Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-08-26
The COOL CAPITOL.
No Reason For Legislators to
Swelter From the Heat.
4 GOOD BREEZE ALL THE time.
Only Gymnastic Exercise Causes
Them to Perspire.

Them to Perspire.
ESSMEN'S ATTIRE.
| Talk about the legislators sweltering
during this August weather. there is no
cooler place they can be at this season
than the Capitol building, unless they go
up on the mountains or get In an Ice box
! or course this is not the season for vio-
| lent exercise under any conditions, and
men who leap and plunge like a gymna-
SUM In delirium. wild Indian, or a chick
/ en- minus Its head, in an effort to make
| impressive a speech devoid of wit, logic
or new ideas. could not keep cool in cold
storage. Gymnastic oratory makes the
statesmen sweat. but there is no need to
waste sympathy on them, for they are not
a whit more comfortable in winter time
| While In the same frame Of mind As a
matter of fact the Capitol building is
| more comfortable as q working place in
the summer than 1t Is in the winter. With
Its massive marble walls. enclosing many
J acres Of ground. standing In the middle Of
&C large park and on the crest Of q hill
| with nothing between 1t and the winds or
the gentle breezes. blow they from the
north. the south. the east or the west and
every breath. the building is one of the
coolest in the world. 1t IL almost proof
against heat. except when the heat comes
| from within, as 1t does with the fires of
| winter or those of debate.
IN the winter when the windows are all
closed and the heaters are at full blast.
| been over heated and has been breathed
over many times. Then the building is in
toierabie; perspiration springs from every
| pore when the thermometer registers zero
outside. and the blood Is stagnant and the
| brain dull
Always q Breeze.
| During the hottest days In summer there
l Is always a breeze through the building,
the burning sun penetrates not within its
walls and there is NO exchange Of second
| hand breaths. Every day Congress has
been in session there has been a miniature
gale blowing through the open windows
| and whisking through the legislative halls
as II making sport Of their pretense Of dis
comfort. Today, for the first time since
| the session began, has Ii been close and hot
and at its worst it caused but little incon-
venience except to those who were plung-
ing and pitching against the halter which
holds them to duty.
There has not been q hot night after IL
O'Clock In Washington for a month ex-
cept last night, so that there has been no
| reason on that score for their failing 10
rest in sweet repose of sleep their weary
and over-strained mental mechanisms,
breathes through the windows Of the great
| marble building, there are electric fans
scattered about and a great fan wheel in
the air shaft. run by steam, is constantly
drawing in fresh air and keeping 1t in mo-
| ton.
| After the orators get through their ply
! sicaI and mental exercise on the floor they
| go down into the bath rooms, where they
can get any style or temperature OF hats
they desire. and can lie around in Turkish
| towels until the perspiration Is dried out
Of their clothes and they are cooled down
to the desired temperature. There il hard
ly man Of them who would be more COM
| Portable anywhere else he would be apt to
| be IL he were not here.
How Statesmen Dress.
II they are not all quite comfortable II is
the fault Of their not knowing how to dress.
| You may fancy the southerner appearing in
| a suit of thin brown linen or white duck with
| a shirt loose at the neck and soft in the
! bosom. and wearing broad -brimmed straw
| or panama hat. This is but a picture OF the
| Imagination. The average southern states
| man wears during this season Of the sun
dark clothes Of thick woolen material. the
| vest buttoned close and a long skirt to his
| coat. Fully three-fourths Of the men seen
| on the floor Of the House and Senate are
dressed in black. and most Of them in
rather rsti, % heavy materials: The most season @
|
| suits Of Kentucky jeans or tow linen are
| worn by men from Maine. New York or
| Ohio or the shores Of Michigan.
There Is not more than one southern man
| In Congress who wears a linen suit, or any
| clothing of such thin material
! 1t was for Tom Reed, from the cool state
Of Maine to set an example in thin clothing.
| While he was Speaker Of the House he set
the example Of wearing a negligee shirt and
| through which sand might be sifted-coat,
| vest and trousers, which wave about his
bulky form like breeze.
Storer, Caldwell and Harter of Ohio are
| dressed in similar suits, and Gen. Hender-
son and one southern man, Caruth Of Ken
tusky; have followed their example
spotless suit Of cream flannel.
Dr. Everett; who appealed to the silver
men sira not s,,d to deposb him m IN ma cayity by by
speech. has enveloped himself in a yellow
| negligee shirt adorned with the ueIiest
o looked upon heavy black nI tronsers esa and
| thin black coat.
Mr.. simpsons Get Up.
The only less becoming makeup in the
| House and the only uglier tie adorn the
rugged figure of the gentleman from Kan
| sas, Mr.. Simpson. He wears a yellow silk
negligee shirt with puffed front ana a tie
| with the colors Of Joseph's coat badly
blended in checks, and his only other visi-
BILE garments are a pair Of dark trousers
| y,
the two watch dogs Of the treasury, now on
duty. have abandoned their vests. but stick
to their heavy black clothing-or perhaps
| their clothing sticks to them.
| Wilson wears thick dark clothes. such as
he might find comfortable enough for fall or
winter, but he has adopted a negligee shirt
| and abandoned his vest
There has been no day hot enough to
cause Bailey of Texas to abandon either his
! Prince Albert coat, his black cloth vest nor
his billed" shirt and stiff collar He wears
the full dark livery Of winter
Springer has adopted white vest and dis
carded the flower, which used to bloom per-
petual on his coat
Marvin Of New York appears in snow
white duck coat and vest stiff enough to be
waterproof, and Dalzell looks cool in blue
neglgee shirt and a thin silk coat and vest
Of lemon color.
Cummings has thrown away his vest and
adopted the negligee shirt.
Catchings, Kilgore. Cogswell, Bland
Coombs and Davis have abandoned their
vests.
| In the Senate dignity and suits of solemn
black prevail, but Senators Gray, Platt ard
| Vance have given up their vests and ALI
son, Powers and Washburn wear white
vests. Sherman looks cool without regard
to his clothes.