Evening star., 1909-07-11

session with prayer. and the motion car
ried.
This same minister was regularly elect
ed chaplain of Congress five days after
the Declaration of independence. and
the following December two cnaplains
were appointed for the Continental Con-
gress.
That the two chaplains of Congress
should be of different denominations and
that they should interchange weekly
the Senate chaplain going over to the
House. and vice versa-was a precedent
laid down by the first Congress, under
the Constitution.
The first congressional chaplains re-
ceived $500 apiece, or just half the pres
ent salary. The first Senate chaplain
was DR.. Provost. an Episcopalian, who
served from 1889 to 1890. while the first
chaplain of the House was the Rev. VIII
liam Linn, whose term extended between
the same years. In the early sos there
was a protest because the old rule had
been violated by Congress choosing two
chaplains of the same faith. BY this
time the salary had been raised to $3.50
year.
OF the elections of chaplains In Con-
gress, 20 have gone to Methodists, "a to
Episcopalians, "a to Presbyterians, 15 to
Baptists, ) to Congregationalists. to
Unitarians, 2 to Lutherans and 1 each
to Universalists. Disciples of Christ and
Catholics. The Senate has had more Epis-
copalian chaplains than those Of any
other denomination the first nine being
of that faith. The Houses preference has
been for Methodists, although it started
off with three Presbyterians.
The only Roman Catholic chaplain of
Congress was the Rev. Father C. c. Pise
who opened the daily sessions of the
Senate in 1892 and 1898. while John c.
Calhoun, Vice President, presided over
that body. The immediate predecessor
of the Rev. Edward Everett Hale as
House chaplain. a blind man. This was
the Rev. w. II. Milburn, a Methodist
minister, who had previously served
seven terms as chaplain of the House
in 1S45-46. 1885 and 1858 The oldest
living ex-chaplain of Congress is Bishop
Thomas Bowman of the Methodist Church,
who is now living in Orange N. j., and
who on Thursday of this week will be
ninetytwo years old. Senate chaplain
who, like DIR. Pierce, was also the pas
tor of a President was the Rev. Byron
Sunderland, at whose Presbyterian
church in Washington President Cleve-
land attended. He had been chaplain of
the Senate six years from 1873 to 1879
OF our sixty-two army chaplains. eight
rank as majors, thirty-two as captains
and twenty-five as first lieutenants. Those
with the rank of. major receive as high as
$1,000 a year on reaching their twentieth
captains get from $2,4OO to $3,36O, while
the lieutenant chaplains draw from $1,000
to 81, 800. In addition to this pay go free
quarters horse feed. medical attention.
ETC., in each case, and at retirement each
receives three-quarters of his last active
salary.
x *
In 1893 Congress created the office of
post chaplain and schoolmaster" at q
pay of $40 per month, four rations a day.
quarters and horse feed, but with neither
enlisted nor commissioned rank. Not un-
til 1867 were all chaplains commissioned
New army chaplains are appointed
every few months. In 1907 there were
five and in 1908 there were eight ap-
pointed, while this year so far there have
been three new ones. the last being
Father John Rivera, a Porto Rican priest,
who will look after the welfare of our
Porto Rican troops. In the War Depart
ment is kept register wherein applicants
for chaplaincies enter their names, and
from this, as vacancies occur, the Presi-
dent selects the names of those who may
be examined. To be eligible each candi-
date must prove that he is under forty
years old, citizen of the United States
and an ordained minister in good stand
ing. He must appear nude before board
of officers and submit to a severe phys