POLITICIANS IN MARBLE PALACES.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume XXiX, Issue 7730, 25 February 1909, Page 1

POLITICIANS IN MARBLE PALACES.

HOW AMERICA PROVIDES FOR HER LEGISLATORS.

Two new marble office buildings m Washington have been completed bjCongress, at a cost of £1,600,000, to provide luxurious private rooms for thi 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'b Parliaments. One has been constructed for the exclusive use of the Senators, and the other accommodates membert of the lower legislative chamber. Thej have been constructed at either side of the Capitol building, running ai right angles to it, and connected with the two legislative houses by iinderground passages for the private use oi the lawmakers. , The buildings are five storeys high, and face open squares on all sides. They range round an inner court 300 ft m diameter, so that the rooms have natural light. There has been no thought of expense m equipping the 483 rooms foi the Congressmen. Each room measures 23|ft by 161 ft. It is provided with a large size mahogany roll-to] desk, a private telephone, a mail dro] that carries letters to the post office box on the main floor, an ice-water tap and a vacuum cleaner tap, so that tin rooms can be kept thoroughly clean. SPLENDID EQUIPMENT. Pile carpets cover all the floors, thi chairs are upholstered" m leather, anc. there is a deep leather couch m eacl. room. Electric bells summon servants, who are available for any use. By the. use of an underground moving plat- i form that connects the congressiona. library with the Capitol a Congressman sitting m his office can telephone the librarian and have any book he maj require within, five minutes. The two buildings have special ventilating machinery that ensures a continual supply of fresh air m everj room. During the hot summer months electric fans m the rooms help, with the ice-water taps, m making the existence of Congressmen bearable. The buildings have special large rooms for the use of the committee* of the two legislative houses. There are also assembly rooms, measuring 86ft by 54ft, available for public hear ings by committees. The Ways anc. Means Committee is now conducting it, public hearing into the tariff m one oi 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 an desks and chairs for the members oi the committee, while m the main pan of the hall are s«- ts for the public. The room is beautifully decorated with exotic woods, and would not be out oi place m the palace of a luxurious: monarch. After deciding to erect the buildings, the members of the Congress passed r Bill raising their ■ own salaries from £1000 to £1500 a year. They are saic 1 to have done this so that they would not feel too much out of place m theii new quarters.