The Pioche weekly record. [volume] (Pioche, Nev.) 1877-1900, 1897-09-16
LEAVE 10 PRINT.


Speeches In the CONGREGATIONAL RECORD
Which Were Never Delivered.
The greater part OF the contents OF
the Congressional Record these DAYS.
says the New York sun, Is composed
Of belated reyisions OF remarks made
In the House while the Dingley tariff
bill was under discussion. or post
norton observation on the general sub
iect Of the bill. which are printed by
authority OF the House contained In the
special order adopted for regulating
The consideration OF the measure In the
House. IL provided that for twenty |
lays subsequent to the final vote on the
passage OF the bill members might
print In the Record extensions Of re-
marks made In the debate. or. II they |
so desired. speeches. no part OF which !
had been delivered. This practice Of
granting leave to print" has come
down to the present from the mists Of
antiquity. as II were, and no one knows
its origin. II is and has been grossly
abused. and at times has been the occa-
sion OF animated discussions In the
House as to the right OF a member to
insert remarks he never made in the
House.
Representative Wheeler OF Alabama
holds the record for expansion, under
leave TO print" Getting the door for
single minute on one occasion, MEM
bers were astonished to see In the Rec
ord the next morning that in that min
ute he had delivered himself Of about
four pages Of the Record, a space
which ordinarily covers an hour 20 an
hour and half of the proceedings.
DIR. Hunter, a member from Illinois,
whose speech on the tariff bill appear
ed recently, seems likely to give the
genial Albanian a close brush for first
place. His post-mortem effort covers
twenty-five pages of the Record, and
Is believed to be an uneQualed perform
ance in its line.
The Withholding of speeches for re-
vision, a practice also sanctioned by
hoary-headed precedent, is subject to
criticism. There is apparently no rule
regulating the matter, and the conse-
quence Is that the Record occasionally
} fails to fully record the proceedings.
A member on one occasion made a
speech, the newspaper report Of which
formed the basis Of an attack by his
opponent In the next campaign. The
Congressman denied having uttered
the remarks attributed TO him, and ap'
pealed to the Record to sustain him
, The challenge was eagerly accepted by
his rival, who, not being up to all the
l tricks of Congressman. was covered
I with confusion at his failure to find the
alleged speech. The member had sim
ply withheld his remarks for revi
s sion" and then calmly pocketed them
9 In the old days of the Congressional
Q Globe the reporters Of debates wer'
I the victims Of this practice. Anon,
l the traditions at the Capitol is one II
g which the late Gen. Nathaniel p. Banks
I at one time Speaker, was the chief &C
: tor The story goes that at one stag
Il Of his career Mr.. Banks was a pupil o
, a teacher of elocution In Washington
and he sought every opportunity on tn
floor of the House to practice the arr
Many Of these speeches, evidently, h
did not care to embalm for posterit
in the enduring record of the Hous
proceedings. After having conclude
he would ask the reporter to Withhold
the manuscript from the printer an
give it to him for revision. Thes
speeches, 1t is related, he never return
ed, and subsequently a chestful or tw
were found in his room. In those day
the Globe reporters were paid 81 co
umn for their work as 1t appeared
print, and 1t cost them about 81 of tn
to transcribe their notes. So 1t ma
easily be imagined that that part Of IL
tradition is true which AYERS that whel
ever Mr.. Banks rose to speak groa
traversed the reporters bench.