The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1904-02-12
1.-THE LIFE OF A LEGISLATOR.
Brief Sketch Of Daily Routine and Some
Inciients That Sometimes
Enliven it.
News and Courier.

NOlCiiiutci-l !pL'stbiN .icl S'iN ~
son in ten who casts his ballot for
a member of the Legislature has
anything more than very general
idea of the duties and daily routine
OF representative in the house. 1t
is commonly supposed by great
many people that the session at Co.
lulnbia is kind Of holiday, spent BY
the representatives in comparative
idleness and pleasure. That this
may be TRUE to some extent IN the
case of those members who are not
on any Of the important committees.
it certainly is not with a large num-
Der of the lawmakers.
The daily routine Of a legislator
is about as follows: At 10 o'clock
the house meets and is in session
until about ? o'clock-sonetlnles a
little earlier or later. When that
hour arrives, if there is to be a night
session, as is alomSt invariably the
case at this time, when there are a
very large number OF bills on the
Calendar, a motion is made that
"this house do now recede from
business until s o'clock tonight. "
This being carried, the lawmakers
flock out of the hall of the house OF
representatives, some to go to COM
mittee rooms to answer an accumu-
lated correspondence, and some to
go at once to dinner, which is serv-
ed here anywhere from 2 to 3
o'clock, if the representative has a
committee meeting. he must be back
at the Capitol, and if he is a member
of either of the most important
committees of the house, the ways
and means and the judiciary. this
means every afternoon: Probably
at half past E, after discussing as
many bills which have been refer
red to it as possible, tie committee
will adjourn, and the honorable
member then repairs to his
boarding house or hotel for supper.
At 8 o'clock he must be back IN his
seat, and there he stays, listening,
and perhaps participating in de-
bates, until probably half-past TO-
when the house adjourns, and the
legislative day is done.
From this it will be seen that tor
the conscientious member the ses-
sion of the legislature is a very
busy time. OF course the work
done and the time spent in the busi-
ness of the State depend in every
instance on nothing but the mem
ber himself. He is under absolute
" no restraint or supervision, eS-
cept morally. His pay goes on
whether he.is present or absent, and
his only accountability is to the peo-
pie, and that only in case he should
present himself to them to ask tor
a second term.
The meetings of committees are,
as a rule, perfectly prosaic. but a
few afternoons since the session OF
the ways and means committee was
somewhat eniivened by the appear
ance before it of a fullblooded Ca
tawba Indian. He came as a COM
mittee appointed BY his people to
ask for an increased appropriation
for their support. There are now
only about eighty Catawba living Of
that once powerful tribe. They re-
side on a reservation OF about slN
hundred acres OF land in York
county, Of so poor a quality that
they can scarcely make a living out
of it. So poor that their white
neighbors do not covet it and allow
them to inhabit it in peace. The
State has been for some years past
making an annual appropriation of
one thousand dollars for, the sup
port of the Catawba, but, as from
the individual members of the tribe
only received about $3.50 apiece
yearly, the rest going to pay the
salary of the doctor who attends
them, the agent and commission,
and a sum put aside for burial ex-
penses, it can hardly be said that