Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1897-12-31
Special corresnondence.

impression Is of pampered and idle
individual who is paid fat salary for
making a spectacular show of himself
in the Congressional amphitheater, fol
saying aye and nay at his party's call,
distributing n few seeds and docu-
mehts. and perhaps delivering one or
two spread eagle speeches in course of
Il session. The salary attached, to say
nothing of the pereuisites, is considered
by the masses as much more than
equivalent for the services performed
and many are of the opinion that the
honor Of the position, coupled with its
influence in securing positions for
friends and political adherents. is COM
pensatlon enough ana that no salary
should be required
To be sure, the fortunate NJ. C. has
honors showered upon him and many
emoluments outside his regular hire
as servant of the people. but he earns
his 5000 n year. every cent of It. The
hod-carrer would kick" with vigor IL
compelled to labor more than eight
hours per diem, or ten at the most; but
the national legislators hours average
deed his work is ever done, for his busy
brain goes on milling schemes and po-
litical problems, even in the Land OF
Dreams. Let us follow a member
through his usual day and see how he
spends the time. He rises at eight
o'clock-which IL very early in Wash
ington, where night Is turned into day
and the hours. de regeur, for social
pleasure begin at nine p. M. and con-
tinue into the wee sma' hours of the
morning. Long before he Is out OF BED,
cards have been coming in, and visitors
waiting to see him. His valet-if he
is rich enough to indulge In such an
appendaEe. or servant of his hotel or
boarding house-raps discreetly on his
door when the pressure becomes too
great to be longer withstood; and at
once the sleepy NJ C. is in harness and
bis working day begins. Perhaps the
frst word he hears is Lady to see
you, sab; been waitin since sebben
er'clock, sah" So he dresses In haste,
but OF course with the care which his
position demands. and deHcends break
fastless. to the parlor, where his tor
mentors await him. He finds them
grouped near the door-a jealous
looking party, each glaring Mt the
others as who should say, HE is the
member from my district" and every
one of them plainly feels, II he, or she.
does mol say IL IN WOTuS, ii Chilli On tnt
Congressmap's services because his, OF
her, relatives voted for him. Here Is
widow in weeds and woe, whose PEN
sion for the long-ago services of her
husband. Uncle Samuel. should in
crease. in order to add sugar to the
bread and butter: or whose boy must
be appointed as page in the Capitol, or
who is herself an applicant for some
thing easy to do in the pay of the
government. There is the good looking
young woman, fashonably attired, and
confidently smiling-or rather, there
may be dozens of her every day. She
has come up from his district, expect
ing to be put right into the treasury at
a salary Of n thousand year and she
wants to consult him as to which partic-
ular place he would better get for her,
or she brings him a letter from some
forgotten acquaintance residing thou
sand miles from his district, asking
him to please put her into one of the
departments" As If those coveted
places were to be had for the asking,
How little people outside of Washing
ton seem to understand that for every
vacancy, actual or prospective. there
are hundreds OF applications; that
Congress. as a body. egged on by eager
constituents, are perpetually clamorins
ut the doors of the departments for
places which they know cannot be OBJ
talned; and that civil service has added
thousand fold to the difficulties in the
way! Another caller may be veteran
member of the G. A. II. who thinks he
has been Illegally discharged from gov
eminent employ and wants to get back
again. Others are college friends. or
army comrades, who desire q personal
Introduction to the President. Others
are merely constituents who are in
town for II few days and feel fairly en-
titled to the service of the NJ. e. in
fnf hn
vote for him? Sadder than all. and not
least numerous. are the applicants for
charlty-men and women who came
here to urge claims of appointments,
which they have failed to get, whose
money ana hopes have both disap-
peared, and now entirely destitute
they must be fed and sent home Mt the
Congressman's expense. Disposing OF
all these, without once mislaylng LIS
temper, the NJ G. gets his breakfast
taking his letters with him to reud and
digest along with the chops and
eggs. First, OF course. the home letters
from wife and children. If they are not
with him at Northumberland com
paratively few Congressman can AFFORD
to keep them in this most expensiv,
city; from his aged parents, breathing
pride In their distinguished son, which
he vows In his secret heart to deserve
and perhaps the devoted wife, who Il
patiently bearing all the home burdens
while her lord is away, has guided tn,
babys hand in some scrgWlings acros
the page, which actually bring tear
to the eyes of the polished man OF tn
world. Right here let me enter m,
emphatic protest against the impress
sion which prevails in the rural dis
trict anent the immortality OF tn
average Congressman. Why should
hitherto respectable citizen, whom hi
friends and neighbors have truste,
well enough to elect as their repre-
sentative, suddenly lose all sense q
moral Obligation when he comes &
Washington? when you are In Rom,
do as the iomans,' Is q wise old saw
but the Romans themselves may be dc
cent people. This is not the wicked
est city" MS many suppose. not by
very great deal, The searchllgh
of publicity Is turned too full upo
It's high places to admit Of shpd
dolngs, and peoples minds are oecu
pied by things of far greater impor
tence. ] am aware that the fuTegoin
statement sounds a good deal like tn
placard which the good deacon poste
In his melon natch--"Boys, let thes
melons alone, They amt ripe, and Go
gees you;"-but there Is truth In Il
nevertheless.
A Copgrcssman's mail represents
great deal of his hardest labor. IL
not all received at his residence, bu
the bulk of 1t goes to the Capitol Pos
Office. and Is piled upon his desk by
page. The wise NJ. G. answers all hi
letters. II n veteran member of N
House. he may get from seVenty-fiy
TO one hundred n day, on all manner