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About Capital city courier. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1885-1893 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 29, 1891)
CAPITAL CITY COURIER, SATURDAY AUGUST j9, iSyt 3 T f T A NEW TRADE TO LEARN, THAT'S WHAT NEWLY ELECTED CONGRESSMEN HAVE TO DO. bright and gleaming tT ,anc a 8,ori I ,uch " lulrP80 ' Huliject to ous Hold for oiwratiotiH. Perhaps there t fine ana imprisonment. Waller Wellinuii UlTnra Thorn a rH Want In the Nature or "I'uluteri," the formal uf Which Citnnnt fall tn lie of Advantage to Tlmui. ISpeclal CorresKmlotico. Washington, Aug. 20. Thrco months hcnco about 400 men from ovory statu ami territory In tho Union will come down to Washington to pass a winter and a summer making laws for tho gov ernment of tho realm. Nearly one-half o( these statesmen were never here before In tho capacity of legislators. They have n now trade to learn and a now lot of experiences to go through. Perhaps a little advice will not do them any harm. If 1 were a now congressman com lug to Washington, with an ambition to make my mark, or at least to show thoso who had elected me that I was not un worthy tho honor, I should he grateful to any one of oxporlenco or observation In this Hold who would give mo a few useful hints. The now congressman should not oomo down here with any largo notions concerning his own Impor- j tance. In a country town a congress-' man is a very important personage, and o ho is, intrinsically, everywhere. But hero there are so many congress men, and so many men of even higher rank and greater impoitanco, and the peoplo have been so accustomed to rub bing shoulders with great men of all states and degrees, that a mere congress man, particularly an unknown congress man, can't travel vory far on his title. Tho congressman is just like everybody else in this busy world, this world of struggling to get to tho top and elbowing your neighbor out of your way. Ho must do soinothing, say something, ac complish something, if he would gain recognition. The least that he can do is to be "agood fellow." Being "a good fel low" will bring him frionds, hut it will not enable him to save anything out of his salary, nor will it bring him any per manent honor. If I had a dear friend coming to congress I would advise him not to strivo to bo "a good fellow," for I have noticed that the congressional "good fellow" is as a rulo a chap who has nothing else than his companionship, his story telling qualities and drinking capacities to recommend him. Tho new congressman who wants to succeed will of necessity make up his nind that he has hard work to do as kard work as he luus ever done in his life. Being a congressman a good con gressmanis not a soft snap. The good congressman will get up early in the morning, read tho papers, look over his mail, answer tho most urgent letters, run through the departments on busi ness for his constituents, go to his com mittee room, write or dictate moro let ters, attend a committee meeting if there bo ono, study up questions pending before his committee or tho house, look at tho history of any legislation in which his state or peoplo or party is interested, confer deferentially with the old mem bers, give studious thought to the rules of the house, and in short seek in every possible way to add to his usefulness and to pi. ice himself as near as ho can on an equal footing with tho members who havo hr.d long experience. All this ho will do before 12 o'clock noon, or as much of it as he can. At noon, or at 11 o'clock in tho morning a part of tho session, for often tho liouso meets at this hour, ho should have his letter writing and department work out of the way, so that at the sound of the speaker's gavel he may take his seat in the hall of tho house, prepared to give closo and studious attention to what is going on there. Tho now congressman who is wiso will determine at tho outset that ho will make an effort to under stand everything going on in the Capitol. He will assumo that nothing is trivial, nothing too small for his attention. He will remember that in the dullest ami seemingly most unimportant legislation is where the jobs are slipped in. A smart man, ambitious to make a name for himself, will not be anxious to speak. Fow men make fame on speeches. A speech in the national house of repro tatives is, as a rule, a bore, a thing which is tolerated merely because it is a men ber's right. A "leave-to-print" speeci. which is never delivered, but which is spread broadside in Tho Congressional Record, is an abomination, and a man of fine instincts