Evening Star Newspaper, June 30, 1894, Page 13

NEGLIGE CONGRESS awel How Statesmen Try to Keep Cool This Hot Weather. dOMESPON THE NEWEST FASHION amt the Best Dressed Men. SOME ECCENTRICITIES a OMESPUN HAS OB- tained the approval of Congress for sum- mer wear. Tom Reed extent. It is a sort of toweling, made of flax grown in Ken- tucky and Tennessee. It is very coarse and never wears out. Before the war it Was considered only good enough for ne- &rccs, slaves being commonly dressed in it. Tkouzh searcely pretty, it 1s very cool. ‘The web of it is so loose that the breezes blow through freely. The big man from Maine makes no pre- terse to fashionable attire tn the ordinary scmse of the word. The leaders of the House in that respect are Gen. Bingham of Phil- adelphia and Maj. Fraaklin Bartlett of New York. Those two cities send the best- Gressed men to Congress usually. Natur- ally, the rule does not invariably apply. Tim Campbell looks like a farmer with a White tie. John Clancy of Brooklyn is cos- tumed in the style of the Bowery boys of Mr. Blackburn and His White, 1850—double-breasted frock coat, high white hat in summer and very tight peniaiepas “fine fall over the boot.” ‘Caacy has what he calls a “nice leg,” ani likes to show its shape. One of his friends from the Quaker city dropped in to see Gen. Bingham st the House a day or two ago. He remarked that Washington was new to him and that he wanted to be introduced to the town. Slapping him on the shoulder, the genial Philadelphia Congressman, paraphrasing Beau Brummel, replied: “My dear fellow, I will make you famous. I will walk down Pennsylvania avenue with You twice.” # One of the Worst Dressed Mem. One of the worst dressed men in the House is Stevenson of Michigan, the mil- ted irresisti ture of a large bullfrog about hop over toward the Speaker. negro in the national legislature—Murray of South Carolina. He is black as the . Not five minutes during any that the st of @ match for the ignition of a cigar not be ob- Congress forbid smoking. The Senate obeys this regulation, but the House pays no at- tention to it, notwiths: the present agitation on the subject of bad air at the Capitol. Cranks on ventilation are to be found everywhere, and it is not surprising Senator Vest is Ventiens. that continual disturbance on this subject should be made. Most people think that the air of the legislative chambers is good enough. It ought to be so, considering the steat engines and gigantic fans that are used to force great streams of couled air into the building, sucking it In from far aloft through stone towers erected in the Capitol grounds. Fanning Cool Air. For tre House alone sixteen stem fans are employed, the biggest of them sixteen feet in diameter and resembling the paddle- wheel of a steamboat. Standing in one of the tunnels in the basement of the Capitol, through which an artificial breeze rushes continually at the rate of 26 miles an hour, one feels unpleasantly chilled during the hottest hours of a summer day. When the galleries are crowded, every member and spectator in the House {is provided with 6 cubic feet of fresh air every minute. In order that the air thus supplied shall con- tain the proper amount of motsture, it is made to pass through stone-lined com- peg wenn where fountains of spray are ept perpetually playing. When Senator Hill rose to make his final Sratorical effort «gainst the imcome tax last week he wore a siate-colored double- breasted frock eoat and a black “butter- fly” tle. A few feet away sat Brice and Pefter, who are the two most picturesque figures in the upper house..Thetr propin- quity was accidental, both listening atten- tively to the speech. Brice wore a gray cutaway coat, a ie necktie; and a red flower in his buttophole. He always has that red flower. winter and summer; very likely he regards it as a mascot, for he is, @bove all things, a gambler in the higher sense of “speculation.” He ts xaid to have more necve than any other man alive, Probably he ts worth @ million or two dol- lars more than last year at this time, but he never exhibits the sltghtest disturbance of mind, whether he wins or loses. Brice has the biggest head and the largest feet in the Senate. It fs sald that he has his pantaloons made extra long to cover up his exaggerated lower extremi- ties. His hair is a great shock of auburn. His clothes, though costly, do not fit him very weil. Somebody once said that he looked Mike the keeper of an old clothing shop wearing his own second-hand suits. But when @ man ts several times a mil- Monaire and lives lke a prince he can afford to ignore the aspersive remarks of the envious. His favorite trick is twirling his eyeglasses by the string. This he will do for hours together while sitting in the Senate chamber. Dering Hills Speech. Peffer of Kansas, as he sat listening to Senator Hill's speech, had on a black alpaca ecat, to the right lapel.of which a pair of geld eyeglasses was attached. His long beard ce-tainly does look thinner than it used to. An ingenious correspondent, trying to account for this fact, said the other day Honaire lumberman. To look at him one| that he had not cut part of st off or pulled would suppose he hadn't a dollar in the world. Just at present he wears a “hick- ory” shirt and a suit of pepper and salt that could not possibly have cost more than $7. Other men come to Congress