Evening star., 1934-03-04
Capital Sidelights
BY WILL KENNEDY.

Congress has Just issued an author
1tative pamphlet, filling . long-felt
need to teach the youth Of the land
how laws are made-which was COM
piled by . group Of veteran employees
Of the Senate, who made this q labor
Of love and patriotic service.
An inquiry made by . high-school
civics class last Fall, supplemented by
many similar inquiries as to How
Congress makes laws?" has resulted
in the publication of an eight-page
pamphlet describing in detail the
successive steps In Senate procedure
in the enactment Of legislation.
Some months ago the civics class
wrote to one of the Senators from its
State asking that he write them on
the subject. Too busy to give 1t his
immediate personal attention. this
Senator referred the request to Col.
Edwin A. Halsey, secretary Of the Sen
ate, who, after consulting Charles E.
Watkins, the Senate parliamentarian;
John Crockett, chief clerk Of the, Sen
ate, and James D. Preston, librarian
all Of whom have lived with legislation
for more than two-score years-had
prepared q paper explaining parlia-
mentary procedure. The class was
we'll satisfied with that paper. Then
Col Halsey decided to have additional
copies mimeographed tn order to take
care Of future requests. The requests
came In such abundance, Is soon as
word Of the publication spread, that
it was finally decided to have it print
ed as q Government document-and
1t came OF the Government Printing
Office presses during the past week
This document, entitled Enactment
Of q Law" outlines the organization
Of the Congress, tells Of the different
methods In which legislation may
originate, and then traces each step
in the Senate legislative process.
While it was written with the inten-
ton Of making it simple enough SO
that even q school child could under
stand it, 1t is accurate in all its de-
tails and will doubtless serve as q ref
erence and guide to workers and fol-
lowers Of legislation on Capitol Hill.
Volumes. hundreds Of them, have
been written on parliamentary pro-
cedure-one Of the best works on the
subject being by Representative Rob-
ert Luce Of Massachusetts-but Col.
Halsey explains that 1t has been ex-
tremely difficult to find a short, con-
else. work couched in simple terms
yet absolutely correct in its recital Of
all details Of the legislative maze.
X \
THE Turkey King Of Congress" Is
Johnny McCabe, chief page on the
Republican side Of the House, from
Whiting, Ind, beloved by ALL" who
for eight years has been operating .
turkey farm % miles out of the Capt.
tai, near M;ddleburg, in the Shen-
andoah Valley. He has been raising
some 600 turkeys each year, but dur
ing the depression has cut down his
breeding stock to so hens and gob-
blers. But Johnny" Is preaching
the gospel Of recovery and has the
courage of his convictions, for he is
now arranging to enlarge his produc-
ton this year and is confidently as
suring all his friends and acquaint-
ances that he ID going to have the
biggest and best year ever.
&HA
Senator Lonergan, Democrat, Of
Connecticut has offered his sage ad-
vice to David Lynn. architect of the
Capitol, that he should use q few
skyrockets and roman candles and
welcome q few real billiards to help
him get rid of the startling nuisance
at the Capitol group of buildings,
which includes the new chaste white
marble temple Of justice for occu-
pancy Of the Supreme Court.
The Connecticut Senator pointed
out that news dispatches from Con-
necticut report that the severe biz
zard there has killed thousands of
starlings and their bodies toppled from
ledges like plummets into the snow
drifts. A constituent from Hartford
who observed the Capitol police firing
blank shells at starlings resting on
the Senate Office Building informed
Senator Lonergan that "the boys
should use roman candles-not guns.
One treatment Of the fireworks fright
ened the starlings away in Hartford
and thew never rptllrned