Evening star., 1946-10-13
Capital Sidelights
By viii P. Kennedy.

By VIII P. Kennedy.
A former page at the Speakers desk,
after more than quarter Of century,
was honored by the House in the clos
ing hours Of the session effective as Of
August g. by appointment under House
resolution as acting clerk of the House
with full authority in the absence of
the veteran clerk, South Trimble, who
has served longer in that Office than any
other incumbent, after having previ-
ously been a House member. H. Newlin
Megill, whose rs years Of service have
been almost entirely in the clerks office
under the late william Tyler Page and
Mr.. Trimble, thereby has become one Of
the busiest officials at the Capitol dur
ing these hectic congressional campaign
days-following oficial notification Of
the President and the Senate Of the
House action. His frst major action
under the new designation WIS to sign
the supplemental appropriation bill In
his own name.
The Reorganization Act placed i've or
six elaborate duties on the clerk, efiec-
tive August 2, which Mr.. Megill is per-
forming under his new designation, in
addition to his former duties in the en-
rolling clerks ONCE. and with sub
stantial increase in salary. These duties
include: Registration OF all persons or
groups receiving or expending money
for influencing or defeat of legislation,
known as the Lobbying Act-the clerk,
or his deputy, is to print quarterly re-
port in the Congressional Record; max
ing arrangements with the secretary OF
the Senate for the education Of page
boys Of the Senate, House and Supreme
Court: transferring all House files from
the Library of Congress to the National
Archives-which constitutes the great
est volume of important original docu-
ments in existence on the establishment
and progress of this Government; set
ting up a joint board with the secretary
of the Senate for the purpose OF making
a digest of the daily activities Of Con-
gress as an adjunct Of the Congressional
Record.
Mr.. Megill presently is engaged In a
great mail-order business-sending out
ali forms, with defnitive literature on
the subject of filing campaign returns
of Representatives, Delegates and Resi-
dent Commissioners in Congress; pre-
pairing lists Of members based on Of
ficial returns, all working toward prepa-
ration of the official roll call OF the
House in the new Congress dhe
Eightieth). The present Democratic
clerk, South Trimble, under law, must
preside at the opening of the new Con-
gress, even though the Republicans may
win a majority control. In the event OF
his absence. Mr.. Megill would preside.
Representative George Bates of Salem,
Mass, and Representative Thomas J.
Lane OF Lawrence, Mass, claim for
their respective districts the honor OF
starting the great shoe manufacturing
industry which has made Massachusetts,
a world center for that trade. Thomas
Beard and Isaac Rickerman, both expert
shoemakers, landed in Salem in 1929.
Philip Kertland and Edmund Bridges.
equally expert at the cobbler's bench,
arrived in Lynn in 1885, And thus began
the industry which sent a nationally
known shoe manufacturer-William L..
Douglas-to the governorship lin 1905)
nearly three centuries later.
X
The 18th anniversary of the great
conflagration in Chicago, October 8,
1871, was conlmeniorated by some old
timers at the Capitol who visited the
office of octogenarian Chairman SABBATH
OF the House Rules Committee, who is
dean OF the House, after spending half
his life in Congress. Mr.. SABBATH came
from his native Czechoslovakia at the
age Of Is and arrived In Chicago 10
years after the great holocaust, alleged
ly caused by Mrs. Patrick O'Leary's COW
kicking over lantern, had swept over
an area of 2,100 acres, destroying some
300 human lives, reducing 1880 build
ings to ruins and sweeping out of ex-
.istence $200,000 900 worth of property.
He attended business college, then
went into the real estate business. Ten
years after he landed in this country
SABBATH was graduated in law and four
years later was serving as municipal
Judge and police magistrate in Chicago.
In another 10 years came to Congress
he is and has been reelected - times.
80 that he Is now completing - years
Of consecutive service.