Omaha daily bee., 1897-02-06
LIFE OF A CONGRESSMAN
Traced by the Experienced Hand o.
Thomas Bracket Reed.
DISTANT VIEWS FAR FROM THE REAl
ola md New Members and Their many
PerpIexing Duties with the Dep"r'-
ments Useless Speeches
Morale of the House.

Morale of the House.
HIM Thomas B. Reed. speaker oil the
house OF representatives, contributes W
Youths companion an interesting sketch oi
the life of a member Of congress, inter
spersed with chunks Of advice anu crH'
cism. Speaker Reed says:
In the constitution OF the unlteu states
the senate and house OF representative
together are called the congress- Hence
In strictness, senators and representative
are alike members of congress; but IN every
day language the name Is given 10 rep
resentatives only, and they alone "rlVe ~
C.. after their names. 1t Is the ne Vi II
representative only which l shall try TO
sketch, and Of that lie L can hope " e'o
but the merest outline.
7, ia n fact Of almost universal application
that we see the bright side Of every other
mans occupation, and seldom the dark
side. The dark eide OF our own lives we
clearly know. and we are quite as apt 10
exaggerate It's blackness as we are TO mag
nifty the good another enjoys.
Probably a great many young people
think that the life Of a member OF congress,
with 81. 900 a year, Is a life OF pleasure, com
fort and luxury, full of power and dignity.
If they do not, they have changed very
much from the young people OF my way
or course they have changed in other ways,
and much for the better, but proDaply hot
In this estimate of things.
OF course, the young people are right IN a
measure. Ii is an honorable duty to per-
form-that of representing 15O.Oon or 2Oo,ooo
people in their relations with the io'oVv'-
600 of other people in a great nation, We
prosperity of which may be aiectea by t ne
representatives wisdom, either In giving
good advice or blowing good advice given
by Others, either in acting or refusing TO
PERSONAL DUTIES.
Rut the picture has some shadows as well
nc lights. A congressman has labors to per-
form as we'll as position to enjoy, and as a
man gets older he sets less and less value on
place and position.
Tho duties he has to perform are not by
any means uniform. They depend upon the
wants and needs, real or imagined, OF MS
district. All districts are not equally inter
ested in things at Washington. Some DIS
= tricts, especially those in the east ana on
the Atlantic coast outside of the great cities
have very little to do with the bureaus al
Washington.
In the west, and especially in the newly
settled states, and relations with the interior
department, and particularly with the lano
office. are very close and very important tc
the individual constituent. To have 100 let
tiers a day, all relating to business before
the departments, is not an uncommon eNpe'
Renee lOT IL ltilUt ohS
braska, for in those states all land title:
come. or are to come, from the government
and many of them have to be finally ad1udl
Gated at Washington in case of dispute. -,
All the members have much to do Wit
pensions. They bring special cases to tn
notice of the bureau, and hasten decisions
Here, again, the western member is niue
more harrassed than we of the east, becaus
so many of our soldiers, broadened by con
tact with brother soldiers from all over tn
United States, were emboldened to try thei
fortunes in the frontier communities.
So all the distribution of revenue raised b
taxes along the rivers and harbors, the lr
dams, the navy. agriculture, public building
and all other items Of government eXpend
ture make much correspondence and pushes
for members.
toned that any one of the $50. 900 constituent
Is at perfect liberty to write his views o
religion or finance to his meniber and e,
poets at least an acknowledgment. Luckil
nowadays, thanks to reform in the civil ser'
ice, considerable time is saved which used
go to the service of those who wished to a
sist their country by holding its offices.
NEW MEMBERS.
The official duties may be more or les
according I'd the prominence OF the membe
Every new member, like a young lawyer
- merchant newly come to town, has to sho
what there is in him and win his own way.
Distinction won in other fields of endeav
will gain a man a hearing for the first tim
DuL not alteTWbTu. IL ne NlsHtS " Tain a
be listened to, he had better have somethir
to say and know how to say 1t.
Most men are not listened to. Most OF Il
long speeches sent to constituents have
effect on the house, and might as well ma
been delivered In an attic or poured into
tanning machine. That they are delivered
all is largely owing TO the strange mistal
which our country has not got over-that
good member must be an orator. Now eve
man wants to be thought a good membe
hanpa ha SnpphinpS In the 'CODgreSSlOn
Record"
In early days, when there was little to
and few members, no doubt the country ow
much of its education to such speeches, b
In these days debate-that sort of speaki
In which q man says only what he knows
we'll that he does not need to put 1t on pap
would seem to be a far more advantageo
consumption OF time. General educate
such as 1t Island / do not under-value II
comes from newspapers and other sources.
The early impression a new member q
when he fstens for the first few weeks
that there are In the house an astonishi
number Of men who know how to talk we
but after awhile he sees the limitations
each man, and finds there are In the wol
but few Clays, Blaines. Schencks and q
fields. who can talk well about many m
tiers.
Another thing which rather surprises I
new members Is that the vote does not SCI
TO follow the argument. lilo does not co
prehend that people who do rot talk m
think. and may not thlnk 10 the Same CO
clusion as those who talk. Nor does he co
prehend the tremendous diversity of int
ests In the house, He knows vaguely Il
this is a great country; indeed, he has
quently heard persons say So, and has 81
80 himself; but he does not understand u
a thousand miles of distance Is q tremendI
change OF the point OF view.
II we could only make the intelligent n
all over the country realize the sectio
differences of opinion which our greatn
occasions, the whole people would look W
more reasonableness upon those who try
do what is feasible, and with less patiel
upon those whom only the whole earth
the way OF legislation will content.
The new member In his first term,
often long afterward, finds the rules a 7
petual stumbling block and rock OF offer
He wants to talk and to get his measu
before the house, and somehow he ne
can. II he stops to reason about II, he