The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1896-02-12
FILED FOR CONGRESS.
HISTORIC AND UNIQUE OLD NEWsPA-
PERS STORED IN THE CAPITOL.

teresting Exhibits Among Uncle Sans
Many Treasures-Ali Our War Maps Are
Also Preserved There.
One Of the most interesting departments
In the Washington capitol is the newspaper
file room. The habit Of keeping files was
contracted by the senate in its early days,
when journals first began to print reports
of legislative proceedings. The government
became subscriber for The National In
telligencer, daily paper printed in the city
of Washington. This historic sheet was
started in the year 1900 and continued for
many years to be the only paperi in the coun-
try that gave quick reports of congressional
doings. This was in the days before the
telegraph and the newspapers published
away from here were dependent for their
legislative news upon this paper. In 1876
The Union was established and continued
for II years.
Files of these two old papers, with some
others of the north and south were carefully
kept in the senate, and were the source Of
constant information for both senator's and |
representatives, who depended upon them
In many cases far more confidently than
upon The Globe, About eight years ago
these files, which had been moved from
place to place and were In danger Of being |
destroyed, were transferred by resolution
of congress to the care of the librarian of
congress, who had them placed with the
files that he had been keeping and stored
away under the crypt. Over 1 100 volumes
/ were transferred.
Mr.. Van Ness, the guardian, has den
under the rotunda floor. He was found at
work by the reporter. A great clothes
basket stands on top, filled to overlooking
with the latest issues of the press.
THAT is my morning mail" remarks Mr..
Van Ness as he lays his hand affectionately
upon the mass of reading matter. ut is a
rather poor morning too. Sometimes there
are two baskets. l take these papers as
soon as can each day and sort them out.
You may see these shelves and big pigeon
holes behind you. Well, each one is for a
certain paper. Some of the boxes, you no.
tice, are filled. The files in those are nearly
ready to be sent to the government bindery
to be put between covers. Some of the pa
pers bind up at two months and others at
four
j "Then every two months" he went on,
fumbling through a drawer in the table,
"they send me their current files from the
senate, which have to collate very care
fully. l take them from their temporary
binders and go through them particularly
to see what numbers are missing. Then ]
write to the publication Offices of the papers
and try to supply the deficiencies. When
the volumes are as complete as can make
them, they go to the binder.
You can see from this list the number OF
papers we get here" rs he handed out a
carefully kept book that contained the
names of upward of a hundred of the best
journals published in the country. 1t
, Icbn dat nf on, Anti arI
date of sending the volumes to the binder,
as well as that of its return. 1.-The senate
takes 81 papers now in addition to these. 1t
keeps me pretty busy attending to them all.
Let us walk through the vaults, and you can
see what quantity of material we have
here.'
The books were arranged in alphabetical
order of states, beginning with the earliest
newspapers of Alabama published in 1919.
A few steps took the two around in a cir
Gle, which completed the list of states and
brought forth the names of the European
capitals
, For we have some very complete files of
foreign papers," said the custodian 1--WE
have the London Times from its beginning,
from before it was The Times, in fact.
Then here are files of the Manchester
Guardian, and here is u set of Galignani's
|
from the state department that furnish us
with many valuable additions. Here is a
complete file up to short time ago of lie
Constitutional, a French paper. And
here are the magazines both of this country
and Europe Here is about the best col
lection of The Gentleman's Magazine in
the country.
Now you have seen the files that are re-
ferred to the most. Off down there" indi-
eating the mysterious passage that led to
the other side of the capitol, "are the old
fellows that are in duplicate up stairs in
the library. The Intelligencer is there in
a special case. Here" showing the way
into perfectly dark vault about feet
wide and turning off to the left at the
, lower end, "are copies of every map that
has ever been copyrighted in this country.
The gem of this collection is not very we'll
known. 1t consists of all the maps that
were used during the various wars In
which this country has been engaged. The
maps were issued by the war department
and turned back after they were needed no
longer and then turned over to us for
preservation. There are some curious rel
les down there" added the custodian tan
talizingly, as he turned back out of the
dark.
you think you have seen all my books,
Dut you nave not. come across the c0rrl-
dor and see our little annex" and the way
was led to little bit of room that has
been built among the pillars of the crypt,
where the papers of the new west are
stored.
: "Our policy has been to take two papers
from each large place, one of each party;
but out in the west we have to take three,
now that the Populists are given to pub
fishing their views on things.
'Here is curio." said Mr.. Van Ness,
laying his hand fondly upon pile of three
portfolios labeled 1.-THE National Antisla-
very Standard"
THAT is one Of the most unique files Of
the lot, for 1t contains a vast amount of in
formation about the first antislavery move
hents. 1t was published in New York
from 1S41 to 1870. This is the only file in
the world that is at all complete There are
few copies missing from the first six vol
umes and the last two, SO we have not had
them bound regularly. Then here is a
record of other days than those of war and
strife-a record of New York's political con.
ventions and of fashionable doings"-
Washington Star.
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