The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1890-11-26
THE NEXT CONGRESS.
Robert Graves Analyses the
House of Representatives.
THE CHANGE UNEXAMPLED.
Something About the Returning and the In.
coming Members-The Sad State Of
Some Of the Veterans.

WASHINGTON, Nov 17-One hundred and
ffty-six, or nearly one-half, of the mem
bers of the next house of representatives
are not members of the present house. A
few of the new members served one or more
terms in the past, but substantially every
other man in the next house will be a
greenhorn. Such shaking up was never
before seen. The greatest number of new
men that ever came into the house. to-
gether was 125, but now this high water
mark is raised by at least two dozen names
As usual, the greatest number of changes
is in the northern states. l have in these
letters more than once pointed out that the
different tendencies Of the two great sec
tions of the country in respect of keeping
men in congress term after term is giving
the south a great advantage in influence
and efficiency of service. For some reason
or other the people Of the north are less
constant in their loyalty to individuals,
and are disposed to improve every oppor-
tunity TO get new hired men ut Washington.
In many districts there is a sort of I'M
but two terms before stepping down and
out, and often the man who has served
one term is very lucky to get the other one,
so eager is the rivalry and SO impatient are
the rivals. The people of the south, as
rule, take directly the contrary view. They
believe in keeping a man in Washington
as long as he does them good. Thus the
representatives from the south have OBJ
portunity to develop and strengthen them
selves. Age and experience give prestige
III congress as well as anywhere else, and
it is in these essentials that the statesmen
from the south have signal advantage over
their brethren from the north.
Take the result of the recent elections
for illustration. In the house the states
of Alabama, Arkansas. Georgia, Kentucky,
Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North
Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas
and Virginia have 10S members. Seventy
seven OF these are reelected, and only 81,
or 2 out of Z, viii be succeeded bv new
men in the Fifty-second congress OF the
222 members hailing from the northern
and western states, including Maryland,
Delaware and West Virginia, 124, or 3
out Of 5, have failed of reelection to the
next congress.
In the southern states the changes are
more numerous than usual on account of
the appearance in politics of the Farmers
Alliance movement. Notwithstanding the
effect of this new activity in the political
field the state of Alabama sends back to
congress all of her present representatives,
eight in number. 1t is the only state in
the Union having more than one repre-
sentative which does do so. Arkansas
sends but one new man, to take the place
OF MIR. Rogers, that master of satire and
of invective, who created so many stirring
scenes in the house last winter Mr. Rog-
ers voluntarily retired from public life,
desiring TO do something for himself and
his old age, and not to give all his energy
and years of fruitfulness to his country.
There are SIX new men from Georgia, the
largest number from any of the southern
states.
The man who will be most missed from
this delegation is Barnes, of Augusta-the
leviathan, good natured Barnes, whose
$50 pound hulk has been one of the land
marks Of the Democratic side of the hall
for five years. His successor, Mai Wat
son, is likely to be the smallest man in the
next house, as his weight is about ninety
pounds. Extremes will meet when Barnes
courteously hands his chair over to Wat
son. Kentucky sends but two new men,
one 10 succeed eX-Speaker Carlisle. Louisi-
ana makes but two changes, and Mis-
sissippi the same number. In Missouri five
new men appear, one of them replacing the
picturesque Mr.. NiedinghauS of St Louis,
who used to throw the house into convul-
sions of laughter with his funny speeches,
which were intended to be serious In
Missouri is striking instance of the I'M
certainty of politics and of the breaks of
fortune This has become known as ''the
farmers year" in politics, and yet among
the slain in this state is Farmer Wade
himself, one of the most able and jealous
of all the champions of agriculture. 1t is
a singular fact that in all the southern
states not one of the leaders in congress,
not one of the men of great influence, was
defeated. Mills, Crisp, Herbert, Oates,
Hemphill, McNillin, Houk, Blount, Hook
er, the two Breckinrdges, McCreary,
Allen, Hatch, Bland, Dockery, Heard,
Richardson, Enloe, Culberson, Lee, OFFER
rail-, Cowles, Tucker-all are returned
Not so in the north. Among the unfort-
innate statesmen from this section are
many of the strongest and brightest men
OF the present house. The greatest mum
Der of changes is in New York where
eighteen men of delegation of thirty-foul
fail OF reelection. one oil The new men
Mr. Lockwood-has already seen congress
sional service, so that exactly one-half OF
the delegation IN the next congress will
have the ropes to learn. Mr.. Farquhar
the printers friend, and one of the many
practical printers in the present congress
is perhaps the most noted of the retiring
members 1t is an odd fgct that only one
of all the members from New York-Mr
Ketcham-is entitled to rank among the
veterans of the house, and he has beer
twenty-five years in congress.
Pennsylvania, with delegation of TWEEN
ty-eight men, sends fifteen new members
Of those reelected only two have seen ex
tended service-O'Neill and Harmer The
former is the father of the house, having
first entered congress in 1853, and missing
but one term in all the quarter of cent
ury and more that has since elapsed Mr.
Hammer has been sixteen years in congress
and is well up among the veterans. OF
the retiring members ex-senator Buckalew
and Thomas NJ. Bayne are the most note
worthy. Doubtless this is the end of Mr.
Buckalew's political career, which has beer
one of most distinguished service He was
prosecuting attorney of his county nearl,
fifty years ago; was elected to the STATE
senate; was United States treaty commits
sioner with Paraguay; was elected com
missioner to revise the penal code of Penn
sylvania: was minister to Ecuador: was