from far away with strange clothing and their hair, yet take a t the capital and spruce There is Meiklejohn of Nebraska, f.c example. He arrived with cowhide boots and “pants” tucked into them. Now he wears a long-tailed Prince Albert, rus- set shoes and trousers with creases in them. On the other hand, style has no seducttons for Bryan of the same state, who clings to the forbidden combination of light coat end dark pantaloons. During the last two Congresses the po- sition of dude of the House has been va- cant. Now, happily, it has been occupied Quigg of New York, who parts his blonde hair in the middle and smokes cigarettes. He is the youngest member and very breezy. Coming from an editorial Writership om the Tribune, he does not = to tackle anything. It was great other day to see him argue a dif- ficult legal point with Judge Culberson of ho is the greatest lawyer ia Con- nunds left. trick of Massachusetts was the first | the House this summer to appear | her garb—straw hat, striped | dark alpaca coat, striped shirt it out, so he must have pushed some of the hairs back. To the left of Brice sat Smith of New Jersey, dressed Hke a mintster in a black frock coat, white tie and patent leather shoes. He weighs about 250 pounds, has nearly white hair, and looks at least sixty yeacs of age. Yet he is only forty- two years old. He and Dubois of Idaho are the youngest men inthe Senate. Smith fs @ manufacturer of patent leather and is rapidly becoming a millionaire. Hale of Maine wore a full, swt of home- spun. Vest of Missouri, oddly euough, wore a silk pongee coat and no vest,- Hawley of Connecticut was clad in whiteduck. Black- burn of Kentucky was attired.in white flan- nel. He is always one of the, best dressed men in the Senate. As a preliminary to full summer costume he always appears in a light plaid pair of pantaloons, The palm for accurate dress, however, must be yteld- ed to Senator Ransom of North Carolina. In his person he typifies the idea, expreased is by the word “deportment.” careful zbout his cuffs and occupies his legislative seat, time he extends one arm and er, pulls his cuffs into view, and then gazes up at the ladies in the gallery. Senator McPherson is another very pre- cise man about his apparel. ar of Massa- chusetts, these summer days, wears a drab eutaway and white tle. He has a cherubic aspect and looks the very pict of an amiable and benevolent old gentieman. But let him get up to talk, and hts speech is apt to be vitriol. There Is no doubt as to the worst dressed man in the Senate. Cockrell of Missourl has leng held that distinction. He ts content, however, inasmuch as he was not sent to Congress on the strength of his claims to dudery. While Mr. Hill is speaking he is inter- rupted for a moment by a message from the House of Represéntatives to the Sen- ate. Capt. Bassett makes the announce- ment of the communication in his stereo- typed form. As he starts beneath the clock the old man looks like Father Time without his scythe. He wears a long black frock coat, a black tie and a white waist- coat, over which his white beard falls. The speech of the Senator from New York comes to an end a few minutes later, and the chamber Is immediately emptied, leav- ing only four or five unattentive genile- men to listen to the reply of Higgins of Delaware. Senatorial courtesy carries no obligation of listening to uninteresting es. Some Eccentricities. Congressmen have their eccentricities like ordinary folks. Representative Everett of Massachusetts hates to be called pro- fessor, and it makes him exceedingly angry to have anybody offer him a cigar. He loathes tobacco. Watchdog Hoiman has a He Pantaloons with a cinch strap and a loose . from the same state, | aring no waistcoat. | oval Legion button | open and discloses | He | . with a is thrown or so of white shirt front. Then he uses swear words. Boutelle | ne finds relief in a seersucker suit—| in India lest-looking Repre- of Philadelphia. « trousers and a well- sack coat. Though more than s of age, his hair and mustache 1 black. His shoes are always of ar rav patent leather, and he looks as if he were Just ovt of a bandbox. No matter how Jong the session he never turns @ hair even in the hottest weather. Geography as to Hair. By the way, a glance from the galleries at the heads of Congressmen reveals cer- tain cal laws in relation to hair, ay ‘Tne chin bear?, the cheeks being shaven, fs charac istically southern. From the great ner si comes the beard without any mustache. Most of the members from the north and east wear the mustache and Ro other beard, though an occasional Van- dyke cut bs seen. the fashion gress, many among southerners in Con- of them having locks that fell upon their shoulders. T style has pi- most entirely gone out. Northway of Ohio probably has the most luxuriant hair and beard, in color gray. The oddest coiifure belongs to Bundy, from the same state. nan, and every now and then} {stakes him for Grover Cieve-| Pennsylvania are opposites. The latter is Long hair used to be} habit of fumbling with a package of chew- ing tobacco while he is making a speech. In the House he uses fine cut, while among his constitueats in Indiana he contents himself with ordinary plug. In one re- spect Stewart of Nevada and Cameron of the silent man of the Senate, while the great silver advocate is accused of being fal. made from a kind