The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1916-03-31
New Congressional Directory.

SlOudl ulTeCtOTy always are dWditSu |
with interest in the city of Wash
ington. and presumably SO in the
rest of the country where the worth
of the directory as human document
is understood. 1t is good reading Tor
it not only is instructive, but frequent.
ly amusing. Between its covers enc
finds a combination of what might be
called human interest recitals
Now the last edition of the congress
sional directory containing the biog
raphies of the members, their com
mittee assignments, their time service
records, together with information
about the president of the United
States and the various departments OF
government, with its delicate blue COW
er and enameled white imprint is, II
one may indulge in a bromide, de-
light to the eye.
Some Are Really Modest.
Biographies of members of congress
which appear in the congressional d.
rectory are prepared by themselves.
or at least this is true in most in
stances. Therefore the biographies
really are autobiographies. 1t is pos
sible to judge of mans tempera-
ment, and of good many other things
concerning him by perusal of the
biography which he has prepared for
the benefit of his fellow members and
for such others of the 100,00O,OOO
American citizens who can lay hands
and eyes on the volume.
Some members of congress are over
modest Take Senator Harry Lane of
Oregon for instance. Asked for his
biography in order that the world
might have something concerning hun
| in print in an official record he wrote
this:
Harry Lane, Democrat. Term ex-
pires March 3, 1919"
This is all that one learns of the
junior senator of Oregon from the
congressional directory.
| Some of the members of congress
apparently do not care to tell their
ages. Many of them it is supposed
omit all mention Of the date of birth
because they do not want people to
|
here and there through the directory
you not only find aged ones putting
down in a fair, plain hand the fact
that they were born long ago, but you
occasionally find such a plain writing
one as Edwin S. Johnson, junior sena'
tor from South Dakota, who is willing
to tell the world that he was born "a
long time ago"
Representative W. W. Griest of the
Ninth Pennsylvania district runs Sen
ator Lane of Oregon, a close race for
biographical brevitys Here is what
appears in the Congressional Directory
concerning the life and services of the
Pennsylvania:
wv. w. Griest, Republican; elected
to the Sixty-first and subsequent con.
gresses."
Members of congress who write their
biographies at considerable length for
the directory differ materially in the
choice of subject matter. Some OF
them leave the reader in doubt as to
whether they are bachelors or married
men, whether they have children OF
are childless, and whether or not they
have any yearnings, aspirations, recre
atoms, or aims in life outside OF those
which are encompassed within the
lines of legislative endeavor
Some of the members of congress
probably would take offense if one
should put in print even without com
ment, some of the things which they
have written about themselves. Tht
biographies in the congressional di
rectory' are sign posts pointing direct
ly to the characters or at any rate thu
: temperaments of the men who have
} written them.
New Bridge to Be Memorial.
: Congress has committed itself to
plan for memorial bridge to span tn
Potomac from a point near the Liz
! coin monument which is now building
. to point on the Virginia shore jus
+ below the Arlington National GENE
, terry. Plans and specifications for tn
great structure already have been pre-
j pared and it is believed that soon tn
i tlrst appropriation will be made t
r start the work of construction.
i 1t is proposed that an appropriation
for the bridge should be put into tn
5 urgent deficiency bill which has jus
4 passed congress, but the members O
e house and senate seemed to
against the proposition, and it prot
ably will find place in some othe
appropriation bill in the near fl
q ture.
a There is good deal of sentimen
3 connected with this plan for a bridg
: of commanding size and beauty acros
r the Potomac at this point. To put
; i-to a few words the sentiment bac
+ of the thought is that the bridge woul
r be an exemplification of the reunio
q of sympathies between the Mort
l. and the South, for in q marked wa
d the Potomac river is regarded as b,
r ing the dividing line between tn
g North and the South countries.
# The bridge, when completed, If tn
; plans are carried out in accordanc
8 with those already made. will be on