Virginian-pilot. (Norfolk, Va.) 1898-1911, 1900-04-22
WASHINGTON
WEEKLY LETTER.
Continued from Page ~.

in the present Congress was Col. Will
liam p. Hepburn. of Iowa. He pre-
sided in Committee OF the Whole when
the financial bill was under cousidera-
ton in December last. 1t was a long
ana an arduous service. Hepburn,
however, is us able in the chair as on
the moor. He promptly trims sail when
theswind Is from the West. blowing in
ntiul gusts. and is neither capsized nor
orlVen from his course. Fortified by
long experience in legislation and by
q mead unusually clear when intricate
questions are raised. he set the pace
Tor the Assistant Speakers who were to
follow him. The financial bill went
INTO the Senate as though the ways OF
iesislation had been we'll tallowed.
iehN ins, no irritation and no heart
purnlnEs in the ranks 'of the minority
another OF the staff officers of Gen-
eral Henderson is Gen. John +. Lacey.
OF OSkalooSa. He usually presides in
committee OF the Whole when pension
DIS are under consideration. This was
always the case when Friday nights
were set apart for such measures.
Mrs. Lacey at last spoke of her hus
band as the SHUTDOWN speaker com
pairing him with the physicians in the
departments who practice their profess
SION after p. m, and who are called
shutdown doctors" Lacey is an excel
lent presiding officer. He SO much re-
Semoies Russell A. Alger that Tom
weed upon meeting him in the lobby
soon after the fall of Santiago. is said
to have drawled out: Lacey. YOU look
so much like the Secretary of War that
you ought to be whitewashed
another skillful staff officer of the
speaker Is Capt. John A. Il. Hull. of
Oes Moines. He officiated as Assistant
speaker during the discussion OF the
Porto Rican bill during February. He
was like n man in n hailstorm, but wos
shielded by the umbrella of harse sense,
HUH Is not snowy presiding officer.
put an exceedingly effective one. He
does his work quietly and with no
flourish of trumpets.
General Grosvenor took his turn as
Assistant Speaker while the fortihca-
.ions Dill was before the House OH
March 81. He presdes in n matter-of
TACT way, attending strictly to the for
muia and banging the desk with the
gaNel at appropriate intervals, He
lacks the rapid utterance and clear
ness OF enunciation OF his colleagues in
the Assistant Speakershp. but he is
eminetly fair, going to extremes at
times to preserve the rights of the
minority. Grosvenor In the chair and
Grosvenor on the floor are two distinct
persons.
John Dalzell, of Pennsylvania, Is also
an Assistant Speaker. Like General
Grosveror. he is n member of the com
mittee on rules. Both are trusty lieu
tenants of General Henderson. DaIzell
presided in committee In January last.
when the urgent deficiency bill was
passed. Dalzells Pylades, Serene
Payne, was a favorte presiding officer
under Thomas B. Reed. He occupied
the chair in committee on March 5.
while bills reported from the Commit
tee on the District of Columbia were
before the House. His long experience
hts him admirably for the chair, but
1t is not customary to call the chair
man of the Ways and Means Commit
tee to preside. Reed never called Major
Mckinley to preside in committee in
the Fifty-hrst Congress, and neither
Roger @. Mills nor William L. Wilson
was placed in the chair under the adj
ministration OF Speaker Crisp. Nor
was NILS ever called to the chair by
Speaker Carlisle.
A new Assistant Speaker is James A.
Hemenway, of Indiana. He has served
four years in Congress, and landed on
the Committee on Appropriations in his
first term. He had charge OF the for
tihcation bill In the present House.
and acts as Assistant Speaker whenever
claim bills are brought before it. He
Is quiet and unassumlng, and has made
The other day n fine-lookng gentle
man, whose olive complexion and black
hair (what there IS OF I'D and mus
tache, were suggestive OF Cen. John
a. Logan. appeared in the chair while
the agricultural bill was being CON
sidered The old members of the House
stared at him in astonishment. some
saying they had never seen him be-
fore. and others wondering why he was
called to the chair. lie yas the IIaa
James NJ. Z. O'Cirady, of Rochester.
He has been n member of the House n
little over four months and was prob
ably selected for his parliamentary
ability, having been speaker of the AS
sembly at Albany for several years.
SO much for the pouter pigeons OF
the Congressional dove cote All COO to
the satisfaction of themselves aud of
the Speaker, if not of the House Three
come from the Speakers own State.
and were soldiers of the war for the
Union. Mr.. Henderson. unlike Mr..
Reed, at times places Democrats in the
chair. Mr.. Richardson, of Tennessee:
Mr.. Griggs. of Georgia. and Mr.. Rob
ertson. OF louisiana, have acted as
Speaker pro temnore on several oc-
casions. Shrewd observers note that
the Speaker always selects an old SOL
der to preside when bills involving the
claims of veterans come before the
House. AMOS J. CUMMINGS