The Goodland republic. [volume] (Goodland, Kan.) 1891-1907, 1902-06-13

In a secluded Part OF the Capitol Build
Ing j. the Charming Retreat
for the Book Lover.


One Of the most attractive spots In the I
always Interesting capitol building is
the senate library, about which very lit
tie is known TO the general public.
Probably not one out Of a thousand
OF the visitors to the beautiful marble
pile on the hill where congress and the
supreme court sit, ever hears Of the sen
ate library, or knows that there is such
a place Some Of the junior senators
have not yet found out where 1t Is, al
though its older ones have been its con-
slant patrons for many years. The
rooms Of the library are somewhat mac
.cessible, being in that part which con-
meets the senate with the old building.
They are reached by a winding stone
steps running from the main corridor
opposite the supreme court chamber,
and also by a passageway through the
senate document room.
Senators, as a rule, need a guide dur
ing their freshman visits to the library.
but its inaecessibility makes it all the
better as a place to read and write. The
windows look out over the vast lawn and
the view extends way down the Mall
across to the Virginia hills with the mon
ument and Arlington as the special tar
gets Of the eye. The quaintness of the
rooms is their chief attraction. One of
the windows is round and about the size
of buggy wheel. It swings on a pivot
and the semi-circular view Of the vista
through the foliage between the capitol
and Arlington as seen from this window
| Is picturesque IN the extreme.
The Accommodations of the library have
/ filed Up one room after another until
they have spread to the spaces under
the arched roof Of that part Of the build
ing which was known as the north wing
before the senate and house wings were
added and the great dome erected. I'm
til recently the library shelves have con-
tanned merely the records Of congress.
including senate and house reports aud
all papers published as senate and house
documents. These accumulated so fast
in such a haphazard way that they
| spread all over the upstairs part Of this
portion Of the capitol, and they were
badly arranged and incompletely in
| dezed. The library is supposed, Of
course, to be reserved for the exclusive
use of senators, but members Of the pub
lie having knowledge of it are always re-
ceived cOurteously and furnished with
information desired.
/ Until within a few years ago the active
man in charge Of the place was the col
ored messenger, Murray, who has been
on duty for, so many years that he can
put his finger Oh almost any book or doc
ument at call. and who practically car
ries the library around in his head. Lat
er, however, competent clerks were en-
ployed to do the work that Murray had
been doing, and they set to work to keep
/ the records in a more systematic man
ner. Last year the task was accom-
plished OF arranging, systematizing, in
dexing and completing the records, until
now the library Is one of the most valua-
ble institutions in Washington
Last year, the present secretary Of the
senate, former Representative Charles g..
Bennett, started the work of putting the
library into tip-top shape and he sue
ceeded admirably. The whole place was
cleaned out and rearranged, the latest
| improved steel shelving constructed, ev-
cry set Of books and documents com
pleted from A 10 Z and full and reliable
catalogues and indexes made. In addi-
ton, binders from the government print
ing Office were set to work in a corner Of
the library to repair every damaged vol
ume, and now the senate library is a
model of its kind.
In addition to all this work, Mr. Ben
nett increased the scope of the library
and has added a large number Of vol
umes on general subjects. such as classic
literature, the worlds Orations, and other
works Of that kind which hitherto have
not been a part Of the catalogue, but will
10 doubt be Of great interest and value
/ to the senator's
And although those who knew Of the
! existence of the senate library had al
ways appreciated the picturesqueness
and interesting character Of the rooms,
| their beauty had never been fully ap
/ preciated until the work Of restoring
| them was completed. New floors have
been laid, the ceilings and walls redeeO-
rated, the famous old marble manilels.
| that were put in when the building was
first erected, cleaned and polished, and
the gilt mirrors restored on the original
antique lines.
1t Is tradition in the senate that the
secretary of that distinguished body has
nothing to do but to look sweet and draw
his salary, but Dir. Bennett has demon