During the State of the Union a few weeks ago , I noticed that the penis of Congress were sitting on rows of theater - elan seating in the House Chamber . In a fortune of catamenia moving-picture show though , pre-20th C , we see them sit at individual desks . This is n’t just movies taking creative liberties — the House really did have desks at one point , and the change to their modern seating arrangements took 84years of contend !
The House Chamber was in the beginning outfitted with an assigned desk for each spokesperson , which provide seating area for House sessions and also served as their personal office space . As some Congressmen saw it , though , the desk ’s dual functions sometimes got muddied . Some representatives were accused of carrying on all sort of business and conversation while the House was in session , make too much noise and run off everyone ’s clock time .
As far back as 1829 , theClerkof the House of Representatives records congresswoman complaining about the seat situation . That January , Ichabod Bartlett of New Hampshire called the desk a “ cause of confusion prejudicial to the public business , ” but other representatives defended them as a contraption . In 1841 , the Clerk noted another ailment and , the undermentioned class , the first prescribed attempt to have them removed . William Cost Johnson of Maryland brought a proposition to take the desks before the House , but it was defeated by a vote of 93 to 74 . Five days later , another proposal rifle nowhere .
In 1859 , a third proposal succeeded—103 to 73 — and the desks were typeset to be remove and supersede with benches at the starting line of the next class . The triumph was short lived . With the raw seating agreement , theNew York Heraldreported , “ the members were thus in closemouthed impinging and were more easily impelled by the prevailing mania . ”
“ As a consequence there was much shake of fist under noses , much hurl threats of personal violence and much assuming of scornful and defiant posture . ”
After just 12 weeks , a exceptional seating area committee flip the seating back to desks and chairs .
W. Porcher Miles of South Carolina wrote the minority write up for the commission and said the debate over seating was “ one of the ease and convenience of the Members on the one side and the intelligent and expeditious despatch of the business of the land on the other . ”
The principal argumentation for keeping the desk , he said , was also the strong cause for getting disembarrass of them : the commodious outer space it throw representatives for publish letters and receive conversation . “ The first duty of the Representative was to attend the commercial enterprise go on the House , ” he write , and the desks were clearly get in the mode of that , with “ much time lost in repetitions and misunderstandings . ”
The reverse did n’t stop the desks ’ critic , and more proposals to get rid of them came in 1878 , 1883 , 1899 , and 1901 . All of them were rejected .
In 1908 , the Cannon House Office Building was completed , providing desk and peck of office quad for members of the House . During the same time period , the number of representatives was increasing based on universe growth in the nation and it was hold “ a forcible impossibility to accommodate the larger rank under present status . ” Another measure to trench the desks was bring in in 1913 , and the seats were finally switched over for good after almost a one C of debate . And they say the wheels of government grind tardily .
