Evening star., 1935-08-11
Capital Sidelights
Br Will p. Kennedy.

The House in its rush for adjourn
ment during the past week paused TO
show its appreciation of the work OF
four veteran employees who have not
received any increases in salary for up
ward of eight years. Chairman Warren
of the Committee on Accounts promised
that it is intended to. from time TO time,
increase other faithful employees.
Harry Pillen of Cincinnati, Ohio, who
has been steadily working his way up
during the q years he has been serving
the House, from bookkeeper to financial
clerk, to assistant cashier and now
cashier. succeeded the present sergeant
at arms. Kenneth Romney in running
the Houses bank He is pay-of man
for Congressman, and handles a general
banking business of about a million
dollars a month where some two-thirds
of all the members do most of their
banking. business.
John Oberholser Of Pennsylvania is
his assistant, having been promoted from
bookkeeper after IL years of service.
The oldest Democratic employe of the
House is Joseph J. Sinnott of Virginia,
the doorkeeper. who is rounding out his
f1ftieth year of continuous service. Sec
ond to him in the seniority list on the
Democratic side is John Snyder of
Brooklyn. N. Y, who is rounding out 36
years. He is one of those fortunate
four who were given increases. He is
pair clerk for the majority and first
came to Congress as secretary to the
late Representative George H. Lindsay
of New York. He has been working on
the House floor for 25 years. and is
called the right-hand man of every
Democratic member.
His Republican tesmmate, M. L.
Meletio of st. Louis, Mo, also received
a $3.50 raise" He has been on the job
for 18 years and during all that time
has been absent from his duties only
two days, and that when he attended
the funeral of a relative. Although
assured Of good business career as a
member of a famous family engaged
in the seafood business, established 80
years ago, and still operated by the
same family in the fourth generation,
Meletio threw his lot with the legislative
body. His hobby is amateur photography
and home movies.
How deserving these men are of salary
increases is shown by the fact that the
Senate has four men doing the same
work as the House pair clerks, two of
whom receive $500 and two get S4,350
"a total of $4,000 for the same sort
as the House has been paying $5640-
though the pair clerk in the House has
to look out for 320 Democratic members,
while the two Democratic clerks in the
Senate have only 70. And so, even now,
hot fob
August Is. the House man still receives
s750 a year less than the two lowest
paid Senate pair clerks.
"Hope springs eternal in the human
breast" and I'm the bright lexicon of
youth, etc, there is no. such word as
fail"-that is why the House pages are
doing some campaigning on their own
hook to get a resolution put through
to give them an extra months salary
so they can go home when Congress
quits. Although Chairman Buchanan
of the House Appropriations Committee
and Chairman Warren of the Committee
on Accounts are against them, the pages
are going ahead optimiStically. They
argue that with Congress likely to quit
late in the month, all the current salary
they would receive would have to go to
paw board and room, leaving them
stranded as regards transportation home.
Every week we have at least one new
Kentucky colonel at the Capitol. The
most recent thus honored, and for whom
his State delegation threw a party" in
the Speakers private dining room, with
Representative James Mead Of New
York as major domo, is Col. Christopher
D. Sullivan of New York, rounding out
20 years OF service. In all that time
he has been a member of the House
District Committee and has attended
meetings only four tXnes.
A member of the House for IA years,
Representative Parker Corning, Demo-
crat, of New York, made his maiden
speech last week when, as chairman
of a subcommittee, it was his duty to
call up Representative John w. McCor-
mack's Boston port bill, which was spe-
cially urged by former Representative
Honey Fitz''-John F. Fitzgerald of
Boston-who first came to Congress 40
years ago.