Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1892-05-19

Congressmen Continue to Indulge I'm the
Eulogistic BurIesque Every Saturday
ArernoOn-News Leaks from Senators
Themselves.
Members Talk to Empty Seats.
I w ss%:ss ;:s:: :'sSa; %i;S I "a
(mfi all due respect to
I[ those Congressman
Z$27W( who have passed
NMEkl IN into the next world,
ENHG!lsM It must be said that
S.tE255SSSs$SSA the weekly me-
YfiiTf151iIH39 mortal services have
tlIIlll nMal become farcial
E-IW~ss IN d extravagant
|IyIltI.LL.yk<n u isance. Com
MCHlWWtfI<~ plants of the Fifty
sjs.1l---.T3 second Congress
T1- fm~mHnw being a do-nothing
&&uGHI1e yw-w--=. affair are heard on
F :::;:s:s;: s: .;;:i S::z e.: :::':; ::
many OF the members themselves. Yet
every Saturday afternoon, week In and
week out, month In and month out,
these same Congressman, among them
the loudest complainers OF them all, sit
by and do nothing but condemn the GUS
Com which gives one-sixth OF every week
to eulogizing the dead and-yes-the
next to forgotten. And such farce 1t
all is-save, perhaps, to such relatives
of the deceased as may be present in the
members gallery and 10 the speakers.
To the former it is more than farce. 1t
is burlesque. To the latter stern
reality.
And no wonder. The House is called
to order, and in the presence OF quo
rum and to spare the chaplain offers a
prayer. That over, the journal is read,
a few bills are introduced. and then the
clerk begins TO read resolution setting
aside the day to hear eulogies pro-
nounced In memory of the late Honor
able So-and-so. Scarce has he finish
ed when there Is q commotion on the
! floor. The members, that is, most Of
them, are leaving. Before the first
speaker has got through his first para
graph less than a fifth of the quorum
remain and more than half of those are
busy writing letters, reading news
papers or conversipg with one another
on some political question OF the day.
The press gallery is empty; so, too, are
most Of the other galleries. In the
members gallery, perhaps, sit few
deeply interested persons, one OF them
in deep black bending forward to catch
every word, her tear-stained eyes OBJ
serving the lack of interest among the
| few who remain on the floor and whose
number is constantly diminishing until,
as has been the case most every Satur-
day, not more than twenty-five out Of
the three hundred and thirty odd MEM
bers remain.
Sympathetic creatures these members
of Congress. And yet, listen a moment
to the one who is speaking. His words
are OF a sympathetic character, and the
| speaker appears to be in earnest. So
does an actor. Both have their parts to
play. 1t is work for them both, and
they are heartily glad when it is over.
The only difference Is that one is paid
for it.; the other does it either because
he has been requested TO deliver a eulo-
| gy or his acquaintance with the deceased
makes him think 1t would be rather in
decent in him not to say few words.
And 80 the afternoon drags wearily
along, the solemn phrases being occa-
sionally punctuated by a laugh from
the cloak rooms, where another joke
has Just been cracked. 1t is all over at
last, and as the last speaker drops into
his seat a motion to adjourn is made,
seconded, put, and carried. The gavel
strikes the desk, the curtain falls upon
another day. and the country wonders
why Congress Is so far behind in its work.
During the debate on the rules some
member moved that eulogies be deliv-
cred on Sunday. There would thereby
be no interference with the legitimate
work of Congress- But an objection
was made and the proposition was not
pressed. But most of the members were
new and without experience then. Now
they would welcome such chance were
it not that Congress Is behind on eu-
logies, and to stop now would seem un-
kind to the memories of the uneulogized
dead. Should there come a time, how
ever. when Congress catches up, a reso-
luton will be offered to stop the farce
in the name of decency and economy.
That resolution will pass and will be
probably followed by the wiping out of
that other burlesque, the Congressional
funeral. And when these are out of the
way many day will be saved and the
people will begin to think that they
are getting their moneys worth of leg
islation after all.
Playing the Baby.