The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1891-12-15
The WHEELS In MOTION.
Congress- has Begun its Work Of
Making our Laws.
MIR. Wellman Thinks the Men Who Com
pose the Legislative Body More Interest,"
ing Than Their Official Doings-Personal

pose the Legislative Body More Interest,"
ing Than Their Official Doings-Personai
Gossip About Congressman and Others.
Especial Correspondence
WASHINGTON, Dec. 10.-The congress
Bional wheels are again in motion, but
nothing in the whole legislative machine
is so interesting as the men who make it
go and who are part of it. AS one sits
in the gallery and looks down upon the
400 men who are here to make the ma
TONS laws he discerns so many interest
ing figures, SO many great careers, SO
many individuals about whom gossip
and story cluster, that he hardly knows
where to choose his subjects. / see one
bright young man, with face like that
of a god and smile that would win the
heart of child or woman, in whom !
take good deal of interest. His name
is Bryan, and he comes from Nebraska,
where he is a lawyer, who has been sent
to congress for his first term. want to
watch Mr.. Bryan as type. He has
been in Washington more than week,
and took an active part in the speaker
ship contest. In that struggle he learned
what seemed to be revelation to him
that congressional politics is largely
made up of lying, duplicity, insincerity,
two facedness, treachery.
Mr.. Bryan is an honest young man,
fresh from the boundless prairies of the
west, and this discovery amazed and ap-
palled him. 'If this is national politics, -
he said, 81 think will go back home
and stay there. don't think want to
engage in politics of this kind" "Oh,"
said an old member, "you will get &C
customed to it after time, and I ven
ture to predict that when the next speak
ership contest comes on you will be as
smart and adroit as any of them" "If
thought would be brought down to
the sort of duplicity that I have seen
here" said Mr.. Bryan, 81 would this day
go and resign my seat in the house and
take the first train out of Washington.
Now, liked that reply, and this young
man is worth watching. Which do you
think is the better prophet, the old mem.
Der who knows something of the in1u-
ences exerted by public life at the ma
tional capital, or the young man from
the prairies?
Another interesting young man is the
much talked of Sherman Hoar, of Mas
sachusetts. Everybody expects to find
this scion of rich and aristocratic fam
lily somewhat aristocratic himself. But
he isn't. He has already established
himself as one of the popular men of
congress. He mixes with the wild
westerners, the Tammany chaps from
the metropolis, the lusty fellows from
the great northwest as readily as with
the college bred men from his own Sec
tion. He has hearty handshake and a
good story for every one. He looks like
a young farmer as much as anything
else, and now that his congressional dis
trict has been enlarged to take in several
rural counties l imagine he is trying to
become a confirmed and accepted agri-
culturist. In this connection clever
story is told by Mr.. Hoar himself. He
was out in the fields one day driving the
hay wagon for the laborers on his ia
theirs farm. He was attired in flannel
| shirt and an old straw hat which he had
| picked up somewhere, and looked for all
the world like farmer himself. The
men sent him with a light wagon after
some tools, and while on this errand he
was accosted by one of the professors of
the divinity school near by.
"My good man," said the teacher of
divinity, ''cawn't you drive me up to the
railway station? have to catch train,
and me carriage has not come. Please
do, now; that's a good fellow" The
young congressman told him to jump in.
On the way to the station the minister
prated of the beauties of rural life.
"Oh, the lovely flowers" he exclaimed:
show love flowers. My good man, /
suppose you are so accustomed to the
beautiful flowers of the field, as YOU
pass them in your daily toll, that you do
! not take any notice of them whatevah. -
"Oh, yes; Inotice them once in awhile, "
said young Hoar, with difficulty sup
/ pressing his merriment. A little farther
/ on Mr.. Hoar's sister was met in the road,
driving dog cart. Of course she bowed
and smiled to her brother and Mr.. Hoar
lifted his hat to her. The teacher of
divinity went into ecstacies. sob, how
lovely! how beautiful" he exclaimed;
''what charming simplicity, what COM
mentary on the freedom of social insti-
buttons in America, when the lady of the
town bows to the rustic of the field.
This was too much for young Mr.. Hoar,
and as a result of the laughter which he
was unable longer to suppress, it was
necessary for him to reveal his identity.
eff l can get this story in circulation
among the farmers of my district" says
Mr.. Hoar, 81 shall have no difficulty in
winning q reelection"
Speaking of this aristocratic New
England family reminds me that l saw
in the senate corridor the other day a
pair of fine lads from New England,
walking arm in arm to look for their
fathers. Each of these boys is the son of a
senator and the grandson of a senator
The father of one is Senator Hale, of
Maine, and of the other Senator Chandler,