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Show Looking In on Congress From the House Gallery ABOUT THE MEMBERS By CONGRESSMAN GUY U. HARDY Copyrltlu, 1SJ2. Wi-Bieru iNivpijer Union. A gentleman has raised the question i of a quorum and the roll of the house .r of representatives Is being called. Most members try to answer all roll calls; In order to maintain a quorum quo-rum and vote on all measures possible. pos-sible. Now the house is filling up, so we will look over the personnel of the body. The house, if all were present, pres-ent, would be coin-posed coin-posed of 435 mem bers, with delegates from Alaska, Hawaii, Ha-waii, the Philippine Islands and Porto Rico. These delegates do not vote. I once heard ex-Speaker Clark in praising the house say it was the most democratic parliamentary body In tjhc world. He didn't allude to politics. As I have met the members and have looked over the body of men I have often thought of that remark. As you now look down Into the house with me I think you will realize, as I do, that this Is a democratic body of men, representing, rep-resenting, as It does, th6 whole of the great American republic the greatest republic In the history of the world. Almost every type and phase of American Amer-ican citizenship Is represented there. It is a sort of high-class melting pot. Laborer and manufacturer; rich and poor; big brains and mediocre; wise, earnest men and near-chumps, all have seats. All classes of business and professions pro-fessions and all shades of political and religious beliefs are represented. Ex-governors, ex-senators, ex-judges, ex-Presidents and ex-convicts have occupied oc-cupied seats. The blind and the halt are well represented. Only the deaf and dumb seem to be missinft though I am of the private opinion that It wouldn't jar the feelings of the house much If some- members were so stricken. After some yenrs of observation from the inside, I can assure you that congress Is made up of a fine lot of patriotic men. Uncle Joe and Jim Mann. Here is a good chance to look at some of the men as they walk In. Yoa will recognize some of them from the pictures you have seen. Uncle Joe Cannon saunters in with the cocky air of youth, chewing the cigar cartoonists car-toonists have made famous. If it is a cool day he may have his hat on. He was elected to congress first in 1872 and Is now serving his twenty-third twenty-third term. Only twice In all these years has he been defeated and he told the house one. day that the years he was out were the longest years of his life. He is 86 years old and Is young for that age. I have seen him dance at a dinner party, and I have heard that he plays a little poker now and then but never gets in over a dollar or two at a time. He takes a keen interest in important legislation, has ft sane view of public affairs and makes a vigorous speech occasionally. Uncle Joe, as he Is affectionately called, has declined to stand for reelection re-election and will close his official career with the ending of this congress, con-gress, after serving in the house of representatives longer than any other man. I think I have already mentioned James R. Mann. There he Is by the table. The two tables In the center of each side of the house are used by the leaders, by the chairman of the committee In charge of a bill and by others especially Interested in the proceedings pro-ceedings of the day. Mr. Mann belongs be-longs at the table on the Republican side. This is his thirteenth term In the house and he was long the Republican Repub-lican leader. He is not the Fourth of July style of orator but a most convincing con-vincing speaker and the best posted man on pending legislation in the house. He Is a terror to those who have private bills up on unanimous consent day. A bill must be Innocent, Indeed, or properly amended, before It gets through when he Is present. I fancy that be has saved the government govern-ment literally millions f dollars by his Industry. In some ways he Is the most valuable man In the house. Two Party Leaders. The other gentlemen by the table is Frank Mondell, the Republican leader at this time. He is serving his thirteenth thir-teenth term in the house1 nearly 2G years of service- and be has been absent ab-sent only four days, an uncjqnaled record, rec-ord, I think. Mr. Mondell is not a lawyer, hut is an able and fearless leader, a keen thinker and strong debater. de-bater. He was once a laborer and later a railroad contractor in Colorado, Colo-rado, afterward going to Wyoming. He has a bard, nerve-wrecking job. but does It very well. When he makes a motion it usually carries. Mr. Mondell Mon-dell will not be in the house in the next congress, as he is a candidate for the United States senate. The leader of the Democratic