Evening star., 1901-12-07
FLOWERS FOR CONGRESS
THEY WE'RE VERY MUCH IN EVIL
DENCE LAST MONDAY.
Many Amusing Incidents-Others Pa
thetic-Where the Tributes
Come From.

Five figures viii scarcely cover the cost
| of all these fair frail things said a
| thrifty member Of Congress as he stood in
the corridor. watching the Capitol messen-
! gers and pages fairly staggering under
| floral burdens which they were transfer
| ring from wagons and carriages, coupes
| and express carts to the lobbies of the two
| houses last Monday morning. Hours be-
| fore the Fifty-seventh Congress convened
| the first flowers were delivered, and when
the hands pointed to l. the bouquets
| and baskets were piled five deep on the
| lobby floor The walls were lined with
| them the tables and couches and chairs
were covered with them, and the corridors
| began to look like the waste room in a pa
| per mill.
The air was heavy with fragrance. People
were crazy to the flowers and read the
cards on them, and they ruthlessiy trod on
| dollar apiece roses, Mckinley carnations
| at 50 a dozen, and orchids almost above
| price. Some very funny things happened,
| too. Things that We're not down on the
bill. For instance, q handsome matron
| with Napoleonic chin, searched the House
| lobby, assiduousIy, turning over card after
! card and scanning ribbon-tied envelopes
| through her lorgnette, as though she could
| thus get at what was inside. Finally she
| pounced on huge bunch of bride roses,
| great white beautiful things they were, with
| a single superb American beauty tied in
with them. She didn't do thing to those
| roses, oh, no! She simply snapped off the
| card which bore the name of Miss -
and put in it's place one taken from her
| card case, that had Mrs. Y. Y. H." on 1t,
| and the funniest part of the whole transac-
| tion was that the card designating the re-
| cpient addressed in girlish hand to
| SHon. Y. Y. H."
| Oh, no, There wasn't music in the air
when those roses were delivered Monday
| night. They never got to Mr.. x. Y. Il. $
| desk at all.
Cabbage slaw chrysanthemums were quite
popular. A big burly member, who looked
as though he felt of place in his new
| clothes and new position, got great bunch
| OF the very costiest NUNS from some
admirer. AS he sat under the gallery ner-
| vously twisting in his chair he absent
mindedly pulled some of the petals and
began to chew them.
GOSH he snorted. he hastily emp
| tied his mouth of the bitter contents. THE
| blamed things amt even good to eat
There Was Some Mistake.
| One of the richest scenes occurred in the
| gallery. A member of the House sauntered
| in and seated himself beside a snowy
young woman, who had been making the
| air vocal with her praises of this par
ticular man, who was ''just too sweet for
anything in her vernacular. He carried
bunch of long-stemmed roses tied with
pounced on the flowers at once, and some
what reluctantly he lad them in her lap,
and soon left the gallery. Scarcely had
| the doors swung to behind him when a
dainty little lady emerged from a dark
corner of the same section and stepping
| down seated herself beside the florid maid.
Reaching over she picked up the roses
with beg pardon that refrigerated the
air of the whole section. MY husband
forgot them, didn't he? Ah-this is the
| card?' making great pretense at reading
lt-"yes, l thought so, l wrote it with my
gloves on, and it's not very legible," but
her meaning was, and in about two min
utes all that was left of the snowy y. W.
was the empty seat and an odor of cheap
musk
One modest bunch of wine-red carna-
tions was tied with bit of ribbon that
had evidently done service some small
maids braids, and on the card addressed
TO a new member from a southern state
was a line in cramped childish characters.
Ito my blessed papa The black-bordered
card told why mamma" had not Joined
with her daughter in the tribute.
Two members entered the lobby in earn
est conversation, and unwittingly walked
into a huge basket of flowers that had the
dollar mark in every blossom.
BY Jove!" remarked one of the two who
had seen long service, IF this isn't humili-
ating. If any member of my family, any
one Of my friends, ever dares to perpetrate
the bouquet crime on me at a time like this
I'll cut the offender from my book of re-
only the new member who gets gold
bricked this way, or the old member who
has injudicious friends in office. Let's look
at this card
This card nodded intrudingly in their
faces from the tallest one in jar of beau
tiful and extremely rare pink roses The
card bore the name of the other member
just entering his second term. On the
back of the card, where he who ran might
read, was this injunction: Don't forget
that office, old man.
These Were Appreciated.
I'm office was written all over many of
the offerings, and some of the donors
brought their tributes in person. A poor
little figure in rusty black sat, timid and
frightened, in the lobby for nearly two
hours, and finally the doorkeepers began
to clear out the intruders. Il want to see
my member" said the worried woman as
the doorkeeper asked her to go. We'll,
you can't see him now, returned the door
keeper, courteously. Just send in for him
when the House convenes''
"Oh, but l can't wait" she said almost
crying. 81 only got half day off. and |
want to give him this, and l can't afford to
lose another half day This was a
small pasteboard box and inside were half
cents, perhaps.
'1f you'll give me the name L will deliver
them,' said the doorkeeper.
"Oh, If you only would cried the woman
pays more for the single one he wears
every day than l paid for all of these, but
Just want him to know that l remember
his Kindness to the children and me- Wed
be In the poor house but for him. He's
Just pure gold,' and the little woman
poured into the doorkeeper's sympathetic
ears tale of trouble and sorrow, light
ened at last by her members finding a
little 5000 office for her where she could
keep and educate her children.
The Star writer followed up the box of
carnations. 1t was among the few carried
into the House, and was almost buried
under the other gorgeous offerings on her
members desk. He turned the cards over
and read them languidly, then showed all
the others back and eXtricated the hoy
He smiled when he read the card. Then
took out one of the pinks and placed if in
the lapel of his coat The other flowers he
left to be sent The little white box he
carried home and gave to his wife.
Too MDny Ribbons
Some of the most beautiful of the "f1
neral pieces were actually killed by the
ribbons tied on them. A bunch of Magenta
roses screaming with cost bore an entirely
unnecessary sash and bow of bright scar
LOT viii hIa,, ", e.