Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER IV. DIMINUTIVE DIGNITARIES. The second day of the session I began to feel at home, and in the course of a week considered myself qualified to do anything required. I had to become familiar with all the many rooms and nooks and corners of the Capitol, and learn exactly where to go when sent upon a message. It was necessary for me to acquaint myself with every Senator and officer of the Senate, and this of itself was quite an undertaking. There were Mr. Gorham, the Secretary ; Major McDonald, the Chief Clerk ; Mr. Flagg, the Principal Legislative Clerk ; Mr. Symp- son, the responsible and still flourishing Enrolling Clerk ; and a number of other gentlemen who attended to the clerical duties in connection with that body. In addition to the minutes or journals kept by the journal clerks of the respective Houses, the proceedings of each House are recorded by short-hand writers, the most eminent in their profession, everything said and done being actually reported and (after necessary revisions) printed. The publication containing this report was for many years the Congressional Globe; since March 4, 1873, it has been the Congressional Record ; and in order to be accurate I shall occasionally quote from the pages of the Globe and Record in referring to certain proceedings. These official reporters it was not only a necessity but an honor to know. Mr. Murphy, the chief of the Senate corps, from his long experience was regarded as a walking cyclopaedia of Congressional information,and so also was Mr. Amzi Smith, of the Senate Document Room. These two veteran officers, I am glad to say, are still on duty, and the Senate is undoubtedly as glad of it as I am, for their services are absolutely indispensable. Then there was Mr. French, the genial Sergeant-at-Arms of the Senate...