Evening star. [volume], March 10, 1935, Page D-3, Image 29

About Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972

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PRESIDENTIAL DEALINGS
WITH DIPLOMATS SCORED
State Department Is Termed Proper
Medium for Carrying on Negotia
tions With Foreigners.
BY WILLIAM R. CASTLE. Jr.,
Former United Slates Undersecretary of
State.
WE USED to worry, in the De
partment of State, when
ever the President had a
private conversation on
official matters with the
representative of a foreign nation. We
did not have to worry often, because
It practically never happened.
After that famous discussion on a
Jog at the Rapidan Camp we talked
over the possibilities of trouble thaï
might ensue, not because either Mr.
Hoover or Mr. MacDonald would have
intentionally said anything to bind
his government, but because each man
might so easily misunderstand some
quite innocent remark of the other
Out of such inevitable misunderstand
ings serious consequences sometimes
arise. Everybody was relieved when it
became known that the talk, although
earnest and ranging over every pos- !
sible topic, had been general and not
a discussion of specific subjects.
What is not always remembered in i
this country is that the words of a
chief of state are always looked on as
being somehow oracular, as having
profound significance—especially if
they are uttered by the chief of some
other state. Much of the sacred char
acter of the words of a King has car
ried across to the word of his succes
sor a President. In the old days Kings
undoubtedly discussed affairs of state
with each other, but when they spoke
■uith men of lesser rank they did not
discuss—they pronounced judgment.
Their spoken word was considered as
binding on the nation.
Talks Not Binding.
For this very reason it became
necessary to have foreign offices. For
eign Ministers and Ambassadors could ί
really discuss matters and thresh out
the points of possible controversy;
what they said did not bind their gov
ernments until the result of their dis
cussions had been reduced to writing, !
had been signed and passed on by the
chief of state—in very modern times
by the Parliament as well. Danger
of any serious misunderstanding was
thus minimized because inferior offi
cers could admit mistakes and could
sound out various methods of reaching
conclusions in a way that was impos
sible for their chiefs.
Soon after his inauguration I was
talking one day at the White House
with Mr. Coolidge. In his comments
—and those who knew Calvin Coolidge
knew that when he wanted to talk no
one could be more fluent—he con
fused the identity of two men about
whom we were talking and. in conse
quence. said something very sharp of
one of them—something which was
entirely untrue. Before I had a chance |
to point out the mistake he corrected
himself, and then remarked, "I have i
got to learn that hard lesson that
every word the President of the United j
States says weighs a ton."
Perhaps that was one of the expia- j
nations of Mr. Coolidge's famous si
lences. There is no doubt that his j
reticence prevented many a mistake,
and there is no doubt that he realized
how much more potentially dangerous
ill-considered remarks would be when
made to foreigners.
Nation's Head Must Take Care.
The head of a nation has to be ;
more and more and more careful as i
to what he says as his country grows
in importance and power. Whereas
John Adams or Thomas Jefferson
could send for a foreign minister to
talk over affairs of state, it would
have caused a sensation abroad if
Coolidge or Hoover had done the same
thing. Even at the beginning of our
history it was realized that for the
President to carry on his own nego
tiations was a little undignified, defi
nitely inappropriate and might be '■
definitely dangerous. This method is I
exactly on a par with having legal |
issues passed on first of all by the j
Supreme Court: There is no possibil
ity of appeal.
George Washington realized these
things and created the office of Sec
retary of State. Prom that time on
the successive Presidents have seen
less and less of the diplomatic corps
or of high officials of foreign govern
ments visiting in Washington, except,
of course, in a purely social way.
There have been one or two excep
tions. Theodore Roosevelt is the most
notable. He was a law unto himself,
had his strong personal likes and dis
likes, rode and tramped with Ambas
sadors just as he did with fellow
Americans, and said just about what
he pleased to those with whom he
was on very friendly terms.
Swept Away by Friendship.
They understood him, however,
happened to be men of common sense
and were swept away by the Presi
dent's genius for friendship. Their
strictly official dealings with the
American Government were through
the Secretary of State, and they re
peated to him what Roosevelt had
told them, just as the President tried
to remember to do himself.
