Evening star., 1924-12-21
Capital Sidelights
ny WILL r. KENNEDY.

bx WILL II. AENNED1.
Santa Claus finds the rapidly in
creasing population Is so multiplying
demands upon his Yuletide store Of
toys and other gifts, and the build
ing boom that has swept over the
country has contributed so many more
chimneys that, much as he would de-
light in giving personal service to
each and every one, he has to call
upon. volunteer workers to assist in
| the good cause of spreading Christ
mas cheer, especially among the chill
dren. He has many willing assistants
| among men holding prominent posi-
tions in public life.
Just by, way of Observation-Disclosures
Senator Peter G.. Gerry of Rhode Is
| land, who is going to- act as Santa
Claus special agent in providing all
| the conventional Christmas thrills
for some 1900 to 1000 children in
Providence. just as he has been doing
| for some Is years. u
| Tickets are being distributed
| through the local Police Department.
| the St Vincent de Paul Society and
| the Society for Prevention Of Cruelty
to Children inviting really deserving
children TO a Christmas dinner, tree
and entertainment in Infantry Hall.
| There is to be live Santa Claus to
| distribute gifts, an orchestra to fur
| nish music and special police service
! to prevent any one getting hurt In
| the rush for the Christmas tree.
Each child will have a full course
| turkey dinner, with cranberry sauce
and all the fixings, topped off with ice
cream, candy and nuts. Then each
child VIII be given two presents, one
| a toy and the other some useful ar
ticle-such as mittens or gloves.
Every girl Will carry home a doll
| baby.
x y ..-h
The architect of the Capitol Dave
Lynn, has quite a museum and library
Of interesting historical records and
souvenirs in his Office. under the Capt.
| tol dome.
This week he was presented by Joe
| Sullivan. an inspector in the Wash
| ington Fire Department, with a min
| iature monument mosaic of some Il
| different kinds of marble Inspector
Sullivan's father was employed as a
/ skilled laborer when the wings of
| the Capitol, which are now accupied d
| by tho House and Senate chambers,
| were being erected. in 1859 and 1860
He collected scraps OF the various
kinds of marble and matched then
into the little monument. The archi-
! tect of the Capitol is having a silver
1 plate made to put on this gift, SO
| that 1t may stand as an historical
record.
| A somewhat more pretentious min :
| iature marble monument of like de-
sign has been In the architects Office
for several years. This was executed
| by Thomas Bell, a stonemason on
the job of erecting the Capitol. After
1 zGh tn Ill
! sented 1t to local lodge of Odd Eel
| lows and 1t was in it's rooms for
many years and became broken. FL
| nally Elliott Woods. then architect OF
| the Capitol, got hold of II, had it Sc
curely fastened together again and
put in the architects museum Ac-
! companying this Bell monument is a
| diagram showing where each bit of
| the marble came from, both foreign
and domestic, and where that kind OF
marble is used in the Capitol.
| x X
| The psychology of advertising is a
very interesting and profitable study
| Some members of Congress are giving
| it very serious consideration, where
a few years ago they thought all that
| was necessary was just to keep their
| names in the paper.
| Sol Bloom of Brooklyn, ". Y, is
| pro badly the one member OF Congress
| who carefully plants his publicity and
campaign stunts in a way that serves
him most effectively. while at the
same time it does whole lot of good
TO the public generally.
Mr.. Bloom has a Keen sense of
human interest, and an even stronger
one of patriotism. He is a firm be-
lever that the children should be
early taught about their form of
government in a way that will hold
their interest and educate them to be
| better citizens.
During his recent campaign for re-
/ election every school child in his dis
| trict went home one noon with a
| card announcing three prizes Of IS,
| SO and So to be awarded In each
| school for the best 10-word slogan on
| why My Mother Is Going to Vote
| for Sol Bloom" The cards were dis
! tributed as the children came out of
| school SO they. would be taken home.
| He figured it %ould start discussion
/ in each home as to reasons why Bloom
! should he elected, which would lead
to a consideration. of what constitutes
| a good Congressman. He felt sure it
would leave the school children with
| a better understanding of what z
| Congressman Is or should be.
! I'VE got a wonderful response,
| Representative Bloom says, and he
| got a great many votes thereby.
| But he got something that meant
I more to him than reelection. He
! investigated each home of prize win
ner, because he is a devoted student
| of sociology. He wanted to compare
the types of reply with the home
environment. The best reply of all
| came from a basement home of direst
poverty. where the SIS came as a god
send to provide food for an almost
starving family. -.
The little girl who won it had
tears of joy in her eyes. She said
| You can see how we need this
! money, but it means. oh, so much
more to me than that. 1 just fel,
/ could write and this award gives
me encouragement that some day j
may get the chance" Sol Bloom Is
seeing that she gets her chance
He's a Jew, but he has the real spirit
of Christmas in his heart.
| X X X
| Although his paternal grandfather
and father, whose lives with his owr
| cover the entire period between 176;
| and 1924-more than $50 years, were
eminently honorable and useful men
of whom he is proud, Senator William
Cabell Bruce of Maryland SAYS
| There is not tree in the forest thai
does not interest me more than my
family tree" He is one Of the best
read men in Congress and attributed
| such sprofessional and public success:
| as he has won in life to the sfounda.
tion acquired in his fathers librar,
at Staunton Hill, Charlotte County
Va, and the fact that few diversion.
in his boyhood home distracted hi:
attention from such mental improve.
ment.
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