The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1903-08-26
OH, TIME CRAFTS.

ius9. Considerable interest will be
| telt By lis fellow representatives,
! democrats as well as republicans. in
| he effect which will be produced on
| his Independent new member by
other small gratis There are
number CT these There is no great
| secret about it; and in TIE enjoy,
ment of these Prerequisites states
nanship rises above parry lines.
! They are all in.
mileage" is the first temptation
hat will assail Mr.. Paler's unsullied
| independence. B. al ancient law.
| dating from the era when legislators
rode on horseback, and distances
were shorter, every cC1Eress-a1 is
allowed 20 cents 2 nile fer coming
to Washington from his place Of res
dence, and returning thither. Now,
even for cOngressmen who do not &C
| cept passes from the railroads, it
| does not cost 20 cent a mile to travel.
Mr.. Baker can come from Brooklyn
10 Washington for $3.50. not count
| ing the Pullman fare, and can re-
| turn for the same, making a total
Of $13. But the government allows
him at the rate Of 20 cents for each
of the $40 miles travelled, which is
J $4S one way and $96 for the round
| trip. The margin is obviously
clear graft" Members will wait to
see whether MI Baker returns the
unexpended balance Of $50.
Like other members Mr. Baker
will be credited with 1925 a year for,
the purchase Of stationery. There
are probably not two members of
this allowance. Many of them do
not spend any of the amount Each
committee has stationery, which the
members OF the committee are at
liberty to use. The stationery is !
charged tC the account of the COM
mittee, and not to the individual |
members OF Il. At the end of each |
session each member draws 50 much |
of the 1925 as stands to his credit
which is generally the whole OF it.
This is also Legislative graft"
The question that is occurring to
the colleagues Of Congressman Bak-
er is: Will he leave the money I'M
drawn?
There will be a still larger tempta-
tiOl lying in wait for the virtuOus
congressman in the $1,000 allowance
for clerk hire" New congressman
do not always hire a regular clerk.
Some OF them write may Of their
own letters. employ a stenographer
at intervals, let a daughter or son
help at hor'2. and so get along with
out the regu'o" clerk; and at the end |
Of each mo / hey sign a certificate
10 the effect It they have expended |
800 for Gle hire-makiag 81 1900
for the yeaT-and that amount is
turned over to them. There is
sometimes profit of as much as
81, 900 a year lin this.
But there is no law to compel Mr..
Baker to draw more than 5000 or
$500. b refusing TO do so he can
put himself into very egregiious
minority
Members of the house of represent
tatives enjoy the privileges of free
baths in the subterranean regions of |
the capitol. There is nothing in
he laws or the statutes about free
baths for congressman: but a natural |
predispOsitiOn to purity and clean
illness IN and about the legislativet
halls, has resulted in the time-hon-
Ored graft. There are colored atten-
dants paid by the government, the
towels are furnished by Uncle Sam,
as are also the soap, and the heat. |
In one of these bath rooms is ar !
electric device to inject static en-
ergy into solOns; and on the senate |
side there are Turkish baths Incl
dentals and free shaves and hair
cuts
a congressman with conscientious
scruples-and Mr.. Baker has an
nounced his-might object to spong-
ing on the government in this man
ner. Indirectly it is rObbing the
taxpayer, for it is not authorized by
law.
AS a congressman, franking priv
iileges will be offered Mr.. Baker by
the Western Union and Postal Tele
graph companies. This is a cOnven
fence highly priced by politicians
who naturally have many important
messages, political and personal in
character, which they want to put on
the wire. Senator Beveridge is the
only member Of congress known to
have refused this favor at the han1s
Of the telegraph companies, and the
senator also pays his railroad fare,
although ne does not send his letters
of refusal to the newspapers, nor
make them as long as does Mr.. Ba-
ker. 1t remains to be seen whether
the Brooklyn congressman will have