Furthermore, the two men whom
Roosevelt placed in the Department
of State—John Hay and Elihu Root—
were extraordinarily competent and
experienced men who gleaned much
from situations which less able men
would have found demoralizing.
It is fair to say that, certainly
since the Civil War, the excellent
custom has become established that
all official dealings with foreign gov
ernments are to be carried on through
the Department of State. The main
purpose of this is to avoid misunder
standings. Its subsidiary purposes are
to throw international negotiations,
so far as poesible, into the hands of
experts; to make it certain that ade
quate records shall be kept of all im
portant conversations; to concentrate
the conduct of foreign relations in one
organization, thus minimizing the
danger of · contradictions, which are
otherwise unavoidable.
The objection might be raised that
Wood-row Wilson, for example, was
far more capable of understanding
foreign affairs than was William Jen
nings Bryan, with his solicitude for
the Swiss navy: but true as this
may be in the individual case, it is
not true in the long run; and even
in the individual case it is probable
that Wilson was not as capable as
was the whole Department of State
with its experts, with its men of real
learning and real wisdom, like John
Baasett Moore and Prank Lyon Polk.
In destroying this custom the pres
sent administration has seriously
weakened the Department of State
and has endangered our good relations
with the rest of the world.
Parley Preliminaries Cited.
This seems a strong statement—
yet I believe the record bears it out.
Let us examine just a small part of
that record.
In preparation for the World Eco
nomic Conference which was held in
London in the Summer of 1933 the
American Government invited various
foreign statesmen to Washington for
discussions with the President. How
much of this was showmanship, the
« >
desire to impress the world and the
American people with the fact that
the most Important men oi the most
important nations would hurry td
Washington at the President's re
quest; or how much it was a genuine
desire to settle certain questions In
advance to assure a successful con
ference—It is futile to speculate upon
this.
If, in the conference, the United
States planned to take the leadership,
there is justification even in the first
explanation of the invitation; but the
almost utter lack of preparation would
suggest that the second explanation,
however compelling the desire to make
the conference successful may have
been at first, was forgotten.
At any rate MacDonald came, and
Herriot, and Ishii—to mention only
three of them. They saw the Presi
dent alone and with others, appar
ently did not attempt to reach any
conclusions, had a more or less agree
able time and spent a great deal of
money. The later conference was, as
we all know, a dismal failure.
Let us look, then, at the unfor
tunate results of these visits, so far as
good international understanding Is
concerned. The good that should
have issued from them, leaving out
positive results on the work of the
conference, was that those who came
would get to know and appreciate
American problems and that thus
future relations would be simpler end
more cordial. What actually hap
pened?
Planned Stabiliiation.
MacDonald returned to England
seemingly convinced that the prin
cipal result America hoped from the
economic conference was an agree
ment on measures to bring about j
some kind of international stabiliza
tion of currency. MacDonald knew
that the British government was not
ready to stabilize, but was sure that
to do this was better than to lose
American co-operation. Plans were
worked out to that end.
But in the meantime, back in the
United States. N. R. A. and A. A A
had changed the picture and it looked
as though stabilization would affect
the far more important domestic pro
gram adversely. In consequence there
went from the Presides a very sharp
cable refusing to consider any
stabilization plan whatever. That
killed the conference.
Herriot came to Washington almost
hopeless of securing any useful re
sults. because America had just ?one j
off the gold standard. But he was de
lighted with his talks with the Presi
dent. after all. What he thought he
learned was that in the matter of
German rearmament America was
entirely on the side of France and
would exert its power to prevent such
rearmament. Because he believed
the President had said this and said
it with great vigor. Herriot ignored
the fact that this was exactly the
kind of European political question in
which America had always refused to
become involved.
When Viscount Ishii was talking
with the President they discussed
Japanese policy in the Orient, but, so
far as any one knew, without com
mitment on either side. A few months
later the Department of State be
lieved it to be necessary to send a
sharp note to Japan about its action
in Manchoukuo. Immediately Viscount
Ishii issued a statement that the note
was unfair because in Washington the
President had told him that he recog
nized the special position of Japan
in the Far East. The President re
torted that he had said no such thing. ;
LitrinofT Met Roosevelt.
