Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1892-02-11
THE PRESS GALLERY.
One OF the Most Interesting Spots
in the Capitol Building.
How tho Washington Correspondents Of
the Metropolitan Papers Gather News
Reciprocity Between States
men and ScribeS.
Especial washington letter.

- Reciprocity Between States
men and Scribes.
Especial Washington letter.
The press gallery at this season of
the year is a kodak camera. The gal
lery is an automatic machine, and its pho
tographs of public men and events upon
the floor of the senate and house are
not only instantaneous, but artistic.
The gallery is not only a perfect, but a
complex machine. containing the most
delicate organism ever invented. Near
II two hundred men now have the priv
ilege of the press galleries of the house
and senate and every one of them is be-
lieved to be In general sense the most
competent man connected with the staff
of the paper which he represents. Be
cause of this conceded superiority in
the newspaper field these men are Sc
lected above their fellows and sent to
the national capitol to become parts of
the complex kodak, the gallery.
One of the popular fallacies in the
newspaper offices throughout the coun-
try is that all the news of the day is
gathered by the correspondents from
their seats in the gallery, from which
perch they behold and portray all the
proceedings of the national legislature.
AS matter of fact the ablest, most ex-
perienced and most successful CORE
spondents at the national capital are
seldom seen in the press gallery, be-
cause that is not a good place to ascer-
tain bottom facts concerning current
events. OF course upon great occasions,
such as the Obsequies of deceased SEN
ator or member of the supreme court,
the galleries are crowded with the gen.
tlemen having seats there, because
only from that vantage ground can
good descriptive articles be written. But
probably only once or twice during an
entire session of congress does such an
event occur.
These privileged newspaper charac-
tiers not only represent the leading
papers of the United States, but their
constituencies are worldwide. Sena-
tors represent, in part, great sovereign
states; the representatives represent
congressional districts whose bounda-
ries are circumscribed by few county
lines; the correspondents represent in
no small degree not only the 5000, 900
people in the republic, but a mum Der of
them send forth their statements of
facts and their opinions concerning af-
fairs to England, France and Canada.
OF course for the purpose of having the
privilege of the gallery, if for no other
reason, the correspondent must repre-
sent one of the leading papers of this
country; but in addition to that repre-
sentation he has the privilege, and usu-
ally avails himself of it, of doing for
eign work, whereby an income may be
increased or possibly doubled.
None but the most reliable, accurate,
conservative and honorable men can
represent leading newspapers in the ma
tional capitol. The managing editor in
San Francisco, New Orleans, St. Paul,
Chicago, New York, Toronto or London
must be able to feel that his representa-
tive at the city of Washington is con-
stantly alert, diligent and careful in his
representation of the paper; must feel
that it is not necessary to prod and spur
him on to do his duty; must feel and
know that the paper is in the fullest
sense of the term represented with
fidelity and skill. Scholastic training,
extraordinary talents and ability as de-
scriptive writer's or word weavers, will
never suffice for a lack of painstaking
care and constant feeling of personal
responsibility on the part of a CORE
spondent. These representatives in the
press gallery sometimes spend whole
days or even weeks doing almost no
work whatever; but that is in all cases
because there is nothing to do and the
news market is exceedingly dull. This
sometimes happens in every city on the
globe. No matter whether the CORE
spondent is heard from every day by
wire or not, he must be maintained at
the national capital and his salary goes
on just the same. The intelligent and
discriminating managing editor knows
that when the occasion arrives for a
tremendous amount of work involving
| the ascertainment of facts and the COM
pilation of statements involving twenty
thousand words a day or more his cor
| respondent will represent the paper
! with sleepless determination to succeed
| at every point. 1t is this quality Of re-
liability that makes successful Wash