Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1895-01-16
LIONS OF THE HOUSE.
Congressman Who Are Always Pointed
Out to Strangers.
A Woman's Idea Of a Real Statesman-Ihe
Desire for Office.

hour for visitors TO the caption. Moso VI
the statesmen are in their seats ready &c
begin the days wTk, and strangers are
freely admitted to the hall. They may
walk about and survey the great men u
their hearts content. Every visitor has
his own congressman. and this worthy nc
may look up and sit down and have
chat with him. Odds are he will find that
statesman sitting deep in the recesses OF
the cloakroom smoking big cigar and
swapping stories with other congressman,
but when friend from home is spicd he
will jump up and give royal weioGine
Strangers in the hall of the house wander
about looking for Tom Reed and Burrows
and Jerry Simpson and tho other lions,
and almost every day Mr.. Reed is accostcd
by strangers, who say they simply want
to shake his hand. People do not have to
be introduced TO Reed or have him pointed
out. Every one knows him by his pic
lures. To such strangers the big man
from Maine is always very gracious, and
he has delighted many man or woman
from the country by asking them tn sit
down beside him and talk for a little while
1t is an honor which one may remember
as long as he lives. On the Democratic
side Bourke Cochran is mere asked foi
than any other statesman. All tho stran
gers appear to have heard of the man who
had the quarrel with Dick Croker, and
they all want to see him.
Only a Newspaper Man.
A quarter of an hour before noon one Ct
the house officials gets up at tho speaker J.:
desk and sings out that he is directed by
the sergeant alarms to ask all persons IN
the hall who are not entitled to the priv.
leges of the floor to leave at once, and
when this announcement is made it is easy
to tell how many strangers there are pres
ent. The man who does not know the
ways of Washington retires at once. He
thinks if he docs not leave the hall some
big official will come around and throw
him out The habtuc of the capitol knows
better He is well aware that until the
session actually begins no one will disturb
him. 1t often happens that newspaper cor
respondents. sitting about on the floor III
conversation with their congressional
friends, forget themselves and are caught
by the stroke of the clock at midday. Once
/ saw four newspaper men standing up or
the floor while the chaplain offered prayer,
and as soon as the prayer was over they
got out of the hall in II hurry
One day l was in the gallery just before
the meeting of tho house, cscorting a
young woman from a distant state. 1t was
her first visit to congress. Womanlikc,
she was critical as to the personal appear
ance of the members. She was much dis
tressed because tho statesmen sat with theii
feet upon their desks and because they
smoked so necessarily their very bad CT
CARS. That the cigars of congressman are
generally bad one may tell by sitting a lit
tie while in the gallery, where the fumes
rise in great white clouds. This young wo
man looked the crowd of legislators over
and confessed her disappointment. There
is not one of them that meets my idea OF
what statesman ought to be, - she said.
"They do not appear smart and able ana
dignified and thoughtful. They are toe
commonplace Oh,' she exclaimed as her
eyes alighted upon very handsome and
dignifed gentlemen OH the floor, there is
one statesman. See him there near the
speakers desk. He is the only one 1 have
seen who looks like what l had in my
mind as an ideal statesman. Who is he?"
That" l was forced to reply lis nc
statesman at all. He is a newspaper man
and a right poor one at that"
Veteran Senators at Lunch.
If you visit the capitol and go down tc
the senate restaurant about l O'Clock in
the afternoon. you will see something that
will surprise you. Sitting about the tables
in the two large rooms reserved exclusive.
ly for the Use of senators you will find
eight or ten of the oldest senators eating
their luncheon. 1t has become a well
known fact about the senate restaurant
tl,,t t1N,, ,fS,rc TO IL
At l o'clock you will he pretty sure to find
Senators Morrill,, sherman, Palmer, Plat,
Hoar, Cockrell, Harris and the other vet,
Grams of the service. The younger men
come littio later. When l asked the
keeper of the restaurant for an explana-
ton of this, he replied: 1t is very simple.
The older senators are the early risers.
They get up and have breakfast long be-
fore the younger men arc out of bed They
have the old fashioned ways of living and
don't sit up as late nights as the men o,
the younger generation. The natural 70
suit is that they want their luncheon
earlier in the day
Evidence of the great rush there is now
adays for government appointments may
be found in the case of u certain vacant
consulship 1t pays salary of 81, 500
year and is in a climate known for it's un
healthfulncss, the people there being af
flcted a great deal with yellow fever But
yellow fever or cholera apparently has n,
terrors for an office seeker. At any rate,
Senator Palmer of Illinois tells me there
are l3 applicants for this consulship from
his state alone, and he thinks that tho to
tai number OF applicants must be nearly-s
hundred.
Men Who Speculate In Stocks.
A mania fer speculation has broken oui
in the national capital. Since last sum
mer's speculation in sugar stocks nearly
every one in Washington has become i'm
bued with the idea that he may get ricl
by buying shares speculatiycly. The re
suit is that the city is full of brokers' of
fees. Where thesa were five or six of thcs,
shops year ago there are now at least
80, and moro are opened every week |
Clerks in the public departments are
catching the specializing fever, and ",
hear stories of men who have lost thei |
homes and who have seen the savings o
many years swept away in a few days |
Two or three men have made lucky strikes |
One clerk in the treasury is said TO hay
cleared 500, 600 in seven weeks off CAPT |
tai of $500. For every such case there ar,