and intellectual pride will not engage in this cheap and tawdry method of making an impression upon his constituents. The young congress man who wants to speak should take caro that ho is well prepared. Ho should make sure that he has something to say which tho house und tho country want to hear, and that ho knows how to say it. Making a speech at a political meet ing or in a courtroom is a different matter from making a speech in con gress. Hero a man is easily discon certed. He is actually in the midst ot a pack of wolves, ready and eager to jump upon In in and tear him in pieces. Tho man who makes a maiden speech or any other speech in congress should be so well informed on tho matter under discussion that ho may with confidence endure interruption and with iutoli gence and force reply to all inquiries. Itather than a long speech which is sure to empty tho benches and tho gal leries and mako tho speaker a dreaded man in future tho young congressman should seek to say in a few words the most striking and effectivo things ho can think of. Bowaro long speeches and bo wure long sentences. Don't try to he stately and wiso ami declamatory. Spit out in short, pithy sentences what you havo to say. If possible create a sensa tion, but not at tho expense of decency or truth. Tho man who will watch and study, be alert andthoughttul. will have nodiiliculty in finding opportunities to get the ear of the house and thu ear of the public. There are wrongs enough perpetrated under the dome of tho Cap itol, frauds enough, steals and sharp practices enough, there is demagogy and rank partisanship enough to give auy lmver was a better time than tho present for a now man to mako his mark in con gress. In the first place, nearly one-half ot all the members aro new The inevitable result of tho appearance of so many tyros tn the hall will ho nn abandonment to some extent of the old tradition that new members must during their llisi terms sit silent. Not all the old men who rouiain in congress aro force ful or eloquent. Some of them are such bitter partisans that tho country has long since ceased to take much interest in their utterances. Tho time: are ripo for tho appearance and the rise of a young man who will t times forget his party and romoinbti that ho has a country. Extreme part, saushlp, that which loads to bigotry, demagogy, suppression of truth, over riding of right, moral cowardice, Is the bane of American legislation and Amer ican legislators. Of course parties ate necessities, and, of course, a man elected by a party must adhere to it and hel tight its battles, but his duty of loyaltj I does not demand that he shall defoim himself that he shall on occasion lu deaf and blind and dumb. . Tho now congressman who Is wise wl! 1 be jealous of his reputation. He will not assumo that some one is all the time trying to bribe him or corrupt him, hut he will take good care that his conduct and associations aro such that the tlngei of suspicion will not bo pointed at him. There are men and women hanging about tho Capitol whoso friendship mean? ruin to a public man. Old congressmen know them and avoid them. Now con gressmen, when in doubt, should frankly ask advice of older members; or, if they want to be put on their guard against all such dangers and against certain do structivo influences within tho house it self, let thorn counsel with some of theit newspaper friends. Tho newspaper cor respondent at tho capital know pretty much everybody and nearly everybody's business. It is their business to observe, to inquire, to ferret out, to smell out by instinct Let a crooked woman or corrupt man come into the Capitol, haunt the gal leries and corridors, with a scheme or a purpose in viow, and in forty-eight hours the chances are Nowsnaiier Uow will know what ho or she is there for, and. moro than likely, the stranger's ante cedents and character. An old congress man, uow a very conspicuous and suc cessful one. told mo that he had made it a rulo throughout his congressional ex perience to trust and rely upon his news paper friends, not only as to such things as these wo are now speaking of, but as to matters of policy and effects upon public opinion. So I say to the new con gressman, by all means cultivate the friendship of newspaper men. Do not. however, make tho mistake which a New England man did two or three years ago. Ho cumo down hero to uttend his first No member of congress shall be Inter ested In any contract of a public na ture under a penalty of $3,000 Que, and If auy oflloer of the United Stated shall mako such a contract with a member of congress ho Is subject to a