Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-09-13
GOVERNMENT CLERKS.
A Washington Institution That 70 an
Amusement to the Foreigner.

n. Washington ball room last season
I'll were conversing three people--the Baron
De-, newly attached to Q foreign
legation, young department clerk and .
clever girl from Boston.
"And then" said the girl. 'stherc are the
people in the departments here. They are a
pretty large part OF the population, aren't
| they2"
''0h. re departments" said the baron. 81
have heard Eat zey are 20 houses of slens for
| re paurers, heinz
"And have heard" said the clerk promptly.
that the foreign legations here are the places
OF refuge for the impoverished regulations of
European diplomats"
The girl from Boston was equal 10 tlre oc-
casion and prevented the hot retort on the
baron's lips
''Ah," she said 81 am so glad. for I'm q
philanthropist, you know, and adore poverty
of all kinds"
Half the men In the room md several of the
women we're department clerks.
The elegant elderly gentleman who was assid-
uousiy feeding the pretty daughter Of Chi
| cago Croesus rejoiced In tho possession Of a
| s1,4Oo clerkship in our department. the howl.
| ing swell, who was lazily allowing himself to
| the chief of q division in another department..
the group of young exquisites. who were max
ing the ife OF the party. were all clerks. Sew
erai OF the women, who were receiving the
most court, followed the same calling
An, said the baron. after having met few
more OF the people in the room. re depart
| ment ciarks-zey are Washington, ba jove.'
ne was entirely right. Who are the princi-
pal buyers in tine shops? Who are the chief
patronlzers Of the theatersY Who form the
| oulk OF the renters Of houses2 Who are most
| OF The readers of The STAR? Who fill the
churches? Who crowd the bars? Who make
up tho rank and file Of society" Who are
| the members of the clubs? Go calling before
| 4 clock; 60 to q bar room before that hour;
/ SIT In the club at $50. You will find yourself
Almost a!m alone. Nothing goes on in social way
| siii the departments have emptiod themselves.
| Any attempt to classify these clerks is absurd
| Ihey come from everywhere in America, from
| almost everywhere on earth. There are Poles
| ana Russians and Americans among them
| Some are Califorians, some Floridians, some
| Yankees, some MichIgnnders. They are rich
and poor-from the clerk whose carriage calls
| Tor him (precious few Of these are there, but
still some) to the poor fellow who wears an
alpaca coat tar into the fall and heavy frock
coat iar into the spring: Some are rakish
bachelors, who spend their mbney in forbidden
pleasures, others are the fathers of large and
struggling families; some are spendthrifts, al
ways In debt. and generally in the clutches of
the money lenders; others are thrifty and own
property; some are not yet out OF their teens,
others totter upon the verge of the
grave. When o'clock comes this strange
assemblage completely disinteefates, their call
ing gives them nothing in common after Of
| fee hours.
Did it ever occur to any one how curiously
the selhshness Of men manifests ITSELF man.
of-war goes on a cruise for three years. Dur
! ing that time the officers are literally cooped
up together and see practically no one but each
other. That ship goes out OF commission say
| at San Francisco and the officers are ordere d
| east. Yet those of the officers who make the
long journey across the plains together fire.
quently do 30 by accident. The cruise being
over. 1t 10 a matter OF indifference to them
whether they see one another again. II is the
| same way with government clerks. Tw
men may work side by eide every day year in
| and year out and each not know where the
| other lives, or even, sometimes, whether he ID
married.
Curious friendships sometimes spring up
| strange, homogeneous, inexplicable friendships.
| Won with ferocious burly beard and mild
blue eyes, suspected Of nihilistic tendencies
| and said to be political refugee, may be seen
| any day or night with that dapper little trifer
young s., and q real affection exists be-
tween the two and when old Von- falls i'll,
this youngster nurses him and tends him as
| though he was his brother. Or more fire.
| quently, friendship is founded upon CON-
munity OF tastes, as when two clerks study law
| together, graduate together and possibly re-
| sign at the same time and become partners
Where Is the tociologist who will study the
| governments clerk and tell us scientifically
about him? He must borrow the title Of Besant
d Rices book when he does and entitle hls
| treatise "All Sorts and Conditions Of Men"