side is Claude Kitchin, but I cannot point him out to you, as he has been ill at home for about a year. He is n likable lik-able chap and wns a man of great force in the bouse. His place is beinr fll!;d by John N. Garner of Texas, an i a worthy substitute he makes. He I serving his tenth term, and for IS years he was a unique member of the Iiousj in that, during all of that time, he never let one of his speeches appear In the Congressional Record. Since assuming as-suming leadership and speaking for the party he lets his speeches go In. The gentleman by his Elde Is Finis J. Garrett of Tennessee, who acts as assistant as-sistant minority leader. Mr. Garrett Is in his ninth term. He is a keen cutter, and can roast the Republicans and their measures in a more polished, clever and entertaining way than anr other member on his sWe of the house. Only Lady Representative. Yes, the lady on the floor is a member. mem-ber. That Is Miss Alice M. Robertson of Oklahoma, the only lady member and the second woman to be elected to congress. She was born iu Oklahoma Okla-homa 66 years ago. Her father was a missionary to the Cherokees. Miss Alice has been teacher, a postmaster of a first-class office at Muskogee, and in recent years has conducted very successfully the largest cafeteria in Oklahoma. She Is not what some are pleased to term themselves, a "new woman." She is a liftle old-fashioned in a way, for she stands by her convictions con-victions and Is not easily influenced by organizations outside of her state. She was never a suffragist, and it may seem an irony of fate that the only woman in congress did not favor votes for women. Miss Alice is a popular member. She accepts things as they are, asks no favors on account of her sex and has more good horse sense and is less afraid to stand by her convictions con-victions than are most of her fellow members. That old boy up in the press gallery is General Sherwood of Ohio. He was a member of the Sixty-sixth congress, but was retired by the landslide. General Gen-eral Sherwood was elected to congress as a Republican In 1872, the year Uncle Un-cle Joe Cnnnon first came In. Then he came back In the Sixtieth congress as a Democrat and served 14 ysars. The general is eighty-seven years of age. When retired from congress he took up newspaper work, his former profession. When nsked the other day if he would run again, he said : "No, I can't afford it. I have got to work now and lay up something for old age.'' But late newspaper reports Indicate that he may have changed his mind. Not the Place for Oratory. Who are the orators of the house? Well, that Is hard to say. You hear many speeches In the house, but little oratory. I kiow several gentlemen who are noted orators in their home states whom I have never heard make a speech in the house. Those who have been used to swaying the multitude multi-tude with their oratory don't get very far with it in the house and soon become be-come disappointed In their audience. I must say the house Is not a very attentive listener. The members get fed up on speeches. They don't care for eloquence. What they want are facts. Order Is not very good. Members Mem-bers come In and go out ; they talk and read ; they listen if something of Interest is being said, but they are not sitting " there for entertnlnment and flowery speeches do not draw large audiences au-diences here. A speaker Is often interrupted by questions. Any member may rise at any time and ask if the gentleman will yield for a question. The gentleman usually-does yield, and -he often gets his set speech badly punctured and comes out with a fiat tire. Many members mem-bers read their speeches. President Wilson and President Harding, when appearing before congress, have always al-ways read their speeches, and Secretary Secre-tary Hughes rem! his great speech at the opening of the limitation of arms conference, so It -s not necessarily a sign of lack of ability for a man to read a speech, as It Is often done to guarantee accuracy. However, we have plenty of orators for all occasions occa-sions and can furnish . the country with a good supply for the campaign. Do the men In congress today rank up to those of the congresses of years ago? Well, yes ; I think so. If you name your ideals of other days your list covers a hundred years. You are endeavoring to compare this one congress con-gress with fifty others. Of course, I do not care to hack this congress against the whole of American history. The congress Is not made up of experts ex-perts or highbrows or bosses or supermen. super-men. We have no breed of ruling men In this country. It is made up of a pretty good average of the citizenship it represents men who meet their folks back home on common ground and do not tower too high above them. |