Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1898-01-27


'.CongresslonaI Tips"
Tbs subject of Congressional tips
Ia treated in an interesting manner by
the Washington correspondent Of the
New York Evening Post. He writes
that the Textbooks say that members
OF Congress receive salary OF 50, 900 a
year, but the rerquisites that go with
the Office, of which nothing is said, are
such as constantly to arouse antagonsm
of HomB sort, Last week it was the
seedsmen of thu country who were
trying to break up tina government
practice of giving each Congressman
thousands of packages of seeds for him
In turn to scatter as chromos" through
his district. This week the florists OF
Washington are up in arms against ths
practice of distributing flowers among
tue Congressman from the botanical
and pronogating gardens maintained by
the government. The florists have
banded together for the purpose OF
shutting off this tip; they allege that
not Gully are they deprived of SO much
trade which might otherwise come to
them. hut that in certain instances they
actually have to compete" with flowers
which are grown at public expense
10 recent contribution to one OF tho
local newspapers q responsible florist
says over his signature: iii few
aifidavits sworn to before notary pub.
lie would aid in your conviction, am
ready to furnish several showing that
orders, ranging from S25 upwards, were
actually taken out of my hands through
the interference of head OF govern.
ment establishment. and 1 have no
doubt other florists could do the
same.
The implication here is that some
government functionaries are selling
the .'tips" which the government fur
nishea in addition to their regular
salaries. But this would be nothing
remarkable. Secretary Morton, il will
be recalled, found that certain mem
Der OF Congress from a city district
was regularly selling his quota of
government seeds to Wholesale dealer.
This is not much worse than having
the seeds so to waste by sending thnm
where they would he of no use, as il
necessarily done to a considerable OK
tent. In the case of the flowers, the
Superintendent Of Public Buildings
and Grounds sends bouquet, about
once zach week. nominally to the wife
of each member of Congress. The
statesmen who have little extra in
fusnce-who happen to be on com.
mittees that control the appropriations
-;-get few more rosies, and SO it goes.
But the flowers are tips just as the
seeds are tips, and the hurse book, of
which 100, 600 additional copies have
Just been ordered. is a tip.
BESIDES the allowance of STATIONERY
and mileage, when very considerable
number of Congressman ride on rail
road passes, the provision for twelve.
hundred dollar clerk ia, practically
speaking, very considerable tin. The
law simply directs that such an amount
of money be paid to each member of
the House for clerical assistance, but
there is no established roll of clerks
and the individual member is ut liberty
to pay anywhere from $4,000 year to
nothing at all for clerical assistance, as
he sees fit. The more we'll to do East.
ern members. almost without execution
pay considerably more for clerical as.
distance than their 81, 200 but TO great
many oil the more impecunious n:em-
bers thisis SO much extra cash. Some
members have no secretary, while the
wires and daughters of others perform
such clerical work as is doomed necea.
sary. In this way no money pnes out
of the family. The division OF House
and Senate patronage Mt the Capitol is
another Tip, and so are the barber.
shop and Turkish. bath privileges. and
the quota of maps, books, and exhibits
from nearly all the departments which
congressman have for distribution,
But it is the flowers and seeds Of late
that have been making the most trouble.
These tips. taken in connection
with the regulation salaries and Tho
honor attached to the position, 20 to
prove that the lot of the average Com
gresham is not an unhappy one, by
any means.