Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-11-28
NO FLORAL OFFERINGS
SPEAKER CANNON AGAINST THE
PRACTICE. .
He Has Decided That No Flowers Shall
Be Admitted to tie Hall
of the House.

Tic foral bombardment of members of
Congress On the opening day of a new ses-
sion may be registered as thing OF the
past. Up to date no tears have been shed
over the proposition.
In the Senate little resolution. passed
at the last session, has put up the breast
works against the bloom brigade, and In
the House Speaker Cannon has raised his
voice against the practice. And this means
that the flowers might just well be left
uncut upon their stems, SO far as the pos
sibility OF their finding a way into the
House chamber is concerned.
Orders Two Years Ago.
Two years ago, soon after Speaker Cam
non was sworn In. he noticed several of the
House pages staggering through the lobby
under burdens of blooms that made them
resemble many walking greenhouses.
Then and there the Speaker issued positive
orders to the House doorkeepers that no
more flowers were to be permitted in the
hall. At the beginning of the second ses-
sion of the Fifty eighth Congress. however.
the rule was not enforced and the House
looked like a good-siZed section of the Be-
tanical gardens. Members of the House
who wanted to be officially heard by the
Speaker had to step out in the aisles from
behind banks Of flowers so that they might
be and identified.
SO this year. for varied and sundry rea-
sons Uncle Joe has declared himself early,
and with the hope that money will be saved
to those who need It, In fact, Speaker
Cannons principal objection to the practice
of sending flowers to members of the House
on the opening day of a session is simply
that in his opinion most Of those who do
the sending would better either save the
money or spend 1t for the necessities of life.
The flower practice started as tribute
to the different senators and representatives
when they returned to Washington at the
beginning of a session of Congress. The
rivalry of admirers of the members of both
houses in the last few years reached such
stage that half the desks were buried in
flowers and the persons they were meant to
compliment were completely hidden behind
the offerings.
The Clerks Gratitude.
The?a are many clerks in the govern
ment departments who started paying
tribute to their particular representative,
merely through an excess of gratitude, and
have kept it up ever since. 1t is rather
natural after all that a man or woman
who has secured government position by
the aid real or fanCied. of a member OF
Congress, should desire to say thanks' IN
some way other than verbally. Conse-
quently, flowers. But the custom once be-
gun is found difficult of discontinuanee.
Moreover, 1t grew to the point where the
average tribute-payer In the departments
looks down upon the simple nosegay or
modest cluster of some favorite flower.
The Offering must be big and snowy and
expensive. And as a matter of fact many
instances of this kind are known, where
SEQ clerk has spent from $50 to $40 a year
on flowers to add to the ammunition used
In the floral bombardment.
Speaker Cannon's Opinion.
Speaker Cannon has his own joyous
Of NJ nrOppSit ion He
very frankly says that in the course of his
long legislative experience he has often re-
ceived expensive floral offerings from per-
sons he knew could not begin to afford
luxuries for themselves, much less for
others. and he has frowned upon the prop
osltion whenever he could. This time his
frown carries weight with it. Consequent
ly, representatives. government clerks and
everybody else, with the possible exception
of the Washington florists, tickied to
DEATH and wish that Uncle Joe" had
spoken before.