Evening star., 1942-11-15
Capital SideIights
By Will P. Kennedy.

with so many new House members
elected, how are they sworn in?" the
writer was asked the day after election.
The answer is that not only the 106 new
members, including the 13 who served in
previous Congresses, but each and every
one of the 435 members, even Represen-
tative Adolph SABBATH of Illinois, who has
served consecutively 36 years, and the
Speaker, 80 consecutive years, must take
the oath anew. It is a new Congress
that starts on January S. and no men,
ber's oath is good for more than two
years. The Speaker must be elected
again. The veteran clerk of the House,
South Trimble of Kentucky, himself a
former member, has rollcall by States
prepared of all those elected to the new
Congress based on certification of elec-
ton under the State seal, signed by the
Governors and secretaries of state Cor
election boards. At noon on January 5
the clerk calls the House to order and
the rollcall by States is read to deter
mine the presence of quorum. Nonni-
nations are then made for Speaker, and
when the Speaker has been elected he
swears- in all members en- masse. This
method of swearing in was adopted by
the late Speaker Nicholas Longworth.
Previously 1t had been the custom to call
the State delegations in turn to the we'll
of the House and administer the oath.
This was such a tedious process that
Speaker Longworth had 1t discontinued.
"A political miracle" so often referred
to in prediction forecasts actually has
happened in the reelection of Represen-
tative Louis Ludlow who has just been
reelected by 1856 votes from the Indian
apolis district, long Republican strong
hold. Fourteen years ago Mr.. Ludlow, a
veteran Washington correspondent was
first elected when he defeated Ralph
Updike. He has since been reelected
every two years as Democrat, but large
ly by Republican support. This year it
was necessary for Mr.. Ludlow to top his
party by scme 10000 votes before he stood
any chance of returning to the Capitol, but
after see-saw struggle he won out-not
another Democrat was elected on the
county or State ticket. He frankly ad-
mits that it was political miracle" and
says: "All I can do is fall on my knees
and thank the good Lord for such fine
and faithful lot Of friends in both
parties"
Another former Washington corre-
spondent and popular member OF the
Capitol press galleries is coming into the
new Congress-Joseph r. harrington,
who succeeds Samuel w. King as Dele
gate from Hawaii. When he was in the
press gallery years ago his father who
formerly represented the United States
in the island, owned the Hilo Tribune
Herald. Joe now has rucceeded to own
e1ship Of the paper and comes to Con-
gress.
The unique distinction of father and
son serving in the same Congress was
held by Henry and Samuel Lewis South
ard Of New Jersey. The father was in
the House and the son in the Senate in
the Sixteenth Congress, and even more
remarkable is the fact that they served
on the same joint committee which re-
ported the famous Missouri Compromise
measure, and the son wrote the report.
Later. second son, Isaac, was in the
Twenty y-second Congress- He retired on
March 3, 1888, and the next day, March
4, his brother Samuel again was sworn
in as Senator.
All three served from Easking Ridge
r. j., where the two sons we're born. The
father was Long Island farmer, pri-
vate and wagon master in the Revolu-
tionary War. He was a member of the
General Assembly Of New Jersey and
served in eight Congresses-the Seventh,
Eighth, Ninth, Tenth and Eleventh,
Fourteenth, Fifteenth and Sixteenth.
Samuel Lewis also served in the State
Legislature. He was a graduate of the
College Of New Jersey (now Princeton
University, served as a private tutor in
Fredericksburg, Va, was admitted to the
bar IN Virginia, acted as law reporter
IN the New Jersey Supreme Court, and
sat on the State Supreme Court bench.
He was appointed and subsequently
elected to the United States Senate. and
resi-ned after two years because Presi-
dent Monroe had appointed him Secrc-
tary OF the Navy. He subsequently
served ad interim as Secretary CT War
and Of the Treasury. He was Attorney
General Of New Jersey and was again
elected as Wing to the Senate, serving
from 1883 until 1892, and during his
latter term was President pro-tempore.
Isaac southard was elected as . Clay
Democrat TO the Twenty Con.
sress.