of| afflictel with a cacuethes loquendi. Dolph of Oregon hates the newspapers. If he had his way all the correspondents would be permanently locked up in jail. A few Sen- ators have an amiable weakness for poker. There is always a poker set in the upper house. At present it includes Manderson, Brice, Hale, Pettigrew and Quay. The last named is perhaps the best poker player in Congress. dic. Cleveland always wears a “biled” white shirt while in town during the sum- mer, though he adopts the neglige at Buz- zatti's Bay. Before he went away he an- peared in a straw hat and suits of plaid and pepper-and-sait. He wears neckties of the butterfly pattern, tying them himself. ‘The President has a great many suits of | clothes. Doubtless he pays as much money himself on trousers by the score of pairs, &c. He has a valet, Sinclair, who now acts as steward of the White House. Sin- clair looks after all of Mr. Cleveland's clothes, sending them to be pressed, &c. ‘The pressing and cleaning of the presiden- tial garments is done by a colored man on 16th street. Mr. Cleveland has no creases in his pan RENE BACHE. HORSFORD’C ACID PHOSPH It ferms snow-white wings at the sides of his head, which ts bald on top, andvis very . There is no balder men in the House Makes Delicious Lemonad: sitar take a “Sa oS water sWeete wi retreshing and lavigarating. {for clothing as many a dude who prides | FRENCH METHODS Of Electing the President and the Members of the Legislature. NATIONAL ASSEMBLY CASTS THE BALLOT Some Comparison With Our Own System of Government. THE BEST FOR FRANCE Written fer The Bvening Star. CALLED AT THE French embassy day before the elec- tion of President Cas- imir-Perier to learn some of their antici- pations of the event. To hold its gay col- ors from fluttering too mirthfully in the Dbreege, a somber bow ef crepe was tied about the half-furled banner of the repub- le which hung above the door of the old mansion, whose very drabness bore the expression of gloom, while the servants within tiptoed about in the darkness, as if mourning for a ‘mas- ter well known and beloved. I was brought around through the little wooden gate, to the court within, and up the bare and nur- row stairway which leads to the office, where Ambassador Patenotre is to be seen at his desk. Even on this day of anxiety, the ambassador, who bore the marks of personal bereavement on his face, did not lay aside the kind hospitality and unusual politeness which he truly represents, but stopped his work and submitted willingly to an interview. We fell to talking of the methods of electing the French executive, and to comparing the workings of his gov- ernment with those of ours. The constitution under which the pres- ent republic of France is governed is but nineteen years o)d. After almost a century of constant changes, which has seen that country wavering between the rules of kings, a consul, emperors and presidents, the present form of government, known as the third republic, was founded, but not until ninety-nine years after the American colonies made their first and last decision against royalty, to which they have ever remained steadfast. As the ambassador temarked, “It secms best under laws which do not provide a vice president, or deter- mine a special election day, that the term of the new president should continue for seven years, rather than terminate at the end of the time allotted to President Car- not.” All im the Assembly. The long period which precedes presiden- tial election day in the United States, with ali its canvassing, conventions, and the tumult and excitement of the generai cam- paign, is never feM% among the common people of France, who haven't even an in- direct vote for the executive, although, as Was the case in the chamber of deputies on Tuesday, the excitement, which ts so vast- ly distributed with us,is concentrated where it often has more fatal results. The usual methods, which would have been used in electing M. Carnot’s successor, had the martyred president been spared the full length of hie term, wouki not have differed from those employed on Wednesday, except that the national assembiy, composed ui- ways of the chamber of deputies and the senate, sitting jointly, would have met for the purpose a month previous to the expira- tion of the term, leaving no space where the ministry could exert its power of rule. ‘The national assembly ts always required to give an absolute majority, before the exee- Gtive is installed, and the absence ot ® complicated ticket, tied with the uames of various other minor local author- ities, slelivers the voters from the consid- eration of too many qualifications, the re- sult is usually proclaimed in a short time after the voting begins. Thus to define the relation borne by the vote in national assembly to the exact wishes of the people, the composition of the two chambers of it must be analyzed. France is divided into depart- ments, just as our country is separated into states, there being eighty-seven of them in all. The department is likewise divided into arrondissements, correspond- ing to our counties, ard these are subdivid- ed into cantons, and the cantons into cem- mun2s. aggregating altogether 302 arron- dissements, 2,865 cantons and 36,000 com- munes. There are altogether 300 senators in the chamber, 225 of whom are elected from the departments and cojontes, and