The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1901-12-15
The New Congressman
Some of the Things That He Will Learn in
Washington.
Washing ton.
BrookIvn EAGLE.

Brooklyn Eagle)
The Fifty-seventh congress comes into
active life ON Dec. 2 WREN, in accordance
with the constitution. IT meets for the
first time. In he year that has ensued
since his election the new congressman
has had some opportunity to IamihaFize
himself with one side of his Official ire.
he has taken up the burden or pension
getting and office seeking for his con-
Ctiuuents end learned something or has
perquisItes III --arden seed and stationery
POSSIBLY he -.s bcen 20 Washiiet3l
learned the location of the departments
and met the cabinet officers ana the APP
pOmtment clerks.
But the average congressman, unless ne
Is man eff independent means, does -lOL
come TO Washington until he can draw
mileage. The law allows him 10 cents
q mile for each session of congress, feeA-
Oning the journey by the shortest route OK
travel. That allowance was made Tor q
time when travel was slow and expensive.
Now the new congressman travels on a
pass and puts the mileage allowance 10
his pocket. IL is quite a neat sum-the
Pacific coast congressman receives about
SlS0-and is the first of the perCulsltes
which make 10 possible for him 20 save
part OF his 5000 salary each year. 1
know Of a congressman from the south
many years ago who came 20 Wasnlhs-
ton determined to save his entlre salary
He lived on his mileage ans stationery
allowances at a cheap boarding house,
walked to the capitol each day, carving
his luncheon, and actually took SiO,UW
into private life at the end of his two
years of service. He came to Washing
ton without a cent and retired IN com
parative affluenCe, for his savings bought
one Of the best plantations In his section
Of the south.
"StatiOneIy' is another congressional
a4aAr -#rs- d
of the cacitol clerks, it cas- crept into
the system where today 1t has no rea-
sonable excuse. The stationery" allow
ance was originally an allowance Tor
postage and stationery for official buSi-
ness made when the ranking privilege
was abolished. But today the government
furnishes an unlimited quantity ot oI-
fetal stationery and all oIIlclai letters
are carried free. Fortunately for the new
congressman, he may commute his
stationery allowance or draw it i'm cash
S125. Usually. he draws the greater part
of it in cash. Looking over report OF
the clerk If the house for recent con-
gress this can be seen:
George d. Perkins
b. allowance ...........-...-........-.$l2 %
To stationery .............,,..,........ . %
j. Z. Reyburn-
~ allowance ...''''''''''''''''''''''-Sl ~ ~
To stationery -...............s......... 8 ~
S. II. Stevenson
By allowance .......-'.'''''''''.''''''Sl W
TO SrauOneTy OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES. 10 10
W. L. Terry
BY allowance ..................,.....- 90
To cash ............-.. .-.....-..--. I'd uJ
And so l. goes Nor does it follow that
that frugal S15.4S is spent for stationery
used in the governments service. More
often it represents pearl-handled pocket
knives bought by the cOngressman's son
or given 10 constituent, engraved cards
or dinner invitations ordered by the con-
CHEESEMAN'S wife and daughter. SuCn pro-
sale items as 'one rubber stamp and
rs on
clerk report with stamping eight
Quires in silver and 400 at home cards,
70 say nothing of a double overture
(whatever that may be- and such seri-
Gus official literature as zone Under the
Red Robe"
A perquisite of comparatively recent
growth is the congressmau's clerk me
appetite for these things grows with what
ii feeds on First the chairman OF
committee had to have "a room which he
CcIld call his own and clerk VINO could
be his private secretary. Then the lesser
congressman began TO demand private
office at the governments expense Now
he has a secretary as well on an allow
ance Of 500 a month during the session
OF congress. a far-Seeing house Of repre-
sentatives voted to pay this allowance TO
the congressman direct and leave its DIS
bursement 10 his discretion. IL Is almost
needless to say that in many cases the
congressman IS not suspected of letting
keeping Several congressman have been
known TO club together and contribute
pro rata to the employment of one CLERK
at a small stipend. But the 500 clerk
hire, averaging 5000 per year, is plainly
perQuisl-e OF the congressman II ne wants
10 make it so. The enterprising southern
congressman whom ] have described. did
not live in the DAYS Of congressional
clerks OF he might have sailed away
Sl.90 more during his term of office.
The new congressman viii find that he
mas much TO learn about the way IN
which laws are made. He VIII land III
Washington with a trunk fun of an
Cient pension and relief bills which his
predecessor SOWed in the last congress
siOnal garden without Teaping a harvest.
As ii IS only necessary to scratch the
last congressman's name off each of
them, write his own in its stead anu
drop the bills in a box at the clerk $
desk, these need not give him mucn
concern. He finds before he has been In
Washington long that the modest merit
S not being sought for committee app
pOintments, and that if he does not hurry
ne viii be set away back on the commit
tees to Investigate the spread of ma
iaria by mosquitoes instead OF repre-
seuting his farmer constituency on the
agricultural committee or getting a de-
sirable position near the pork barrel of
the river and haTbOr committee or the
committee on public buildings When ne
begins TO realize how necessary push
and egOtlSm are TO progress IN public al
fairs he Will find that 50 far as he is con-
eerned the speaker of the house is the
whole congress. If he wants to be
member Of an influential committee he
must bring all possible pressure TO bear
on the speaker. And the hours before
the committee lists are published are
anxious hours for the new congressman.
g q q
AS a member of the foreign relations
committee, if by some extraordinary
chance he was chosen for that position,
1e 1vOuId find himself social p0ssihilitv
Il Members Of the diplomatic corps would
= Invite him to dinner officials of the state
department would show him distinguished
consideration. As q. member of the agri-
Hcultural committee he would find the 0oor
of the secretary of agriculture always on
the latch ana t-e supply of seeds and
books on Diseases of the Horse pra
ticaliy unlimited. On the rivers and haT-
boTs committee he would discover him
self sudden object Of SOliCitude by all
the shipping interests, and by the war
department.
Usually committees are announced Just
before the house adjOuTns for Christmas.
Meantime the new congressman has dis
covered that the house meets at noon and
that IL passes most OF its time listening TO
dry speeches or obstructive motions. He
studies the rules and reads Thomas T.
Reed Guide t. Parli entary Law
aSslduCusly preparing for his own plunge
luto the congressional pool His morn
ings he devOtes to q round of the depart
ments. looking up claims and pensions,
postmasterships and miscellaneous mat
tcrs TOT the people Of his district.
At the W mite House be is ushered into
the presidents room without undue Cere-
mony, but there he sits on a leather-cov-
cred Cndr ana sees senators and members
of the cabinet take precedence OF him
Amer a time the president. passing from
one 10 another of his visitors reaches the
new congressman and grasps his hand
ON the nrsJ meeting the congressman says
he has Just come TO paw his resDecfS and