The Portland daily press., 1890-02-12
TIE PRESS.
WEDNESDAY MORNING, FEB. 10.
PAGES IN CONGRESS.
Bright Boys who Help the inactive
Run.
washington Star.

bIdtSSLuSH NlO nave Il6eu from seat on
the steps by the vice presidents desk to
chair in the legislative body. All the
pages are statesmen in their way, and
are up in politics. Their fate is depend
ent upon the welfare of their members,
and they rise and fall with their party.
In a Republican senate the boys are all
Republicans, and in the house they come
and 90 as the majorities shift.
The senate pages have more secure
tenure and hold themselves to be of a
little more Importance than the bows
who wait on the representatives. But
the latter profess contempt for class of
young individuals who don't take the
chances of politics at every election, and
pride themselves upon their own close
alliance to their party's vicissitudes.
They look upon the knee breeched at
taches of the senate as old fogies without
knowledge of wire pulling They are
themselves au fat ON all matters politi-
cal.
They are the ''legs" of the congressman,
but they have heads of their own that
are crowded with schemes to their full
capacity. They are not usually well up
in book learning, but are well up on
affairs of state. They enter public life
at the mature age of 10 or II years, upon
salary of $3.50 day and such per-
quisites as fall into their hands, and, if
their political fortunes are good, remain
in service until they are no longer boys.
Then they go out into the world to be-
come politicians, drummers, railroad
presidents or congressman or else take a
downward turn. They usually enter the
field of politics, as they are familiar with
all its branches They are fully equipped
for the position of senator or representa-
tive, but deficient in almost all other use
full knowledge.
The average page of II or 10 years old
counts in his wardrobe a beaver hat,
pair of knee brooches, cigar case,
Lord Chumley overcoat and q horn
handled cane. Many of these have q
brilliant career during their tender years
and have gone through all excuses of
mature manhood before they are old
enough to vote at any well regulated
election.
On the house side there are thirty
pages, fifteen who sit ON the right of the
speaker to wait ON the Democrats and
fifteen on the other side to respond to the
call of the Republicans. They are under
the command of two chief pages, who
have been promoted from the ranks, and
one armed captain, who is chief in
command.
The chief page of the senate side is
almost nc old oc fbo CIR, n 70 ;teaIf o,,J =.
custodian of the snuff box and all the
antiquities and "reminiscences of that
body; while the pages who are under
command of Capt. Bassett are usually
very small boys.
When a senator claps his hands half
dozen small boys rush out from different
directions, coming to collision in the
center aisle, and the one who sustains
the shock and picks himself up quickest
holds the secret conference with the SEN
ator and then with a pompous air starts
off on a private mission-to the document
room for bill or to the library for a
book.
1t takes almost as much political in
fuence to be a senate page in congress
as to get foreign mission. The usual
age is from 10 to Is, and very few remain
after they are IS.
Some of them, after outgrowing their
positions, have done well in the world,
but many have acquired dissipated hab-
its which have ended their career disas-
trously at an early age. Familiar con-
spicuous examples of success are those
of Senator German, ex-Representative
Scott, of Erie, and the late Representa-
tive Townshend, of Illinois, who became
eminent in public life. Others have been
quite as successful in business or profess
sional life, though not as we'll known.
Pages usually make considerable money
and make it easily, and they spend it
with freedom. Besides their salaries
they turn a good many honest dollars.
They complain in these days that they
have not the opportunities they used to
have for making extra money. Rich
and liberal members often pay them
large sums for small services. In the
house each page has to file the records
for ten members.
This is part of the duty for which they
are paid by the government, but each
ly gives the page who tends to his file
from SIS to $40. If a member sends a
page off TO buy theatre ticket or make
some small purchase he often gives him
a S. or $40 bill and lets him keep the
change of the transaction. Some of the
rich representatives and senators are in
the habit of making presents of money
to the pages at Christmas time and at
the end of the session.
THE AUTOGRAPH BUSINESS.
The autograph business used to be very
profitable. Every morning the pages
would go around from member to men,
Der as they reached the hall and solicit
their signatures in big autograph books.
a book containing all the names was
worth from S. to $40 to the page who
had IT, They found a ready sale for
these books as fast as they could fill
them, and it did not take long to get all
the signatures. One of the regular duties
of member was to sign his name about
thirty times each morning. An auto
graph book is seldom seen in either the
house or senate now. The fact is that
there are not now as many chances for
the pages to make money as there used
to be. The new member is the game
hunted by the page.
On his first appearance in congress the
member is liberal, if he ever intends to
be so at all. The young men rush to wait
on him then, and if he does not respond
quickly they know that he is not going
to be paying investment for them, and
they are less assiduous in their attention
afterward. AS a member grows older in
service he discovers so many ways of in
creasing his expenses above the limit of
his salary without giving away money
just to impress these little men that he
gradually gets out of the habit of "tip-
ping The pages, too, have suffered
through the graceless conduct of Silcott.
The members at the opening of this ses-
sion did not feel that they could afford
to be quite as liberal as usual.
Another source of revenue for the
boys is frcn the distribution of circulars
and pamphlets through the house. Near
~ every great project that is brought to
the attention Of congress from the out
side is supported, and generally opposed,
too, by the circulation among the men,
oers Of pamphlets and various docu-
ments These are left with the door
keeper to be placed on the desks of the
members. If they are merely left with
the request that they be distributed they
10 not appear on the desks. If the in
teFested party comes back and leaves a
considerable fee p, the naops he will