Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-12-19
SENATORIAL STATIONERY
How the Wants Of Members OF the Upper
House Are Supplied

>Ae" sne "outs ot hembers OF the PIPER
House Are supplied
TIE STATIONERY ROOM AND ITS MrsrERrrs-THE
DAYS OF QUILL PrSs-NASr MILLIONS OF IN
vELoPEs-rHE ALLOWANCE MADE TO EACH
sESAroR-THE MAN WHO kEErs TIE SUPPLIES.
WHEN A UNITED STATES SENATOR
wants few sheets Of paper or an envelope
or pen he does not have to send out 20 a dis
tant store TO have his needs supplied; IL he is
In the Capitol he simply summons a page and
sends him to the stationery room with an order.
The stationery room is great institution. both
IN the Senate and the House. Il is the Senate
establishment which is now under considera-
ton.
The stationery room" a Judge Campbell
would say, lis two rooms" or late wears the
stock has occupied apartments which were
never illumined by daylight. but during the
past summer the goods. wet and dry-and the
attaches were removed TO the rooms across
the corridor from and south Of that senatorial
subdivision which is labeled ''refectory," but
which everybody calls 'rhe restaurant" The
new quarters are decidedly better than the old
ones. for on bright afternoons a raw of reflected
sunshine may occasionally stray in. Ordinar-
ny there Is enough diffussd daylight to render
the electric hight useless during the central
portion of working day. As near this one
lone window as they can possibly be squeezed
are the desks of the keeper OF stationery" Mr..
Charles y: Richards. and the assistant keeper,
actively energetic. When these two
officials on duty onlv one = half
the numerical force is at work. Capt. Nichols.
quietly complaisant. is the third in point of
rank. while Moses Jessup. who is large. muscu-
lar, good-natured and pronounced brunette
concludes the roll of employees Some of the
Sapltol employees, and few OF these are proba-
piy on the Senate side. re o;ce in the possession
OF positions which are technically referred to
as SOFT snaps None of these positions are
IN the stationery room. That apartment is
open all tie year round. Other hines OF work
cease when the session comes to an end but the
stationery room doors are open during the
recess just as they are wheA Congress is max
ing more or less successful bluffs at earning its
salary. From now until the long session OF the
fnt-second Congress Is no more all hands
Will be busy
CAMPAIGN STATIONERY.
Then there will be sudden increase OF business.
Tor there are large number Of Senators who want
the same sort of stationery at home that they
GET mere, so there Is much packing and shipping
OF goods. Then the empty shelves have 70 be
reiaden, and this involves a complete stock
taxing; by that time the second session will
DC on deck Next year promises to be remark
able for the amount Of business transacted
through the stationery room. Ii will
be presidential year, and that means
that many millions OF envelopes 10
be used in the dissemination Of Campaign
documents will be needed. Every good paftisan
IN the Senate, to say nothing of those whs M
sist that they are not partisans, will make az
least one speech, which can be circulated with
the assistance of an unlimited and inexpensive
supply OF franks Last presidential year the
senate stationery room provided Senators
with just l5.G10000 envelopes. Over at the
House end the demand brought forth - 600 OOO
Next year the demand for envelopes will be
greater than ever and this means that every
envelope factory in the country will be running
over time all til summer long.
THE sEsAToRIAL ALLOWANCE
There is a general impression abroad that
great abuses exist in connection with the sup
plying of stationery to legislators. Years ago
there may have been good and sufficient foun-
cation Tor tribe Of suspicion, but that foun-
dation no longer exists. Each Senator is an
nually allowed the sum of Sl25 for stationery
and newspapers. II he gets more stationery
than Sl2S will pay for he has to 60 down into
his pocket and bring forth the necessary cur
rency. A great many Senators-men whose
correspondence Is continuous and large-do
have to purchase large Quantities of paper and
envelopes; the stationery allowance is
insufhcient for such as these. People
who know little nothing OF congressional
labors may find it difficult to believe that some
Senators expend between 500 and $500 every
year merely for postage stamps. When Gen.
Logan was in the Senate his postage stamp bill
frequently exceeded 81. 600 a year. Postal ex-
penses nave decreased TO a considerable extent
since the ranking privilege was extended to
such correspondence as a member of Congress
might have with any federal officer. Under
the present law no postage is required when a
senator or Representative writes to a post
master, an internal revenue officer or any other
United States official. A large stock of en-
velopes designed especially for this class of
correspondence finds lodging place in the
stationery room.
1t used to be that at the beginning of each
session each Senator given q supply of
stationery-termed a starter" That meant a
big morocco box OF paper and envelopes and
the necessary ct cetera. II he was married his
vile got an assortment, too. and If he had
daughters they also received individual tokens
OF the Senate good wishes and q nations lib
erality. There was no limit then to the amount
OF stationery Senators could draw, but even
with the fences down there was but little ex-
travagance This year the only gratuity was a
big morocco portfolio.
The sensation monger has frequently tried to
make interesting material out Of the fact that
the press gallery is supplied with stationery
from the official fount There are more than
one hundred and fifty correspondents in the
gallery, and yet the supplies furnished them
never exceed s200 in value during any YEAR |
All that goes TO the gallery is writing paper |
envelopes, pencils, pens, ink and mucilage.
AMERICAN PAPER IN DEMAND.
Avery large and comprehensive stock is |
carried In the Senate room. and any attempt to
catalogue it would simply result in naming
almost IL not quite every article common to the |
business Everything is of good |
qIality-the best in most instances. For COM |
mon goods the demand is very light One Of |
the noticeable features of the aggregation Of |
supplies Is the enormous stock of tablets. 4
Twenty years ago the tablet was comparatively |
unknown and certainly of only uncommon use. |
Today In this country there 10 more paper used |
In tablets than in any other form. The tablet !
Is an American idea, and that it is popular in |
the Senate must be evident when 1t becomes
known that there are fully 10000 Of them in |
the stationery room len wears ago Mr.. /
Richards would have thought his shelves over
loaded with thousand OF the now universally 1
used articles. The sale Of American-made
writing paper is increasing. For a long time
England had a monopoly on the manufacture
of high grade paper. but now the American
article is fully equal to the best The French
and German manufacturers are away behind.
I heir products are fanciful and artistic, but
when the comparison with English or American
paper is based on quality then neither the Gaul
nor the Teuton is in it." Some of the paper
In the stationery room has been in stock for
thirty years. and has, therefore, value above
the market price for younger paper of the same
grade. Writing paper improves with age Il
dries ont becomes harder and tougher, and
after years of existence more closely re-