The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-05-03

permits sone unusually curious person to
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Inc Fifty-6Yst congress being adjourned.
there reigns Throughout that vast building
delicious quiet, splendid silence and
unlimited dirt Under the feather-headed
Wopound Chickasaw goddess that
perches on the apex of the great white
dome, there are tons and tons of unneces-
sary dirt housekeeping at the capitol
viii not begin until July. but the perma-
nent force OF scruhbers have given it wha.
N Old housekeepe- would caIl a. lick and
looks as If it had been given > premon-
rory nirt OF busting maids broom, for
rom basement 20 dome dust il king. The
late mob OF statesment with their
attendant army Of clerks. messen-
s inso h;. anc PsEsss have melted
from hundreds 70 dozens. and indefats-
gable reporter and numerous LOBBYIST are
no more The great edince is in the
hands CT the capitol police, the guides
and lew under officers, all Of whom are
holding high carnival Of inaction. No
body IS doing anything. The clerk. and
,asi.ess oincsrs have plenty Of time for
rotunda in the suflness Of relief This
has been the worst section ever saw"
said Captain Aibsugh. chief Of the police
II never remember being 30 tired Of those
people. I" and this Is the general sentiment
OF the capito; employees
Whatever may De argued against states
women in national council, Il cannot be
denied that one competent woman house
Keeper, with brigade Of trained kitchen
MAIDS and scrub women would soon have
the interior Of the capitol in harmony with
the stately exterior IL woman did the
Ike comparing the inside and outside or
that great structure 70 before and after
taking advertisement Of patent medi-
cine THE regular cleaning force" Of the
capitol, lot of slipshod darkieS, have
about as much idea Of dirt as Adam had of
the fifteenth amendment, and the daily
periunctory swish and swipe Of their mops
and brooms cause woman TO instinctiveiy
xearn for soap, water and scrub brush.
Iheee mascuiine housekeepers have
no idea that the capitol is not as clean as
. parsons pantry after donation party,
nor have any of the hundreds of congress-
men any notion that these inlaid floors are
CHM with dust, and that II has collected
and drifted into ali the corners and over
corniccs and ornamental panels and about
the carved caps and into the fiuted bodies
OF the massive pillars. Men do not realize
dust and small dirt" Beings who can
walk all day over that 751 feet of tobacco
stained marble, and sit alongside q capitol
cuspidor for i've or six hours in comfort.
cannot be expected 70 know that mere
clean dust Is bcsprinkled over every object
they touch or look upon.
NArTER or TOWELS.
Democracy rather belied its reputation
as the great unwashed. for in the previous
administration. during one session of 24O
days, ID, $50 towels were washed. Six
hundred towels per day was the average,
and the wash bill of the House of Repre-
sentatives for one year was $2.77095 The
chief wear and tear of these articles comes
from washing, as no two gentlemen ever
use the same towel even TO drying their
finger tips, and no congressman ever
erous was the last administration
IN purchase Of towels that for the
Senate at least, no new ones will be re-
quired. Colonel Valentine says they have
considerable supply Of towels purchased
six years ago and in continual use since
that time.
BOOKS, JKwELRY AND rrLLs.s
The country pays not only for . con-
gressman's services and toilet conveniences
his mental recreation The following Ii
ties are sample Of literature which be
comes the private property of the man
who orders il. In one list of purchase
for the House are found such titles as
'.Huckleberry Finn" $50 Soups $50
Salads. - -Four Novels. ~ Robinson Cru
soc, How to Make Money" ..Three Vas
sar Girls .'Wit Of Women" .Baby's
Kingdom. .Dahigreen's Etiquette, Lit
Roses, "Raby Nosid,r Called Back
Songs of St Nicholas" Less romantic
and infantile tastes are displayed in the
purchase OF such works as ..Bancroft's
History of the United States, - Progress
and Poverty Blaine's and Grants books,
and dictionaries by the dozen.
While this may seem to be . depression
from the subject of housekeeping. II is not
so. for all Of these curious supplies are or
dered and paid for under the fiction of
necessary equipment and repairs. What
is everybody's business is no5ody's, but it
is not . complimentary fact that onr pub
lie men should take advantage Of their POI
sition to supply themselves with private
toilet accessories The clerk of the Honse
will show on his books the most extraor-
binary and frequent purchase of such arti-
cies as tooth. hair and nail brushes, combs,
sponges, soap. gallons of cologne and bay
rum. along with toilet and shaving cases.
-.
powder aud poiishers. Canine and
catharsic pills. and even corset
faces, figure upon the books OF
the greatest legislative body on earth.
THE LADIES RECEPTION ROOM.
The so-calied ladies reception room"
which consisted of some rugs and chairs
deposited in one corner OF Statuary hail.
has vanished completely. and John Adams
and Joseph Giddings look down disconso-
lately upon the vacant space lately filled
with ladies more or less beautiful and at
tractiye. Some years ago the room now
occupied by the subcommittee of ways
and means was used as q ladies' reception
room, where women having business re-
ceived congressman and discussed their
claims or grievances. By and by, so rumor
has it, this semi-privaie apartment was
monopolized too much by women hav-
ing no business, and by congressman
who preferred 20 while away their time in
such society 20 the duller duty of law
making. However that may be. the COM
mittee in authority. n year or two ago,
seized upon the women's reception room
and on the plea Of crowded quarters appro-
p.isted il for the use OF the said sub-com-
miftee. About ten feet from the south
side of Statuary hall are ranged eight
massive pillars, behind which, on either
side of the door, are two long, narrow and
comparatively secluded spaces. Into
one of those were transplanted
few tender old rugs and some inter
naiiy disorganixed leather furniture.
Then adding table, some blank
cards, and genial old gentleman 10