Or, to take a more recent example,
not connected with the economic con
ference. When Litvinoff came to
Washington to negotiate the recog
nition of the Sonet Government, he.
like the others, had several private
talks with the President, although
most of the detailed negotiation was
carried on with the Department of
State. When he left, with recognition
in his pocket, it was understood that
definite arrangements would speedily
be made to boom American expert
trade with Russia—the reason people
had favored recognition—and for the
settlement of American claims against
the Soviet.
A short time ago the Secretary of
State was compelled to admit that
the negotiations had failed, that there
would be no revival of trade except in
the ordinary course of business, and
that there would be no payments on
the American claims. Immediately
Litvinoff issued a statement that the
failure was due to the fact that the
American Government would not
make good on the President's promise
sf a substantial loan to the Soviet.
MacDonald, Herriot. Ishii, Litvinoff
—Great Britain, Prance, Japan, So
viet Russia—believe that the Presi
ient of the United States made prom
ises which he did not keep and thus
the good faith of the Nation is im
pugned. This proves how infinitely
wise was the old rule that negotiations
with foreign nations must be concen
trated in the Department of State,
that the President must keep out of
Lhem until the time came for him to
spprove or disapprove the conclusion
—except, of course, in so far as he
might discuss progress with his own
Secretary of State.
No subordinate officer binds the
Government unless he signs a written
statement. Neither does the President,
legally—but in the minds of foreign
ers there is no doubt that the spoken
word of the President is considered as
binding as the written word of any
inferior officer.
Absolves President.
I do not for a moment assert that
the President made to Litvinoff and
Ishii and Herriot the statements they
attribute to him—at least in the sense
in which they took them. In fact,
I believe the contrary. But just as im
portant as what we Americans believe
is what the foreigners believe. It does
not increase our respect for them to
believe that their spokesmen are not
telling the truth, any more than it
increases their respect for us to believe
that the President deceived their dele
gates.
Any one of us can work out a form
of words the President might have
used, quite unconsciously, which could
easily and honestly be made by his
listeners to mean what they greatly
hoped he did mean.
The heart of the matter is this: In
these days when international rela
tions are everywhere in a perilous
state the American Government
should lean over backward to avoid
any possibility of misunderstandings.
The President is the court of last re
sort in foreign policy. He should never
be dragged in or permitted to force
his way into preliminary discussions
o! foreign problems. It Is not his
place. It detracts from his dignity
and his authority. The Secretary of
State is his adviser in these matters
and the sole responsibility of the
Secretary should be promptly reaf
firmed.
The New Deal in Canada
Prime Minister Bennett Throws Bombshell Into Conservative Party Ranks
by Espousing New Policies.
PARLIAMENT BL ILDINiiS AT OTTAWA. CANADA. LEFT INSET : MACKENZIE KINC. FORMER PRIME MINISTER OF CANADA.
RICHT INSET: RICHARD B. BENNETT, PRIME MINISTER. —Underwood Photos.
BY H. CARL GOLDENBERG.
Lecturer In Economics. McGill University
THE New Deal marches on. It
passes the confines of the
United States. It finds an ex
ponent in England in the per
son of Lloyd George and is the
model of new industrial legislation in
France. It now comes to Canada. Its
broad outlines there have been for
mulated in a series of radio broad
casts. It is built on the following
premises:
"Capitalism must change to meet
the changed conditions of the New
World, if it is longer adequately to
serve yc 4 '
"The profit motive has served the
people these many years and it will
continue. But could you leave it un
restrained, uncontrolled, free to do as
it pleases? That is license."
"We must now have a social ideal
as distinguished from what we con
ceived to be individual right."
"I am for reform, and reform means
government intervention. It means
government control and regulation. It
means the end of laissez-faire. There
can be no permanent recovery without
reform."
Bennett's Views.
The speaker is not the leader of
Canada's small Socialist group, nor
is it a "brain truster" delivering an
academic kcture. It is R. B. Bennett,
Conservative prime minister of Can
ada, nailing the New Deal plank into
the election platform of his party. It
is Mr. Bennett throwing a bomb
shell into Dominion politics.
This is an election year in Canada.