seventy-five by the national assembly itself. The French senator, to some exetnt, rep- resents his department according to popu- lation—thus the two largest departments each send five, six elect each four, twenty- nine each three, three «ach one and all others two, How Senators Are Chosen. The French colonies and territories are each represented by a senator, whose duties are similar to those of our territorial dele- gate, except that the former is vested with full rights. The members of the senate are not elected by the popular vote of the de- partments, colonies or territories, but are chosen even more indirectly than our mem- bers of the same chamber, t.e., by electoral colleges tn each of the specified portions, composed of its members in the chamber of deputies, together wit {ts counselors-gen- eral (who form the Icyislature of the de- partment, colony or territory), the coun- selors of the arrondissement, and delegates elected by electoss of the communes. If this arrangerrent were in vogue in the United States, we would have about 22 per cent of our Senators elected at large by the House of Representatives and existing Senate, combined tn jomt assembly, and the others by electoral colleges, one in each state, composed of the representatives of the state, acting with the state legislatures and various minor county and tewnship of- ficials. The government of a department is con- ducted by a prefect, who is, together with his cabinet (the councit of prefecture), ap- pointed by the president. It is also unde: a genera! council, elected by the vote of the People. The prefect is the general repre- sentative of the central government and also conducts all affairs of local importance. He resides at the prefecture, in the svat of government, at which place, in Lyons, it will be remembered, the late president drew his last breath. The arrondissement is pre- sided over by a subprefect, appointed by the president, and this officer ts assisted by an | elective council, to which each canton sends @ member. The commune is the adminis- trative unit, being a corporate body, pre- sided over by a mayor and his deputies, who have a double part, representing the government as well as their own division. The canton serves chieffy as a political dis- trict. The senate, as in this country, is a perpetual body, retiring periodically by thirds, but each member holds his seat for nine years, making the change occur at in- tervals of three sessions. The chamber of deputies, corresponding to our House of Representatives, is filled by universal suf- frage, so the votes from that chamber for the president come from the people, indi- rectly, only by one step, as is the case in the election of United States Senators, by the state legislatures. Powers of the Presiient. The president of France must be a na- tive-born Frerchman, forty years of age, five years older than the limit previded for the executive in the Constitution of the United States, whereas the members of the French senate must have the same quall- fications, nct being allowed five years of | membership to their own body before being | eligble to the executive chair, as it is with | us. The president has at his hand the disposition of the armed forces during an engagement, although he is unable to de- clare war without the consent of both houses of parliament. Concurrently with the members of the two chambers, he has the initiative of the laws, which he must superintend after their passage, but he is restricted In power, inasmuch as each one of his acts must be indorsed by one of the ministry. In many respects, however, his powers more nearly approach those of a monarch than those of the President of the United States. which is the chamber farthest from the voice of the people, dissolve the chamber of | deputies, which represents them directly, proclaim, and whose execution he musts sory glance before the expiration of their terms, after which the electoral college must be con- yoked in three mont witht tion. Had Carnot ha: and that the term of the present ‘were limited to the ist of July. Extra Sessions of the Legislature. ‘The president of France, as ours, has the power to call an extra session of the legis- lature on extraordinary occasions, but in this instance the scope of the parliament's power comes to the front, as it can call its own extra session, by a majority vote of both houses, before adjourning. Thus, making another application of these laws to our country, Congress could call extra sessions on the event of executive inter- ference, although the President might con- tinue to bite out his two months. The con- stitution also states that the president can only be impeached by the chamber of deputies, and can only be tried by the senate, making a jury of the latter house, and a judge, with the power to pardon, of the former. The ministers have seats in both of the houses of parliament, and must be heard when they demand it. Although they are named by the president, they are, in point of fact, elected by a majority of the cham- ber of deputies. By the constitution they are merely responsible to both houses for their doings, and practically the senate has not the power to overthrow the govern- ment by a hostile vote, while a vote of a want of confidence by the house of deputies compels the ministry to resign. Then, add- ing to the complication of authority, the