Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1895-06-20
AT THE STATE HOUSE.


occupied first about ten years ago and
had been about ten years in building,
is quite suggestive index of the
growth of the state. Probably no pub
lie building i'll the country has been
built with more credit to the state or
municipality owning it than was the
Iowa capitol, which cost less than
S3,0O0,000, and in the construction OF
which from first to last there was never
the suggestion of scandal
When the building was finished 1T
was supposed that the state could
hardly be expected to ever occupy the
entire structure. At that time the
offices on the basement floor were UNI
occupied save for storage and like pur-
poses; today everyone of them is Oc-
cupied by some department or other
and the state officers are crowded for
room, There is little doubt that in the
not distant future the question of pro,
viding room for the growing work of
the departments, whose number con-
tinues to increase constantly, will be a
serious one,
OF all the charmingly peaceful, quiet,
cool and restful places that one could
find on warm summers afternoon to
the weary wayfarer may well be com
mended to the Iowa state house. The
offices are large, magnificent and cool;
it takes very few people to run any one
department and there are always
enough employed to prevent any dan
ger of nervous prostration by reason of
overworking the states servants Ev-
cry two years the legislature furnishes
the necessary fabrication, and from the
time of it's adjournment until the next
BIENNIAL meeting things run pretty
much in their own course. Us. Clark
son once said that Jimmie O'Meara
who has been employed in the govern
or's office in every capacity, from Office
boy to chief clerk, since John III. Gear
was governor of the state, could run
the entire business of the state of Iowa
with the assistance of one or two Ste
nOgraphers, and do Il better average
job than at least some of the people
who haG undertaken it then, and be in
no danger of OvtrWork. Mr.. ClarkSon
may have slightly Overdrawn the case
but the fact remains that the executive
M m nf fhf, c a ic c tartaH i'm rhA
right direction and keeps on moving
without much apparent direction, and
that is why the atmosphere of the state
house is SO reStful. New officers come
into the capitol generally start in with
great enthusiasm and an earnest effort
to busy themselves in some useful way
and convince their consciences that
they are earning the salaries they draw
each month. III case of an over emer-
getic official it may take longer, but
the average time is about one month
for an official 10 come to realizing
sense of the utter impOssibility of
keeping himself employed during the
six hours Of the business day. So he
learns to repOse his feet on the ma
hogany furniture, smoke good cigars
and talk about tie prospects, of the next
state campolgn. Every day he has to
be polite to a few groups of visitors
| who, having come to the state capitol,
| feel that their visit would have been
without purpose had they not gone to
see the state house. Bat most of the
| day tue occupation of the state officers
| is killing time, and the average state
officer is I'LL eminent success at the ell
tcrprise. Ii isn't his fault; he may
want to work, but there isn't any
thing to do.
Of course, the state house is the chief
attraction of the city presents to visi-
tors from abroad. Scarcely aday passes
that more or less distinguished callers
fromlalI over the country and even from
foreign countries do not add to the list
of tiattering testimonials to the beauty
aud architectural perfection of the big
lonesome pile. The visitors, unless they
have curiosity enough to wander into
the offices, can stroll about the huge
structure for hours at a time and see
nothing except the marble walls and
staircases and the statuary, which in
some cases would bear draping. There
is II young army of janitOrs, but the
visitor is seldom able to find one to
guide him in seeing the sights of the
building. The great rotunda and spa
cious halls echo md re-echO the clat-
tering footsteps OH the tiled floors, and
the peace and quiet of the building is
otherwise undisturbed from morning
until night.
The one thing that everybody in the
state house discusses is politics. For
SIX months after an election the events
of the last campaign are discussed;
and for six months after the prospects
of the coming election from the upper
cost topic. Everybody i'll the state
house is a politician; if he wasn't he