POLITICIANS IN MARBLE PALACES.

Rangitikei Advocate and Manawatu Argus, Volume XXXIV, Issue 9378, 23 February 1909, Page 3

POLITICIANS IN MARBLE PALACES.

Two new marble office build ingd in Washington have been completed by Congress, at a cost of £1,600,000, to provide Insurious private :xooms for the 483 members of the National Legislature. Senators and members of the House of Representatives have moved into their new quarters, and declare them. to be finer than the palatially furnished business offices of America’s trust "kings.” The office buildings are remarkable among the appendages of the world’s parliaments. One has been constructed for the exclusive use of the Senators, and the other accommodates members of the lower legislative chamber. They have been constructed at either side of the Capitol building, running at right angles to it, and connected with the two legislative houses by underground pa-sage for the private use of the lawmakers.The buildings are five storey high, and face open squares on all sides. They range round an inner court 300 ft in diameter, so that all the rooms have natural light. There has been no thought of expense in equipping the 483 rooms for the Congressmen. Each room measures by 16%ft. It is provided with a large size mahogany roll-top desk, a private telephone, a mail drop that carries letters to the post office box on the main floor, an icewater tap, and a vacuum cleaner tap, so that the rooms can be kept thoroughly clean. Pile carpets cover all the floors, the chairs are upholstered in leather, and there is a deep leather couch in each room. Electric bells summon servants, who are available for any use. By the use of an underground moving platform that connects the congressional library with the Capitol a Congressman sitting in his office can telephone the librarian and have any book he may require within five minutes.

, The two! buildings have special ventilating machinery that ensures a continual supply of fresh air in every room. During hot summer months electric fans in the rooms help, with the ice-water taps, in making the existence of the Congressmen bearable. The buildings have special large rooms for the use of the committees of the two legislative houses. There are also assembly rooms, measuring 86ft by 54ft, available for public bearings by committees. The Ways and Means Committee is now conducting its public hearing into the tariff in one of these rooms. The room is constructed somewhat like a police court. Part of the space is railed off, and is elevated above the level of the floor. On this dais are desks and chairs for the members of the committee, while in the main part of the hall are seats for the public. The room is beautifully decorated with exotic woods, and would not he out of place in the palace of a luxurious monarch. After deciding to erect the buildings, the members of Congress passed a Bill raising their own salaries from £IOOO to £ISO(J a year. They are said to have done this so that they would not feel too much out of place in their new quarters.