new cabinet is made by the chamber of deputies, through the president, and it must be remembered that he hi the right to dissolve the lower chamber, with the con- sent of the senate. So the president seems to appear as a premier at the head of a re- movable executive council. American Criticisms. American jurists have seen fit, in various works on the French constitution, to give our sister republic some brotherly advice and criticism, presumably with the thought that we were the inaugurators of republi- can ideas in the modern world, or, in other words, that “we had it first.” But the French have gone almost two decades with- out amending their constitution, which, some have said, is better suited to them than we can ever appreciate until we are made into Frenchmen. Some have said that restricted suffrage is made the ruler of the republic by submitting universal vot- ing to the privileged go-betweens. Some have scolded because the senate is given longer terms and greater privileges than the lower house, filled by direct popular vote, claiming also in their criticisms that the larger body is made to follow, under penalty of being dissolved, or of putting the country in danger. It has also been the complaint that there are innumerable difficulties which prevent the people from keeping an open eye on their representa- tives, and that it is impossible to hold the intermediary electors to responsibility. But these are all individua! theories, and as for Uncle Sam, he will forever be look- ing for beams in his own eye, and not be bothering with the motes in his sister's eyes. ————+e+______ GOLF A POPULAR SPORT. The Fam Old Scotch Game 1s So- ciety’s Latest Pastime. From the Clucinnati Enquirer. Golf ts fast becoming popular. Among soctety people it has got to be quite the thing. This favorite Scotch game can be traced so far back that the exact date of its origin is lost. While its adoption in this country has been slow it is now firmly rooted, and this season promises to be its Breatest. In their search for something new the society folks have seized upon it, and many are learning the game. Golf is not limited to any particular class of individuals. Ladies and children can play the game as well as men, and in nearly all the golf clubs which have recently been organized the women show as keen an in- terest as the men themselves. Its devotees claim there is no game under the sun I'ke golf, and as a thorough health-giving exer- cise it possesses all of the necessary quali- ties. The first regular club organized in this country was the St. Andrew's Golf Club, whose grounds are now situated at Gray Oaks, a short distance above Yonkers, but within the corporation limits. This club was organized in 1888, and for the first few years the members played on various fields around Yonkers. This year, however, new grounds have been secured at Gray Oaks, where the game can be played on a moi systematic basis. A farm of about 250 acres has been secured, and the old-fash- toned farmhouse has been converted into a comfortable and cozy clubhouse. The grounds, or Ifnks, cover a space of about two miles, and there are in this cir- cuit nine holes. The holes are about 414 inches in diameter, and are placed fn what are called putting greens. These putting greens are well-leVeled plots of ground from #% to 60 feet square, and the object is to drive the ball into the holes with the fewest number of strokes. The circuit leads over hills, sometimes across streams, ditches, railroad tracks, as the case may be, and the skfll of the player is shown in lofting his ball over these difficult places, or haz- ards, as they are called, to a position where he can get a good stroke to send it down to “holed,” it is taken the next hole. Each time the cag at is termed the “‘tee- a short distance from the out and placed on w ing” ground, holes. The player, in starting nis ball again in play, may, if he desires, take a little soft earth, and, making a mound about half an inch te an inch in height, place his ball on top of this, which is the “tee,” and then drive it as far as he can toward the next hole. While in play, the ball must not be touch- ed or moved from the spot where it falls. Should the ball Jand in one of the hazards, as in the bottom of a ditch or close to a railroad track or a stone wall, it may re- ire several strokes to place it in a more vorable position. 1t will be seen that such a state of affairs may count seriously against a player, since it is desirable to make as few strokes as possible. The balls are made of gutta percha, very hard, and about one and one-half inches in diameter. They are struck with clubs, with long, slender shafts, at one end of which are projecting heads of hard wood, backed with lead or malleable iron. There are several different shapes of the striking ends, adapted to the varieties of play, as long drives, raising the bail in the air to clear an obstruction, and others. When these various features are under- stood, together with the fact that before finishing a game the player walks fully two miles and sometimes more, and that, too, over hills and many rough places, there is no question about the exercise afforded by golf. Then, as there is no time limit, the players can rest as much as they please in going the rounds of the links. ———--+e+— The Largest “Logau” Stone. From the Corntshman. There