Evening star., 1893-09-09

| count Of this acquisition of clerks. Some
have brought bright young men Of their &C
quaintance from their districts and installed
them here IN permanent way as their p-i-
vate secretaries. Others have made ar
rangements with resident stenographers
ana typewrtters, male and female, to take
their dictations regularly and to run their
errands besides. Others stin have distri-
buted their work among several individuals,
turning their letters, for instance over to
stenographe-, their pension calls and ap-
pheations to some young lawyer practising
before the bureau, and their documents and
speeches to page boys, hangers-on in the
departments. or to friends or relatives else
where in the city. By decision of the first
controller the persons who do the work are
IN no sense officers of the government on
that account, and consequently any mem
Der or delegate can hire any number of
people to do his work, and likewise any
number OF members or delegates can hire
the same person or persons. Under this
system expert stenographers and pension
attorneys will be able to secure a comfort
able monthly stipend from several Congress
men at once by doing their work in COM
bination at stated hours in the day. In
fact, Congressional Stenographers' Bu-
reau has been duly Incorporated under the
laws of the District Of Columbia to pursue
this very sort Of business and incidentally,
of course. to pick up 500 from each patron
monthly. But the personal and confidential
quality Of portion of the mail received
and sent out by Congressman Is likely to
pieNSht SUCH al INSTITUTION from acnleV-
Ing shining success. although at first
glance there would seem to be a rich field
for 1t here. AS to the Congressman them
selves, they have been enjoying more leis-
ure in the past month than ever before dur
Ing session, and they feel fresher and bet
ter equipped for engaging in the more at
tractive lines Of legislative work. They are
already sounding the praises of the new
system. and. under the circumstances, it
has probably come to stay.
Western Letter Writers.
In passing, 1t is interesting to note the
striking differences in amount and degree
that characterize the correspondence Of
Representatives from different sections Of
the country. The mail Of Representatives
from the New England and South Atlantic
states is comparatively light, that Of Rep
resentattves from the middle states Is mod
crate, or from fair to middling," and that
or the western, northwestern and south
western states is exceedingly heavy. In
other words, 1t seems that the people Of
the older states. particularly Of the thir-
teen original states. which had their ex-
lstence before the Union was established
lean but lightly upon the federal govern
ment and have but few wants to express in
correspondence to their Representatives at
washington. while residents OF the newer
states. whose state governments were erect
ed simultaneously with their admission in to
the Union, are apt to look to Washington
Tor nearly everything they want In the old
states along the Atlantic seaboard the peo-
pie by instinct and tradition rely upon
themselves and upon Gher state govern
ments. while in the later admitted states
especially those beyond Illinois to the north
south and west, es for example Kansas
Nebraska. Iowa and Missouri, the people
appear by custom to be more dependent on
the general government
Particularly is this the case in states
where conditions of acute unrest and dis
satisfaction prevail. from Industrial or
financial causes. There the people have be-
come habitually clanorous In their demands
upon congressman to procure them pen
sions. sustenance and situations, to remedy
ana redress their wrongs. real or imagined
to tighten their burdens. to mittrate their
woes and to do other things by iegislat ton
and influence at Washington which can
only be done by the exertion of Individual
other hand, the southern people in the
by writing letters e