The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1891-10-14
UNCLE SANS BIG DAILY.
How the "Congressionai Record'' Is Edit
ed by Congressman and Stenographers.

Among the daily publications of the
Capital city, the Congressional Record
has very fair clientage and a wide
says the Washington Post.
There are very few of its readers and
very few of its hundreds of contrib
utors. who ever stopped to reflect on
the amount of work necessary to get
out one edition, and on the innumer-
able circumstances and incidents that
occur before its pages are completed
and laid on the patrons desks.
The Record purports to fill the ever
existing ''long-felt want" and in
mild, conservative sort of way is
competitor of morning newspapers in
conveying to the people that which
transpires in the halls of congress. 1t
has a peculiar field of its own, how
ever, and the daily newspapers seldom
kick on their contemporary if the lat
ter happens to have e .'beat"-that is,
an item that said newspapers had
failed to print.
In many respects the Record is SIM
liar to large morning daily. Each
days output of thought, sense or nom
sense, from the word and wind factory
on the hill is called an edition. There
ognized force of 332 gentlemen at the
southern end of the capitol and eighty
eight at the northern end. They diff
fer from a newspaper force in that
they work when they please and how
they please. In addition to this reg
ular force there are numerous individ-
uals in all parts of the United States
who correspond in some degree to the
country correspondents of news
paper. There are ladies and gentle
men who wish to make themselves
heard in the country and to have in
fuence with their representatives.. and
they send to this great editorial force
on the Record numerous petitions and
memorials. which find their way, in
one form or another, into the printed
document.
1t is interesting to note the various
processes used and the matter that
enters into the composition of Uncle
Sans daily. The first step toward
turning out the pamphlet of from
twenty-four to forty-eight pages that
finds its way to the offices and homes
of 10 600 neonle each morning is taken
at the capitol. There the gentlemen
known as representatives and senator's
gather. making public history. which
goes day after day to critical public.
This history-making is what the Con-
gressio1saL Record depends on for its
existence. Every word uttered by one
of these gentlemen in his capacity as
public servant is taken down and re-
produced in the Record. The visitor
at the capitol, unacquainted with the
noisy method of doing business that
usually prevails in the house, is puz-
zled to learn how accurately and in
detail the proceedings are reported.
If they watch closely, however, they
will see in the thickest of the commo-
ton and where the noise is the loudest
one or two quiet-looking gentlemen
with notebooks in hand. These are
the official stenographers, whose MINI
BILE pencils catch every word as it
drops from the lips of the congress
men. They are the first of the small
army who daily and nightly labor to
produce a verbatim record of what
takes place in the two houses of con-
gress.
The stenographers or official report
ers are not the only ones who turn in
copy" for this work. Generally when
takes time to prepare it, and has it
rapher is saved good deal of labor,
as the original copy is turned in to the
printer. That is, the printer is sup
posed to get the original copy, but in
many instances he does not. The
speaker is allowed, by some rules of
common consent or immemorial Gus
tom, TO revise his speech, and in exer-
cising this privilege the Record many
times proves the friend of the con-
gresham. Oftentimes the speech de-
ivered by a congressman in the house
of representatives or in the senate
chamber would not meet exactly the
views of that congressman's constitu-
ents. By a little judicious revision.
however, expressions can be toned
down and warped, opinions straight
ened until the reader of the Record is
made to admire the orthodoxy of Rep
resentative So-and-so.
The habit of congressman sending
their own copy to the printing Office is
not particularly admired by those who
do the mechanical work of the Record.
If the copy was subjected to the
scrutinizing eye of city editor before
it entered the composing room it
would be an improvement in the sys-
tenn. As it is. the matter comes to the
printing Office in every kind of shape.
Economy in the use of paper is one OF
the practices and much of the copy is
written on both sides of the sheet.
This is not particularly pleasant to the
foremaa, Mr.. Pearson, who must put
it into the shape that well-regulated
printers demand. The other day 10G
pages or so of an army and navy re-
port were embodied in the speech of 8
noted senator. The speech was turned
in with the printed report accompany
ing it, both sides of the page occupied
with the printed matter. Here was q
Job. The report could not be cut and
distributed among the printers, as
that would have destroyed one-hali
the copy.
There was nothing left for the fore
man to do but to set men to worE
copying the matter on the reverse side
of the printed page. Recently another
speech came into the printing Office
with long article clipped from lar
man, solved this difficulty by sending
to a newsdealer for an extra copy O.
the paper, and with the two was ablt
to furnish the matter to the printer IL
proper shape.
If the speechmakers up on Capito
hill could secrete themselves in thu
composing room of the CongTeSsto'aG
Record and hear the remarks madt
when their copy reaches the eighty-tw'
printers there at work they would b.
nsore careful in editing the materia
they send in. AS general thing th'
original copy is typewriter, but Their
are few senators and representative
who insist on writing out their re
marks with pen or pencil. These ar
4Lorr .uhn tho tnn.fC lifn