Omaha daily bee., 1901-02-27
Ercurxcs OF WASHINGTON LIFE.
scenes and incidents at the Hub Of
National Politics.


| People who contemplate doing Washing
ton during the Inauguration should 20 we'll
heeled. The national capital promises to
put up the largest and most skillful graft
ever worked in It's long and varied his
tory. Those who regard New orleans ma
tives as past masters In the art OF fatten-
ing a visitors purse should betake them
selves to Washington II they wish TO go
against the real thing. In the Crescent Sity
the carnival harvest is annual. II comes
TO Washington once every four years, con-
sequently residents OF the national capital
acquire an appetite OF the first magnitude,
which they proceed TO satisfy with n vora- =
cious rudeness that must be felt to be ap-
preciated There Is none OF the Crescent
City fnesse about Washington; none OF the
diplomatic hospitality that makes the vic
tim smile as the shearing proceeds. The
grafters at the national capital make no
secret Of their purpose to take all the
trafiic will bear, by applying the Harum
principle, ''Do others and do 'em quickly.
or they'll do you
| A correspondent OF the New York Times
throws some light on one feature OF the
graft. People living or doing business
on Pennsylvania avenue" he writes. "are
preparing for rich harvest and will get
It, Inauguration day is the one In four
years when the Washing gtonian, II he lives
on the line Of march. has nothing to do but
lie back and let riches roll in on him. 1t
matters not how poor and scrubby his house
or store is during the rest OF the year, and
some Of the places on the avenue are pretty
poor, IL is worth more than palace on that
day. People who want to spend several
hours sitting at window and seeing the
Inn su,,r 1a xxill tl.n
owner anything he wants for It,
1.-THE local papers are full Of advertise
ments announcing windows rooms and bal
comics to let on Inauguration day. The
prices are not given, as a rule, the adver-
tiser contenting himself with defining them
as reasonable No doubt they are rea-
sonable as compared with what the adver-
tisers could get II they formed a union and
Washington were visited only by million
aires. In addition to the newspaper adver.
tisements there are placards in windows all
the way down the avenue. A few enterprls-
ing citizens have secured options on win
dows in different houses and stores and are
dealing extensively in them.
Most of the windows are over stores
and every one OF them is claimed by the
advertiser to have the finest view on the
avenue. man who expected some rela.
auguration day with him visited some of
the advertised places and sought to obtain
accommodation for them. In most cases he
found that as soon as his modest wants
were made known the window dealers re-
fused to talk to him at all.
| Pursuing his Investigations. the man with
the relatives discovered four windows to let
for $15 apiece. They we're fairly large for
fiat, and this was the cheapest bargain
| he found In his entire journey They were
| on the top floor of good-sized building,
to be sure. which lessened their attractions
onsiderably-partly because people, es-
pecially from Vermont, doNnot like to climb
stairs, and partly because 1t is much pleas
anter to see the faces Of the paraders in
stead OF the tops OF their hats. For the
rest, the rooms all rented for high prices.
| Only the undesirable ones could be had In
sections, and they cost S25 a window. All
| the desirable ones had to be taken In a
lump, and 500 or $3.50 was quite the Gus
tomary price,
Senator Tillman is happy. The pension
bill in which he was interested has been
| signed by the president
| A few days ago, relates the Washington
| Post, Mr.. Tillman swore before Almighty
God that he would not let any pension bill
pass the senate until his own particular
measure had been acted upon. He had q
constituent down in South Carolina named
| Jim Thomas, who fought in the Mexican
war. He was brave man, beyond doubt
| for he climbed the hill of Chapultepec and
| helped to pull down the Mexican colors and
raise the American flag. In another battle
| he had had his arm shot Off. He got his
pension, but having in 1861 given aid and
| comfort to the confederate cause. his al
| lowance was cut OFF. The senate agreed to
repension him, but the house held UP the
| bill. That is, the holding up process lasted
| until Mr.. Tillman delivered his ultimatum
| and then the bill was passed. Now pen
sion bills go through the senate as IL they
| were creased
ut sometimes pays" says Mr.. Tllman,
ito show your teeth"
But the end is not yet for the passage
of the bill is virtually q repeal of the law
| which debars Mexican veteran from re-
ceiving q pension because he sympathized
| with the confederate cause. And there
are thousands In the south.
The kodak is being regulated in Wash
ington. Use Of II Is forbidden not only
| In the White House. but about the grounds
| surrounding the mansion, says the st. Louis
| Globe Democrat. To take snapshots around
the capitol is possible only on a permit OBJ
tanned from the sergeant-a at-arms. The
| use OF cameras in the senate and house
galleries Is positively forbidden. Likewise
the navy yard and gun foundry are closed
to amateur photography. And now the
propriety OF still further limiting the use
OF the lens and film, except upon license,
| is being agitated.
| The door of tho senate committee on
commerce opens by the elevator that is
| sacred to senator's and members OF the
press gallery, says the New York World
| The other afternoon there was full meet.
| ing OF the committee. A dozen senators.
including Mr.. Hanna. came out at 8
o'clock. A fussy little man, chaperoning a
| big fellow with a loud check suit. a nous
tache and fierce imperial, had been wait
| ing at the door for half an hour. He
rushed over. took Hanna by the arm and
dragged him over to the man with the
| imperial.
Hey. senator" said the fussy
little man. IL want you to meet my friend"
He mumbied something and Senator Hanna
| took the hand OF the man with the i'm
| perial and said frigidly: "I am very glad