The terms of office of the Bennett
government is now expiring. It must
seek a renewal of the mandate which
it received at the polls in 1930. when
it defeated the Liberal administration
of Mackenzie King. It attained power
on the crest of the wave which in de
pressions upsets governments indis
criminately. Its platform contained
nothing unusual, nothing radical.
It was elected on the traditional
Conservative policy of higher tariffs.
It summoned a special session of
Parliament immediately after the elec
tion in order to put this policy into
effect. It raised Canada's tariff to
the highest point in its history, and
then negotiated an empire trade
agreement. Beyond this it relied on
"natural" processes of recovery. But
as the depression became more serious,
the "natural" forces did not seem to
assert themselves. High tariffs did not
banish unemployment. In fact, the
situation grew constanly worse.
Forced in Moditication.
Mr. Bennett was compelled to mod
ify some of his principles: he began
to administer direct relief to the un
employed; he came to the rescue of
the credit of the near-bankrupt west
ern provinces. The small Socialist
group in Parliament urged drastic re
form measures, but they were re
ceived with contempt. State inter
vention and regulation were heretical
to the Conservative party.
Then came Mr. Roosevelt and the
New Deal. The facte of geography
had created close economic relation
ships between Canada and the United
States; it was inevitable that the
new program would affect the Do
minion. At the outset Mr. Bennett
declared that there was no room for
an N. R. A. in Canada; that Canada
was recovering without state inter
vention. His theme was seized upon
in anti-Roosevelt circles in the United
States; financial journals pointed to
"recovery" In Canada as an example
of the operation· of natural forces, un
hindered by state interference. But
a change was soon to come; the facts
of economics and politics are all-pow
erful.
The distress of the producers of pri
mary products in Canada, deprived of
their foreign markets and the defeat
of the Conservative governments in
two of the provinces led to a partial
:onversion of Mr. Bennett in 1934. The
legislation enacted by Parliament last
year manifested the first Influences of
Mr. Roosevelt's policies in Canada.
The provisions of the Dominion com
panies' act were made more stringent.
Monetary legislation was modified by
reducing the required gold reserve
against notes, with a consequent ex
pansion of the currency. A moderate
public works program was initiated.
The farmers' debt burden was reduced
by the enactment of farmer-creditor
debt adjustment acts. The natural
products marketing act was passed,
with extensive powers of government
control and regulation; it was the
most radical and the moet bitterly de
bated measure of the session.
Such was Canada's first installment
of the New Deal. It was not ushered
in with the enthusiasm displayed by
\
Mr. Roosevelt's supporters; it was not
even called a New Deal or a reform
program. It was followed by crushing
defeats of government candidates in
by-elections, and by the defeat of two
more provincial Conservative govern
ments. In Saskatchewan, as previous
ly in Brtish Columbia, the Conserva
tive party did not jeturn a single
member. In Ontario Mitchell Hep
SAN SALVADOR ELECTION
SHOWS UP U. S. POLICIES
Refused Recognition by State Depart
ment for Two Years, Gen. Mar
tinez Retains His Power.
BY GASTON NERVAL.
ANEW government was Inaugu
rated a few days ago in
San Salvador—a government
which was not the result of
violence, but the expression
of popular votes.
What should prove even more sig
nificant than this evidence ^f gov
ernmental stability to readers in this
country is the fact that the new
regime is headed by the same man
whom the United States refused to
recognize during two whole years
when he. as legally-elected Vice Pres
ident, was completing the term of for
mer President Araujo.
Of course, the experience is not un
known to the men in charge of inter
American relations at the State De
partment. Many times in the past
they have denied recognition to pop
ular governments, and even supported
unpopular minorities in the opposi
tion, only to be contradicted in the
end by the verdict—freely expressed
at the polls—of the very masses
whose judgment they had misrepre
sented. The case of Nicaragua is
typical. In two consecutive presiden
tial elections, supervised by officials [
of the United States, the two Liberals
who had been antagonized by Wash
ington. even with armed forces, while
they were trying to show the world
that the Conservatives had usurped
power against the will of the people
of Nicaragua, Moncada and Sacasa.
were successively elected to the presi
dency by large majorities. The case
of Cuba, where a little over a year
ago the State Department refused to
recognize Grau San Martin, alleging
he lacked popular support, and even
helped his overthrow, and where Grau
San Martin is now the strongest presi
dential aspirant, is still in the lime
light.