llko penalty. No mouther of cougiess shall practice in the court of claims. Every member of congress or any officer or agent of tho government who takes auy consideration whatever from any person for aiding tc procuro any contract, ofllcoor place from tho government or auy department there ot shall bo deemed guilty uf a mlsdo moaiior and Ih Imprisoned not moro than two years and pay a flue not to ox ceed $10,000. Any such contract may, at the option of the president, lw do elated null and void, and auy member cf congress or officer convicted of violating this section of the statute shall he dis qualified from holding auy office of trust, honor or profit under tho United States, No member of congress or offi cer, clerk or employe of tho government shall receive or agree to receive any com pensation whatever for any services ren dered by himself or another In any pro ceeding or contract or claim in which thi government Is a party, and whoever vio lates this law may ho fined $10,000, im prisoned two years and be rendered for ever thereafter incapable of holding any oftlco under the government. Indeed, the way of the transgressor Is hard, and I trust that none of the new congressmen who place theinsulvoH un der my tutelage will come to such a saO ending. Wai.thh Wki.lman. anocinti r nnrffflaa ttllrwl it4 )i it futtt, suming desire to bo famous. He thought ! 0,loIof tl,u ("l' few and is still al ih his desire ! " v,fcul,"", ,,,, "" i";ni"4 " ihuiw A GREAT WORK BEFORE THEM. Tho Arrliltvcta uf tho l'rit,iatnt Cathn ilrill or St. .lotin tint ttlvlnn. Special Correspondence. Nt:w York, Aug. 22. Tho committee appointed to select a design for tho Prot estant Episcopal cathedral of St. .lolin the Divine, in Now York, have chosen Messrs. Ileitis and La Far go as the archi tects. This firm had a plan in the competition, und this plan doubt less led the com mittee to think that these young men could come pretty nearly do ing what was de sired. It is likely, f however, that the conieting plan in imitiv nf ltn feature will be MK- ,,,:,NS- adopted. It will take at least twenty years to build this great cuthedral, and it is therefore quite well that the archi tects selected should bo young men. It has been very rarely tho case that the architect who has designed any of the great ecclesiastical monuments of the world has lived long enough to see his work finished. Mr. Uonwlck, who built St. Patrick's cathedral in Now York, was at i-M' tm mrWi jjgw the easiest way to accomplish was to make friends with the correspond ents and get them to write him up as a great orator and statesman. The first newspaper man ho met aftet arriving here ho asked to send out a fulsome notice of himself, and as ale ward therefor tendered tho scribe, win chanced to Im one of the older and more dignified men of the row, a five dollar note. Instead of taking umbrage at the insult and giving the greeu congressman a kick or u touguo lushing, the corre spondent sat down with the offender and pointed out to him that he had mado a fool of himself. But in some way or other tho story got out, and as long as that congressman remained in public life, which wasn't long, the correspondents tuado his existence a miserable one. The statesman in this instance got more fame than he had as- sion Mr. George Lewis Helus is a native of Philadelphia und thirty-two yours old. He was at one time a student of the University of Pennsylvania, though most of his boyhood was spent In Euro pean travel. It was in Italy that he de termined to become an architect. He turning to America ho went to the Insti tute of Technology in Boston. There he met young La Fargo, who was also a student and destined to be his partner. After finishing in Boston Mr. Ileitis practiced for somo time in St. Paul and Minneapolis, but soon came to Now York to work with Mr. John La Fargo, tho gieat artist and father of tho young architect. Mr. C. Grant La Farge, the son of the artist, as lias just been said, was horn in Newport, R. I., twenty-nine years ago. His mother is a granddaughter of tho IAi1 fri rT-.tt isMwrnaattinti tirltrt Iwmii li . lessly attempt to cultivate tho friendship V,n"'?'lofro O'V1,"'''1 " nf .U-ninLf .no,, ,,t ,,. ,.h,.l l,v ' Im M" f"0' "l1 l,1S Otllfir A mother, a Miss Sergeant, of Philadel phia, was a greut-grandaughter of Ben- of newspaper men at the capital by means of cigars und drinks and lunch eons will mako a mistake too. They should remember that a majority of the newspaper correspondents here earn in comes almost as large us the salaries of senators and members in congress, and some of them very much larger. In come