has recently been discovered at Penints, on the Island of St. Mary's, Scilly, logan stone, by which the well-known logan stone of the Land’s End dfstrict is cast entirely in the shade. This stone, or block of granite, 1s pyramidal in shape and of the following dimensions: Eleven feet mean breadth, nineteen feet long, twenty- one feet high, fifty-five feet in circumfer- ence and sixty-eight feet over all. It con- tains 4,389 cubic feet and is estimated to weigh about 318 tons. It is so nicely poised that one person can easily put it in motion, and its momentum continued for a short time after the power employed is with- drawn. It is called McDonald's logan stone and was discovered by accident. Mr. Ed- ward McDonald, jr., and a friend were walking round Peninis one day when they leaned against this mass of rock. The wind at the time blowing hard from the south- west they felt, or fancied that they felt, the rock vibrate while leaning against it, and in order to put vibration to the test they ap- plied their strength to it and soon found that it was eritable logan stone. A cur- the mass gives no indication of its wondrous equipoise. Might Heve Been Both. From the Chicago Tribune, First Boarder—‘What ails Dumback’s appetite? He has hardly eaten enough for Re land: He can, with the consent of the senate, | two days to keep him alive.” Ae ow wi & lady's daughter,” irk | The Declaration of Independence Now Ilegible. The Resuit of Carelessness in Ex- hibiting It to the Public. NOW LOCKED UP IN A SAFE HE ORIGINAL DE- claration of Independ- ence, of which croft, the historian, said that it had “received a renown more extended than that of any other state paper in exist- ence, has faded away veyond the pos- sibility of restora- tion. The names of the signers to this ereat charter of American libertics are no longer legible. After a hundred and eighteen years of care- less guardianship, in various custodies—dur- ing the greater portion of which period it was thoughtlessly exposed to the destroy- ing influences of light and air and heed- less handling—now when the irreparable havoc is done, and the precious archive has become hardly more than a blank and wrinkled sheet of parchment, solicitude for its preservation has begun to be felt, and at last it is cared for as it should have been cared for years ago. It was my privilege, some time since—a privilege then accorded to few, and now, under the strictest prohibition, accorded to none—to see and touch this precious document. It is kept locked up in a steel safe in the Hbrary of the Department of State. It is spread out flat in a mahogany Portfolio, made to slide in and out of the safe, and over it is a sheet of thick paper and a plate of glass. It is now never ex- posed to the light, and ts as little exposed to the air as is possible without placing it in a vessel from which the atmosphere has been exhausted. The Famous Document. The document is a single sheet of parch- ment, thirty-six inches long and thirty-two inches wide, and bears no scrolls or decora- ticns such as are seen upon many of the copies that are so common. The body of the writing having been evenly and clearly written when the instrument was engross- ed, has faded evenly, but it can hardly be made out, while the signatures, which were written, perhaps, with 2 different ink and another pen, are faded beyond recogni- tion, many of them being wholly gone and others partly so. The heavy stroke of the pen in the J. of John Hancock's bold auto- graph is still visible, but that is the only line that is distinct. The history of the origin of this great state paper is well known to most Amert- cans, but is always interesting. The story of the varied and disastrous fo>tunes of the document itsel* during the past one hundred and eighteen years is less known, and is here told: On the 26th of June, 1776, a committee, of which Thomas Jefferson was chairman, was appointed by the Continental Congress, then sitting at Philadelphia, to draft a dec- laration setting forth the reasons why the thirteen colonies should become independent of England. Jefferson was requested by the other membe-s of the committee to pre- pare the draft, and his draft, when pre- sented, was at once approved by a majority of the committee, a few verbal alterations only being suggested. On July 2 a copy of this draft was laid before Congress, and, after a hot debate of three days, a few sef- tences were stricken out, and the Declara- tion was then adopted. It was at once en- tesed upon the journal of the Congress; but the engrossed copy, on parchment, was not prepared and signed until August 2. During the first twenty-four years of its existence the Declaration was pr among the archives of the government at Philadelphia, and during all or a part of that time it was undoubtedly rolled up, as it shows, by the cracks in the parchment, that it must have been rolled for a long period, and it is known that subsequent to that time ft was hung up exposed to public gaze. When It Was Brought to Washington. When, in the year 1800, the national gov- ernment was transferred to Washington, the Declaration was carried there and de- postted in the Department of State, where it remained for forty-one years. In the year 1841, a substantial building having been erected for the use of the United States patent office, which had formerly been in the State