The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1908-05-28
Washington Revisited.


Within the once familiar precincts OF
the press gallery of the House OF KEEP
resentatiyes | felt as Rip Van Wlnkle
must have felt-only more so, Tor Kip
slept but twenty years, and 1t IS nearly
Forty since | was one of the boys who
from their perch above the Speaker
ehair kept tabs on what Congress was
doing. To work in another slmlie, l
was like a cat in strange garnet, for
{Lere was not one familiar face or
object and the furniture and fittings
were l,alatial compared with the bare
room back of the gallery in which the
old timers used to congregate when
nothing was doing in the House. L
gained admission to these sacred pre-
cincts by presenting my card, with the
statement that ! was member OF the
first committee in charge of the gallery,
and this proved an open sesame "hen
James CI. Blaine was elected Speaker OF
the House in 1899, he sent for George
W. Adams, the correspondent OF the
New York World, and said to him that
if the corresp ondents would appoint
committee to take charge Of the press
gallery it was called the reporters gal
lery them lie would turn its control,
vested in him, over to them, and they
could make such regulations regarding
admissions. etc, as they saw fit. The
correspondents met and elected as such
committee George w. Adams, Gen. IL.
Y. Boynton and Charles A. PIlsbury,
and the latter is today the only survivor
OF the 50 or 60 correspondents then
eligible to the privileges of the gallery
only two are now on the roll-Wm. b.
Shaw of the Philadelphia Enquirer and
W. c. Mcbride of the Cincinnati En-
.ouirer Mr., Shaw even then was known
as the ''Nestor of the Row" (NeWspa-
Der Row on 14th street, now a thing OF
the past and is said to be practically on
the retired list, but Nc Bride, younger
man. is still the active head of the Gin
cinnati Enquirer's Washington bureau.
The reporters gallery of the early
davs-the old name comes most readily
was smaller than it is today and the
room back of it contained only bare
table and some chairs. There was a
large mirror in a gilt frame, before
which the occasional lacy correspond
,ents used to primp and the boys ad-
lust their neckties, but otherwise the
walls and the tiled floor were bare. In
the corridor adjoining was the West
ern Union telegraph, where today may
oe seen, as in the early days, Ham
Young, one of the most popular opera
tors Washington has ever known, anc
who is still alert and vigorous. Free
Rovce, Morean, and many other opera
tors we'll known to newspaper men OF
the late COS and the early '70's, have
all passed away.
The gallery for a number OF years
past has been in charge of Charles II
Mann-Charley Mann the boys call hin
and the changes made during his adj
mfnistration have been many and i'm
portant. Practically the whole corridor
is used now. There are two long tables
Instead of one, and they are supplleC
with stationary, ink, pens, scissors
mucilage, directories and other books
of reference. Upholstered seats have
been placed in the window recesses, the
g1oor is carpeted, and the walls hung
with portraits of newspaper proprle
tors, ] should much rather have seer
portraits of the men whose work wa:
done in this gallery Opening from this
room is a smaller room containing
lounge and easy chairs, and the West
ern Union has its operators as usual II
the corridor outside. Near at hand i:
another room for the use of the CORE
spondents, in which ten typewriters-
the machines, not operators-are at the
correspondents disposal. In the ole
days correspondents had to provide
their own stationary, carrying it witt
them or keeping supply in their desks
in the reporters gallery. The telephone
was not known then, and the typewritel
had not come into general use. To as
certain what was going on in the Senate
involved quite walk from the Hous'
side, including the descent of one stair
way and the ascent of another, and t.
communicate with the office on 14tf
street called for walk or car ride O.
nearly mile. Now the telephone putt
YOU in touch with everybody, every
where, and the typewriter copy is
boon to compositors and telegraph
operators. "Charley" Mann pleads
guilty to being a Democrat, which il
natural enough as he comes from thu
Democratic city of Baltimore, but hi
has the whole corps of correspondent
back to him, and the. only attemp
made to displace him ended in sigma
failure. He is cyclopedia, gazateer