House

Sun art critic John Dorsey says he always thought of the Walters Art Gallery's collection of Asian art as "one of the great unknown collections" because only a few pieces could ever be shown; most of it has been hidden away for nearly a century. Of the 3,000 porcelains in the collection, for instance, only 45 could be on display at any one time.All that changes today with the opening of Hackerman House, the Walters' Museum of Asian Art. Like the collection, the house itself has been a hidden treasure.

WASHINGTON - In a stunning announcement, Rep. Robert L. Livingston told a hushed House of Representatives today that had gathered to impeach President Clinton that he will not accept the speakership and will quit Congress next year because of his disclosure of adulterous affairs.Livingston dropped his news on the House just a few hours before it voted to impeach Clinton for misdeeds stemming from an improper sexual relationship of his own. The Louisiana Republican said he was resigning to set an example, and he called on Clinton to follow suit and resign as well.

THE MURDER of real-estate agent Lynne McCoy in a West Baltimore house she was showing just days before Christmas 1993 changed the way many real-estate agents conduct their business. But it also made the house where the crime was committed especially difficult to sell. Now, after nearly two years on the market, the two-story red brick residence on Glen Allen Drive has been sold to a young couple. We can't think of a more fitting tribute to Mrs. McCoy, who was a long-time agent with O'Conor, Piper & Flynn.

Traditional design will meet contemporary flair this fall at the Designer Show House, the newly restored Bodley-Randall House, originally built in 1715. The house, hidden within a courtyard between College Avenue and State Circle, will be on display from Sept. 28 to Oct. 28.The Auxiliary of Anne Arundel Medical Center will coordinate the sixth designer show, with all proceeds going to Medical Center projects. Professional interior designers from Baltimore, Washington, Annapolis and the Eastern Shore will interpret the preserved and restored home, which is still used as a residence after 285 years.

Some people move for a bigger house or a shorter drive to work. Gerry and Mary Hoffman went hunting for a better home for their boat.Before they found the ideal spot along the hilly banks of Pasadena's Bodkin Creek, the Hoffmans used to rent a slip two blocks from their house in Severna Park.On weekends, with their retriever, Rocky, they would slice through the Chesapeake Bay on a 25-foot power boat, fishing, swimming and sunning. Then, the slip rental charge doubled."That's my incentive," Mrs. Hoffman recalls thinking.

When it comes to bringing home the pork, Rep. Robert Roe, D-N.J., and his co-conspirators on the House Public Works Committee know how to get more than their share of the bacon. He and his colleagues recently put together a $33 billion transportation bill so laden down with goodies for their own districts that it collapsed under its own weight. Their "oinks" of delight quickly turned to squeals of anguish.It was the most piggish sight Washington had seen in quite some time. The panel's four top-ranking leaders divvied up $2.2 billion among their districts.

Last month, Attorney General William Barr announced that a special counsel would conduct a probe of the House of Representatives' bank. This removed the investigation from the control of Jay Stephens, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia. Mr. Stephens is well known for his sting, indictment and conviction of D.C. Mayor Marion Barry. Some critics of that operation thought Mr. Stephens, a Republican, may have been motivated in part by political considerations in going after the Democratic mayor.

This General Assembly session's first showdown on handgun-control begins tomorrow in a House committee, which is hearing arguments on a slew of gun bills even as advocacy groups and the governor's office continue negotiations on finding common ground.Handgun-control organizations believe that two Democratic delegates hold the key in the House Judiciary Committee -- Del. Mary Louise Preis of Harford County and Del. Gerry Brewster of Baltimore County. In both cases, the delegates come from districts that strongly endorsed handgun control in the 1988 referendum.

We're moving. I blame my daughter. She's only five months old, but she has somehow acquired, at a conservative estimate, 250 million toys. Every morning, there seem to be more of them. I suspect they're having some kind of battery-powered sex while we sleep. These toys make a lot of noise. In my youth, toys were passive lumps of wood or metal that were silent unless you whacked your brother on the head with them. But today's toys contain computer chips, so they can move and talk; this stimulates the mind of your child.

WASHINGTON -- The best thing that could happen to Bill Clinton along the campaign trail may be the success of Ross Perot.If Mr. Perot wins enough votes Nov. 3 to prevent President Bush or the Arkansas governor from capturing a majority in the Electoral College -- and fails to earn a majority there -- the choice will be thrown to the U.S. House of Representatives in a process not invoked since 1824.With polls showing the three likely candidates nearly tied in public favor, a decision by the Democratic-tilting House looms as an increasingly real possibility.