Department, and the State De- partment being in a brick building, not fireproof, Daniel Webster, Secretary of State, addressed a letter to Henry L. Elis- worth, the commissioner of patents, and requested him to receive the Declaration and other valuable documents into his cus- tody for their safe keeping. This request was complied with, and for the next thir- ty-five years the patent office retained charge of the precious paper, but it was while there that it suffered its greatest in- jury. Tt was hung up, exposed to publte view, behind the glass in one end of a case of patent office models. At certain hours of the day the sun shone directly upon it, and, of necessity, it gradually faded. It is amazing almost beyond the power of be- Nef that of the dozen commissioners of patents who had the custody of this doeu- ment during those thirty-five years, not one of them saw that it was being rutned and no one of them had the forethought to take It out of the sunlight and to put ft away in darkness. In England such treat- ment of an important state paper is un- heard of. Magna Charte, the death war- rant of Queen Mary, and other archives in Lincoln Cathedral and the British Museum, four or five times as old as our Declaration of Independence, are still kept in @ econ- dition of perfect preservation. An Effort to Restore. In the year 1875 Congress woke up to the outrage that was being perpetrated and appointed a commission consisting of the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, Prof. Joseph Henry, and Ainsworth R. Spofford, the H- brarian of Congress, “to have resort to such means as will most effectually restore the writing of the original manuscript of the Declaration of Independence, with the signatures appended thereto.” Experts were consulted by this commission, and finally, upon the suggestion of Prof. Henry, the matter was referred to the National Academy of Sciences. It having become known that the great Declaration was fad- ing away, the public became interested in the effort made for its restoration, and the public press urged the importance of Frompt action, but years went by ané noth- ing was done. The National Academy of Sciences reported to the commission that portions of the writing had absolutely dis- appeared and that the rest was so badly faded that restoration was impossible. Meanwhile, in 1976, Mr. George W. Childe of Philadelphia and Mr. Frank M. Etting, in charge of the historical department of the centennial exposition, requested the gov- ernment to send the document to the ex- position to be placed on exhibition. The Secretary of the Interior, Hon. Chandler, addressed a letter to President Grant, setting forth the reasons why this request ought not to be complied with, but the request was granted, and, on its hun- Greath birthday, the great charter, faded and scarcely legible, returned to the place of its birth, and was there exposed to the gaze of the American people, its pitiful con- dition a standing rebuke to the national government. In 1877, at the close of the exposition, the common council of Philadelphia petitioned Congress for authority to retain the Decla- ration, and to place it In be poy Hall. This request was refused, and the document was brought back to Washington, but upon request of Hamilton Fish, en of State—the Secretary of the Interior con- senting—it was — oe ae to the State ‘ment, where it has’ since remained. peas ‘A Copy Made, While the Declaration was in the patent office an. excellent photolithographic copy, reduced to about one-half its size, was made by the government photolithographer. Later @ full-sized copper-plate engraving was pre- pared, and the copies printed from this plate are perfect fac-similes of the original. It is believed that in making this engraving the original was seriously damaged by a chemical application te restore the fainter REGUSEOUG gPUCTCTERGTARERDESREDDEGEAG207/ 2EL 3200225 ,7 PPTERTE|SPEEE REPSETETVapaesfe°y oVEG*PESEEEEOSETCS SCE QNEEC ECP SSGRGS e728 | S2AgGq3ELIEEEDT!, SSTaGSREEGHE oE2E ory graving now be no exact y of this most i = i doctment in existence. A framed copy UNHAPPY IN JONE Why Us It That $0 Many Paple Are Miserable ? A PROFESSIONAL VIEW. A Gentleman Whe Has Carefally Om Ly i grave. in ihe letter he says: “Could the dead fecl any menuments or other remem. cg eS oder gee Bee manes the most gratifying. plain. dais ot three grave a or cube of three feet, served Tells the Secret Cause without any surmounted by an obelisk of six feet height, each of a of it all. stone; on the face of the dais the following |... Seen, Oat Ast & wend share. Gat Sane be te ee ere was _burk me women onght Thomas Jefferson bright, strong, active ant happy @t this time of the Author of the Declaration of Independence, | 7%! are tired out, weak and miserable.” of the Statutes of Virginia for religious ‘Tt was the eminent Dr. Clarke whe pendence was a solemn act. The signers were subjects of King George, and their act was treason. If the king could have cavght them he would have hung them cording to the traditions that have come Gown to us, this knowledge did not deter certain of them from relieving the solem- nity of the occasion with the natural fiow of their wit and humor. The remarks at- tributed to them are not exactly authenti- cated by history, but they are too good not to be believed. It is said that when John Hancock