St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-10-15

ItItutes a congress in itself. 1t is COM
posed of about a hundred and fifty men
and two or three women, although the
number 1uctuaUes aud varies constantly.
1t is, like congress, composed of both
young, middle-aged and elderly men
veterans of half a century of service sit
ting and working side by side with the
fresh young recruit just from school.
To those acquainted with the reporter
of the daily papers in the larger cities of
the land it is hardly necessary to say
that the Washington correspondents
constitute parliament of workers dis
tinguished for intelligence, sagacty and
ability of a high order. This would nee
essarily be presumed when it is known
that they come to Washington from
every great center of population in the
country under law of selection more
strict than that which sends members
and senators here to enact laws. There
are, therefore, no drones in the press
galleries of the national capitol.
SUBJECT TO CONTROL.
Theoretically. the press galleries are
under control of the presiding officers
of the two houses, under direction of
the committees on rules. The speaker
of the house of representatives is I'M
derstood to have practically absolute
authority over that of the house, th e
vice president of the United States
over that of the senate. Actually,
these two localities are under
the entire control of the correspond
ents themselves, and are governed
absolutely by a committee chosen by
the free suffrage of those entitled to
their use and benefit. To the credit of
the character of the newspaper men in
Washington, it may be mentioned that
1t Is only on the rarest occasions that
there is any necessity for an appeal to
either of the committees, or to the speak
er or the vice president, and when such
is made, that high official is likely to
say smilingly: go up stairs and settle
the matter amongst yourselves. l don't
want to interfere in your affairs"
The house press gallery is reached
by the elevator in the southwestern cor
ner of the capitol, the entrance being
Immediately at the left as one steps
from the elevator. The ante-room or
lobby is occupied by the Western Union
ana Postal Telegraph companies, each
with five or six operators. Pass
ing through the telegraph Office
the visitor finds himself in
room 20X50 feet in size, with a long
table, extending down the center, will
accommodations for twelve scribes. Ar
ranged in an orderly manner upon THU
table are pen, ink, stationery, includ-
ing letter heads and envelopes bearing
the legend House Press Gallery" etc
The walls are decorated with photo
graphic and oil portraits Of thirty o.
forty noted journalists of the country
living and dead. With singlar lack O
reverence for the historical unities O.
the profession, the shadow of neither
Benjamin Franklin nor Horace Greeley
Is among these.
Nowhere from these walls look down
upon the journalistic workers of toda,
the portraits of the historical apostles O.
the press-the men who were the ere
ators of this mighty force for progress!
and civilization. Here of all places il
ignored the sublime fact that the fielC
of journalism in the great republic ha
given the new literature of the natiol
such poets as William Cullen Bryant
John Greenleaf Whittier, Edgar AlleI
Poe and Eugene Field; sucI
newspaper builders as the eide
James Gordon Bennett and Henry j
Raymond; such lasting humorists a
John Phoenix, Artemus Ward and Mari
Twain; such novelists and essayists a
William Dean Howells and GeorgeWill
lam Curtis. With few exceptions til,