Democratic Sentinel, Volume 19, Number 45, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 15 November 1895 — CURIOS IN CONGRESS. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

CURIOS IN CONGRESS.

MANY ARE ABSOLUTELY NEW TO THEIR DUTIES. One Salvation Army Soldier, a Texas Cowboy, A Carpenter and an ExCash Boy—A Maine Farmhand and New York Poet. All Kinds of Statesmen.

There will be more uew members in the LlVth Congress than ever before in the history "Is of that body. Out ' of the 356 inera|t bers 102 are abso- § lutely new to Congp gressional duties. B Of the 102 new gpt men only twentywKj» seven are Demo--c-rats and the Kepublican majority "’"’V will be made up of 125 youngsters and | j Isl 100 veterans. The II , old-timers among tli e Democratic members are en-

enjoying the melancholy thought that notwithstanding their reduced numbers they will be able to have plenty of fun with the raw recruits on the opposing side. There are some curious men among the new members aud in the coming session they will be sure to attract considerable attention. For instance, the First District of New Hampshire sends a Salvation Army soldier to represent it in the person of Cyrus A. Sulloway. Sullowuy is a big, brawny man and in the old days could hqjd his end up in a stiff tight with charming ease. It will not do for the veteruns to take too many liberties with him. He is an able lawyer and is well up in parliamentary rulings. Ten years ago he became converted and joined the Salvation Army. Texas sends from the Tenth District Miles Crowley, a young man who does not know much übout lawmaking, but is sure to take as good care of his constituents as a man skilled iu the intricacies of legislation. He has served one term in the Texas House of Representatives and two terms in the Senate and is a very popular man. He is 30 years old and was born in Boston. J. Frank Hanley, from the Ninth Indiana District, is the log-cabin man of the LlYth. He was born thirty-two years ago amid the forests of Champaign County. When 0 years old his father purchased a “History of the Civil War,” and from this the boy learned to read. Poverty aud an invalid father called upon Frank at the age of 12 to help the mother earn the living. He sawed wood, taught school and finally entered upon the practice of law, which in time yielded him a good income. He has served in the Indiana Legislature. Harrison H. Atwood, from the Tenth District, Massachusetts, will be the artistic member. He is a clever architect, having adopted that business iu preference to the more uncertain one of painting. Ho is also a skillful politician. He is but 32 years old and a native of Vermont. Denuis M. Hurley, a Brooklyn man, who will represent the Second New York District, began life as a carpenter. He is an Irishman by birth, but was brought to this country when a small boy. William Alden Smith, from the Fifth District of Michigan, is proud of the fact that lie started in business l’or himself when 12 years old at Grand Rapids, selling popcorn and newspapers, lie was a page in the Michigan House of Representatives and later studied law. William M. Treloar, from the Ninth Missouri District, used to be a professor of music. He taught music to the pupils of the Mount Pleasant College, lowa. Frank S. Black, from the Nineteenth New York District, began life as a farmhand and now looks like a college professor. He is a Maine man by birth and tnught school after he gave up farm work. Later he was. a newspaper reporter and then he studied law. The poet of the new Congress is Rowland Blennerhasset Malwny, from the Thirty-second New York District. He is a native of Buffalo and has had a stiff struggle with fortune. Col. George B. McClellan, sou of the late war general, is about the youngest member of the new Congress. He is a Tammany Hall man and served as president of the Board of Aldermen of New York. The Navy's Oldest Officer. The announcement that Commodore Thomas O. Selfridge Jr. has been ordered to command the European squadron, vice

Kirkland, removed, and that ;u n few months Selfridge will be promoted to the full rank of rear admiral is interesting, in that for the first time in the history of our navy, or any other navy, for that matter, two offi-