affixed his bold autograph, he re- marked: “The Englishmen will have no gene in reading that"; that when nklin signed, he said: “Now, we must all together, cr we will hang separ- ately,” and that Charles Carroll of Car- roliton, when asked why he wrote his place of residence, replied, that there was another Charles Carroil, and he didn’t want them to wrong man. The most enthusiastic advocate of the great measure, and the one who led the debate in its support, was John Adams of Massachusetts, and when the Declaration was adopted he wrote to his wife, in these Prophetic words: “This will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America; celebrated by descending generations as the great anniversary festival, commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty, solemnized with pomps, shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations from one end of the continent to the other, from this time forward, forever.” Of all the eloquent words uttered regard- ing the Declaration of Independence by the orators of the generations which have suc- ceeded its inception no more impressive sentence was ever spoken than one pro- nouneed by Ralph Waldo Emerson, in an address delivered in Boston during the civil war. Referring to a contemptuous characterization of the Declaration by a certain political speaker, he said: “We have been told that the Declaration of In- dependence is a glittering generality; it is an eternal ubiquity.” Among America’s later statesmen no one ertertained a more exaited regard for the Declaration, or more persistently empha- sized its important relation to legislation, than Charles Sumner. He always held that the Constitution should be interpreted in spirit of the Declaration. : “The Declaration of Independence has a supremacy grander than that of the Con- stitution, more sacred and inviolable, for it gives the law to the Constitution. Every word in the Constitution is subordinate to the Declaration. The Declaration precedes the Constitution in time as it is more ele- vated in character. The Constitution is an earthly body, if you please; the Declaration of Independence is the very soul itself.” Skeptical Fos Fifteen minutes in our office why pi tells the story. Extracting, 25e. With Sono Soe. Cietning, . Pintion, jery best JOSEPH B. MARVIN. = #1. teeth, Miners Are Not Injured by the Poison. From the Montreal Star. Many points of interest are brought out in a description in a technical journal of the way in which arsenic is obtained from one of the most famous mines in England, the Devon Great Consuls. The mine was originally worked for copper alone, and would haves been abandoned but for the Giscovery thet the waste thrown out as worthless when copper was sought proved rich in arsenic. Although copper fs still raised, it is in small quantities, and the mine has been resolved into an arsenic works. The arsenical pyrites consists of 25 to 30 per cent of iron, 12 1-2 to 14 per cent of arsenic and the rest of earthy matter. After being crushed this is sorted Cor. 7th and D n.w. Baltimore Office—No. 1 N. Charles : dee street. where it is burned with low-class coal, and Produces “arsenic soot”—that is, arsenic 80 mixed with smoke from the coal as to be on eee color. i oxen owned in town. Last year there was Just one, which was sold for beef on the day after his call was made. Tis, the last team, was owned by Jarius F. Burt. This vanishing of the heavy cx team marks an era in our progress just as surely, if not as noticeably, as the coming of steam after the stage coaches and canals, or the en- trence of the electric car to supplement and in some respects dispi@te the steam locomo- tive and the horse team. Years ago the farmer was not to be found who did not own an ox team and oftentimes more than cne. The land was heavier than now, much harder to travel than even at this date, when we are apt to think them anything but good. But with the coming of better roads the more complete breaking of the fields, the invention $4.00 Traveling Bags $2.75, a wed Save 25c. to soc. on AT Case of powerful machinery | 16 tm 18 in. $0 tn. 22 <m and cheap explosives fer removing stum; fad rocks, and, more expecially, the brect- | OSC* 75C- YOC. $1.95. $1.50. ing of heavier horses, the patient ox has, No use trying; you cannot @o bet- buying Trenke. Kneessi, 425 7th St. Uke the Indian, gone ut of our civilization <— a S gradually but surely, but, unlike the In- dian, he has not gone west. To the little folks today the massive yokes, smooth and istening with the labor of straining shou!- are a curiosity. The big- Best Butter = now, We're —, the = EUGIX ference to the cow es IN CREAMERY Bi mt © B the modern prototype, and undoubtedly the 5-LB. G-pound jars, for $1.10. revisers will have it “Cow-eyed Juno” in Jaks You prohably Enow from <xperi- the editions of a decade hence. FOR = ence that for pority, freshness aed So we crude muscle and the |$ $1.10. deliciousness the ELGIN ORMAMERY excets. tugging of sinews to the power of swift horses, tirelesr 7A full Hoe of fresh Groceries steam, and now stand on the threshold’ of the universal electricity, that prices ; has been back of ail these forerunness, and ae ane ae is now fast supplanting them. There may " town, but ike the feiting tf of ce ol cn | JN Redman, 950 La. Ave. out 0! e o) in lantern, it will be but @ flickering revival ~“fetewes os