Poore, then a young man, developed
it. added new features to it, and gave it
place among the works of the most select
standard authors.
During the + orty-sixth congress, when
the Senate became democratic, a reorgani-
cation of that body resulted in the appoint
ment of F. A. Richardson, chief of the
Washington bureau of the Baltimore Sun,
as clerk of the printing records, and as such
he compiled two directories.
The work is now done by w. H. Michael.
a Nebraska newspaper proprietor, who was
called by Senator Henderson to the clerk
ship of the Senate committee on printing
and the labors incident to the compilation
of the directory.
HOW THE BOOK IS CONSTRUCTED.
A Star reporter found Mr. Michael in
chatty mood an evening or two ago, and
asked him to tell the public just how the
directory has to be constructed
Nothing elaborate about it," replied Mr..
Michael, ''but it entails good deal of work,
The first step after new congress has been
elected is to send to each of the recently
exalted senators and representatives a
request for biographical sketch of himself
and TIE size of the total vote cast for him
self and his antagonists. Accompanying
this request is a sample sketch and the infor-
nation that the committee on printing, not
having the fear of congressman before their
eyes, had resolved that no man, no matter
how distinguished be was or thought he was,
would be allowed to tell all he knew about
himself if he could not do it in twenty lines
of the directory. The limitation was not
set until it had become absolutely necessary.
There was disposition on the part of many
IN oil hloI ~
lengthy chapters would have made the book
too large to serve properly the purpose for
which it was intended.
HUNDREDS OF LETTERS.
ITO obtain the information required
never takes less tran 500 letters, for not 10
per cent. of those applied to send the cor
rect figures relating TO their election New
members always give their majorities, and
frequently endeavor to direct particular
attention to the fact that these particular
maJorities are much larger than any ma
lorities ever given any Que else in the same
district. Some send their majority and
refer the compiler to the Secretary of State
for he other figures"
Does the biographical matter come in
in pretty good shape?' asked the reporter.
Sometimes, was the reply. "But very
often it does not Frequently the answers
are campaign sketches from four to ten
pages of reprint, with an accompanying
mole to the effect that the desired informa-
ton will undoubtedly be found in the
pamphlet. In several instances the brief
biographical data called for has turned up
in the shape of four or five columns clipped
from newspaper and enlivened by wood
cut
THE AUToBIoGRAPHIEs.
Does it take long to gather the necessary
informationw
Yes; it keeps me busy all summer This
would not be were it not for the delays. As
t0on as man is elected to place in the
national leg stature he seems to be over
come by a sudden impulse which takes him
away to the mountains, or the seashore, or
to Europe, or somewhere else where he is
hard to find. The directory, however,
must be out during the first week Of De-
cember, and it must have all the biographi-
cal sketches in it, SO the compiler follows
the statesman by letter and telegram until
the facts called for are sent him.
rs there any particular class of men
whose copy is clearer and more to the
point than that of any other class!n
The variety of replies given to the same
set of questions is almost endless, and but
few new congressman give just what is
asked for. The clearest replies come in
yariably from men whose educ stion was
largely received in the printing office; they
never make mistakes. | guard against
errors as far as possibly can, and it is a
regular practices to send each congressman
proof of his biography before it is pub
lished. Very few of these proofs come
back unmarked, and quite fred lently at
tempts are made to add a great deal of
matter which was sent in the first letter,
but which necessarily had to he left
out. Frequent and pers istent are
the efforts made to refer TO distin-
gushed persons who were the ancestors OF
either the writer or his wife; of course
there is no room in the directory for the
roots and branches of couple of hundred
genealogical trees, however honorable they
may be. As rule, however, the congress
man is modest. Surprised, cha It's true,
though. There are few in whose charac-
Ter modesty is not the principal feature, but
it is fact that the great majority of these
men whose lives are outlined in the directory
are inclined to modesty in their statements
as to themselves; too modest in many
cases.
ARMY RECORDS.
DO those who have military or naval
records seem DESTROYS of having them in
corporated in their biographiesw queried
The reporter
They do said Mr.. Michael. "Both
union ID celebrates are particular about
That tlu TorOud of what