cers of the same name —-father and son—will be found enjoying the same high rank. Rear Admiral Thomas O. Selfridge Sr. is the oldest rear admiral in our navy, if not in the world. If he lives until his next birthday he will be 93 years old. He was born in 1802, and entered the navy in 1818. He lives in Washington, he and his aged wife, and is yet hale and hearty. Nobody that knows the old sea.-dog doubts for a moment that he will become a centenarian. In recognition of his long and distinguished services he was placed on the retired list with the rank of rear admiral. His son, Commodore Selfridge, also has a brilliant record. When he graduated from the Naval Academy in 1853 it was at the head oi his class, and his future career was in accord with his proud beginning. How a Canard Originated. There has been considerable curiosity as to how the story started- that Secretary Olney was about to resign from Mr. Cleveland’s Cabinet. The story was telegraphed far and wide, and although it was early pronounced false it was difficult to obtain a denial of it. The story, like many another that has been sent from Washington this summer; was a pure and unadulterated fake resulting from a chance remark. It happened that three correspondents met on the street and stopped to comment on Venezuela. One of the men represented a Washington afternoon paper, another was the correspondent of a Pittsburg morning paper, and the third man belonged to a Chicago afternoon newspaper. As the talk drifted along the Chicago man remarked, apropos of nothing in particular, that if he knew anything at all about Olney the Secretary of State would not be in Mr. Cleveland's Cabinet another three months. It was just a surmise on the part of the Chicago man, but somehow or other it sank deep into the hearts of the other two men. The Pittsburg man went to his office and sent a lopg and startling account of the Cabinet crisis to his paper. A little later on he met the correspondent of a Chicago morning paper and told him the story. The Chicago man characterized it as “hot stuff,’’ and sent his paper a column and a half surmise of what would happen when Olney resigned. Next day the man whose chance remark started the story received a telegram from his home office telling him to send all he could about the rumor that Olrley lbd resigned.

Other able correspondents took their cue from this, and the result was that (hose useful but mythical persons known, as “a prominent member of the diplomatic corps,’’ “a Cabinet officer who declines to permit the use of his name” and “a man who stands very close to the President” were all interviewed and talked copiously of the Cabinet crisis. This is the true story of the rumor that Secretary Olney is about to resign from the Cabinet. Tipping the Jury. One of the curious customs that have survived in Washington is the custom of “tipping” the jury in all civil cases tried before the upper courts. The “tip” is nearly always $2 and is over and above the juror’s regular salary of . $2 a daj. In every civil case tried in this city, if the plaintiff wins, his attorney promptly hands the foreman of the jury $2. If the defendant wins the attorney of his side shells out the money. Nobody knows how this custom started or where it originated, but it has been a usage for so many years that it is practically a law. In criminal and United States cases the “tip” is never given, but in all suits in which the District of Columbia is interested the extra compensation is given whenever the district side comes out on top. As jurors in all civil cases in the district are compelled to serve one month, these $2 “tips” amount to quite a snug little sum at the expiration of tlieir thirty-day term of service. In one court where appealed cases from justices of the peace are heard as many as four cases a day are tried and in each of them the foreman of the jury is entitled to the extra $2. The money is always handed to the foreman of the jury, who turns it over to the jury treasurer to keep until the discharge of the jury from further service. Aid for the Poor. The coming of cold weather has already shown that the demands on the

philanthropists of the district will be as great, if not greater, than last year. During the summer what was known as the Pingree plan was tried. Laud and tools were lent to destitute able-bodied persons, and they were given seeds, to see if they could raise enough of a crop to keep them through the winter. The superintendent has received reports from twelve of such experimental lettings, and only two of the number were failures. It is probable that the plan will be put into far more general operation next summer, as it appears to be a distinct success. In the meanwhile a project is on foot to establish a number of credit stores to sell the necessaries of life. This will only benefit the destitute residents of the district, and will be run upon the honor plan. The person who draws supplies from the stores during the winter will be expected to pay for them in summer, and the credit given will be with the understanding that those who do not pay when they get work will receive no further public aid. The Congressional Library. By the time Congress meets the Senators and representatives will be able to see how the new Congressional library will look when Gen. Casey finally turns it over to the United States in 1897. The fence which for so long has stood around the mammoth structure has been removed, and the splendid front of the building now shows up from the east front of the Capitol with nothing to mar its beauty. There is not another such library building in the world. The work of beautifying the grounds surrounding the library has already been begun, and by the Ist of December will be completed. The grounds will be laid out in a way that will accord perfectly with the rest of the Capitol park, and will permit a good view of the building to be had from all sides. The work of transferring part of the Congressional library is now under way, but the bulk of the work will not be attempted before spring.

O. SELFRIDGE, SR.