aside, newspaper correspondents are almost without exception averse to having their favor sought by such cheap means. They do not object to com panionship und tho amenities of social intercourse, such as an occasional cigar or drink, but they will bo found ready to play rho part of host quite as often as they play guest. What newspaper men like is the gen uine friendship of members of congress it frank, confidential relationship, in which either side may be trusted to any extent; a willingnesson the part of public men to help them to get tho news, which is their business in life. The public man who makes this sort of connection with newspaper writers, and goes out of his way at times to servo them, will never have occasion to regret it. It is bread cast upon the waters to return a thou sandfold, sometimes in a fow days sometimes in many. For fear that somo of our now law makers may not have read the statutes as vigilantly as they should have done, I want to call their attention to a fow sec tions ft out that gre.it volume. In the code it is provided that every person who promises, offers, gives or causes or procures to bo promised, offered or given, anything of value, or makes or tenders any contract, undertaking, ob ligation, gratuity or security for tho payment of money, or for the delivery or conveyance of anything of value to auy member of either house of congress. either before or after such member has taken his scut, with intent to influence his vote or decision on any question, matter, cause or proceeding which may bo at any time pending in either home of coumvMit, or before any committee the! cot, shall be lined not more than three times the amount of money or the value of the thing so offered, promi-ed, giveu, made, tendered or conveyed, and, moieover, shall bo imprisoned not mote than three years. Any meniborof either house who asks, receives or accepts any such reward for jaiuin Franklin. 1 Ins is a liih niieagu us wo look upon things in America, and it is gratifying to see the descendant of great men showing himself worthy in this republic of labor where uucli indi vidual is judged by his own capacity to produce. No person with knowledge of contem porary urt needs to lo told of Mr. John La Farge. It is not generally known, however, that his father, when it mid shipman in tho French navy during the time of the first Napoleon, was taken prisoner in San Domingo ami kept for many years a captiv there by tho ne groes. He was compelled to act as tho secretary of Christophe. During the sec ond massacre he sm. la Farok. managed to es cape and made his way to New York, where fifty years ago ho was well known. This young firm has done what work has come to it, and has built several churches, notable among them being tho Bles-ed Sacrament at Providence. They bear themselves at this time of tri umph with modest dignity, and show no undue elation over the good fortune which has brought to them the best architectural commission ever given out in America. THAT LULLABY. "SLEEP, PAPA WILL COME AGAIN." Used tttf fHsriin.mon of HUchcoch tC McCargo I'uMittitng Co,, New York. WorclH und Muslo by DELLA BFHCE. Moderate. z-Z$ jggg.--jg3-U 'rp j j-JrpjLi-j -fz, S . 311 SEEE m ( vf Moderate. W-3 , :sc :r): cr niinlni Sleep, my tlar K. Thy dear pa pa will camo ' guln I ittSSsttttrtfe P Moderate. E2: tYV- p SEE1fr:gffil Tn H p3 -fit - will guard you, will sing liuili - a bjo I phmjjrmk M $L- k - : &- VZ PP Shun bcr soft - - - ly ; Yes, dear pa pit will coino a gnln ; I 4 'I P 'I l4 ';! Oi 1 '6 , av. rit M 01 Diir Ung. shun tier, Closo yourprct-ty bright eye. jprippisp 3 Z0Z. 22 w T 4 rit. PP A &: w 1 --! 2. m Oooyrlirfi ItW, by I'. IL UcCargo, Uostou, Mom. Telephone 176j H KaBaBKByUaBaijB VkSSv i.'in? JgmmUtJi OFFICE 1001 0 Street. Moving Household Goods and Pianos a Specialty RffcjR 100 Finest Engraved Still a I'olltlcul I'lit'tnr. Ex-Secretary ot tho Senate George C. Gorluim is but little heard of these days, but he is said to he still a potential factor in politics. He carries himself ! youthfully, dresses well, and his face is . handsomer than ever in its frame of grizzled hair and heard. Before he en teied politics per so Mr. Goihuin was an editor and had been trained to write I by a long newspaper course. Ho was 1.1. ..... ..... . , .1 PU ,1 , .1 .. fii. 1...1 ..l.lilll .1.1.1 uitxtjo iciitu, naifiu in, hi-, ti-.ittj i,ii, thorough grasp of it political situation. These qualities rendered him conspicu ous in Washington and by comparison has made the position of those following hint difllcult. Calling Cards, $2.50 -- Wessel Printing; Go. fitiiui, Nf, ouccc(Kor to Mil i t
