The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1890-04-17
ghe doita Daily Ea9le Thursday urnimg ApriI IT, 1890

cases, SI55.45." Mica pocketbocks are also
affected by the millionaire club, as such en-
tries as the following would indicate: 't5 doz
pOckstboo5s, sIe3 rs" Pocket knives are
likewise popular and expensive, per such en-
tries as ''1o54 dcz- pocket knives, $S56.09;"
''171S doZ. pocket knives, $26S. H." and ''245x
doz- Wostenholrl penkniEes, S54s. 4s." The
senate appears TO be an industrious user Of
the shears, for Inetice many such entries as
these In the account books: "S doz- pairs
shears, s6L2G;" ''e1l doz. pairs scissors,
S53.H," and 80 cases scissors, e15S 64." Or
do the shears and the scissors, like the cards
ard card cases, find their way7to the homes OF
senatorsa
Here are some entries in the account which
VIII explain themselves:
50 doz. eorkscrews. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS IS
2 doz- ApeIhnaris water, pints. -------.----- %
I box lemons .-.....-.-...-------------- "a
/ case ApoltinariS ........---...---.-.--.H il sc
90 pounds granulated suggr-.--.-.--.-..-.. IS
100 2-grain qUinine pills. IS
100 S-grain ouiaine pills. Observation-Disclosures. 90
The books show that during the months Of
July and August, 1883, when congress was in
session, the lemons, sugar and ApGllinaris
used by the senate cost the government of the
United States $4s3. u. The ice used during
the same months cost $3.50. 1t thus appears
that it costs money to keep the senate cool
An interesting item is the following:
Isaac Bsssett, for 5 pounds Copenhagen Enun,
for use in senate chamber, $3.50
In a month the senate uses about four hun
dred dozen towels, the washing Of which costs
the government nearly $500.
Here are some more entries, which explain
themselves:
Three doz. French soap, $3.50; sponges, $40;
gallons bay rum, $3.50; s gallons cologne, $91;
bottles hair oil, $40; bottles hair tonic,
$40.
OF such items there are scores and scores.
When the senate buys thermometers it
buys none but the best, as the books show:
Aug. 81 Thermometer, SIS; thermome-
teTs, SIS; 2 Thermometers, So"
When the senate has funeral to attend it
goes in style. For the funeral of Gen. Sheri-
dan 10 pairs of silk gloves were purchased, at
81 pair, and 9 sashes, at 81 each.
When the senate buys furniture, either for
the chamber or for the luxurious committee
rooms, it makes the money fly. Here are
few items in that line, taken from hundreds;
Wilton carpet for cemmittee on pubic lands,
$370; three pairs lace curtains for committee
on manufactures u committee that has not
J
conan cushion, same committee, $40; walRut
lounge, committee on enrolled bills, $40; an
tique oak hall rack, committee on commerce,
$43; antique oak desk, committee on centen-
niaI, $50; walnut desk, committee on labor,
$95; one japanese screen, committee on agri-
culture, S35; four chairs, committee on agri-
culture, $40; twenty-one yards carpet, com
mittee on interstate commerce, $1S7. Evil
to have something nice-for the horny handed
son Of the soil to sit on when be comes before
the committee to tell why he has to burn bis
corn for fuel ont on the praiEies, and why he
cannot lift the mortgage of his place down
in New England.
To wind and clean the senate clocks costs
the government about $500 a year. Even
street car tickets are purchased at the gov
ern1nent expense for the use of the senate.
During the last yezr the senate has bought a
score Of typewTfters, sta cost Of nearly S., 600.
1t will be noticed that the senate has a way
of making the government pay for nearly
everything which q senator needs or uses
The governments must even help him re-elect
himself and defray the expense incurred by
him in cultivating popularity among his con-
stituents. During the five months preceding
TIE lSSG pTGsaIShOitl 6hSCtIOiI SS2&OOIS SSHb OdL
at the expense of the government nine millions
of their speeches. The government printed
the speeches at bare cost, in the first place,
and then it had to pay men dollar q thou
sand to fold them, buy the envelopes or other
wrappers, and finally carry the many tons Of
stuff through the mails free of charge. Dur
ing these five months the government pur-
chased for use in sen ding out the more or less
valuable speeches Of more or less famous
statesmen 10 fewer thsQ eight million en-
velopes, at cost of about $4,000, and to
prepare this enormous mass Of stuff for the
mails seven barrels of paste and four barrels
Of -Four for use in making paste were pur-
chased.
Ten or twenty years hence, probably, the
incidental expenses OF the senate viii show
items Of house rent for each Of the members
of that august body, horses aud carriages
and grocery bills. The tendency is DOW in
that direction. ROBERT GRAVES