Shows Peril in Policy.
Nevertheless, even though the ex
perience with respect to El Salvador
is not new, it emphasizes once more
the dangers involved in allowing the
State Department to pass upon the
legitimacy and the strength of Latin
American governments and to deter
mine which one is popular and which ι
is not.
Gen. Maximiliano Hernandez Mar
tinez, the new chief executive of El
Salvador, had a difficult time con
vincing the State Department that his
previous tenure of the presidency,
having succeeded to that office as the
elected Vice President in the absence
of the incumbent, was either consti
tutional or popular. More than two
years elapsed before the United States
agreed to recognize the government of
Gen. Martinez.
To justify its action, the State
Department, besides stressing the
"unpopularity" of the Martinez re
gime. availed itself of a treaty tech
nicality which not only did not bind
the United States, but was inap
plicable to the case. The experts at
the State Department argued that
the United States had promised to
follow the policy laid down by the
Central American treaties of 1923—
to which they were not a party—
stipulating that no person who had
taken part in a successful revolu
tion, or who had held a cabinet port
folio in a government overthrown
by force, could be extended recogni
tion as the head of a new regime.
They claimed that Gen. Martinez,
as minister of war of the Araujo
government, which he succeeded,
could not be recognized.
Martinez Not Revolutionary.
Besides the fact that this promise
had not been strictly adhered to In
the past, there were several reasons
why the rule, if it was such, did
not apply to the case of the Martinez
regime.
In the first place the Martinez gov
ernment was not a revolutionary one.
It bad been established in accordance
with the constitution of El Salvador,
which provides that, when the chief
executive absents himself from the
country without congressional per
mission, the Vice President auto
matically becomes his successor for
the remainder of the term. Gen.
Martinez was the legally elected Vice
President of El Salvador when Presi
dent Araujo abandoned his post and
left the country at the outbreak of
a military uprising in the capital.
At the beginning Gen. Martinez
was suspected of having taken a part
in the uprising and. though no one
contested his right to succeed Araujo.
public opinion showed itself hesitant
to uphold him. But soon afterward,
when the Salvadorians became aware
that the Vice President not only had
remained aloof in the contest between
Araujo and the military leaders, but i
had also prevented the complete j
breakdown of the constitutional status :
by taking over the reins and restoring
order, they rallied to his support
almost without distinction of political
creeds. Later on the Salvadorian
Congress formally sanctioned the new
regime, thus removing any doubt ai
to its legal nature.
United States Not Party to Treaties.
As for the argument that Gen.
Martinez held a portfolio in Araujo's
cabinet, those who used it overlooked
the fact that, besides being a cabinet
officer. Gen. Martinez was also the
legally elected Vice President. If as
a cabinet officer he could not be rec- 1
ognized by the other Central Ameri- |
can republics—not by the United
States, which was not a party to the |
1923 treaties—as the constitutional I
Vice President he certainly could be j
denied recognition.
More less so than by any other j
American republic, could he be denied
recognition by the United States. The
Central American governments had,
at least, the right to Interpret the
1923 treaties in a way that might
have justified non-recognition, but
the United States was not a party
to the treaties. The United States
had merely promised, of its own will,
to follow the spirit of constitutionality
embodied in them, with respect to the
recognition of Central American re
gimes. The Martinez government of
El Salvador was not in conflict with
that principle of constitutionality. It
had been set up in accord with the
constitution of the country and. more
over, it counted upon overwhelming
popular support.
Recognition Delay Criticized.
When it is further realized that,
outside of the legal aspect, the eco
nomic as well as the political inter
ests of the United States advised
recognition, it is hard to understand
why the State Department took two
years to recognize the Martinez re
gime in El Salvador. Economically,
not only were the debts contracted by
previous Salvadorian governments im
periled by lack of recognition, but :
this, also, obstructed commercial re
lationships between the two coun
tries. Politically, the persistence of
the non-recognition policy could not
be harmonized with the promises of '
non-intervention and respect for the
sovereignty of Latin American peoples,
with which the State Department was
trying to regain good will in the
Southern Hemisphere.
But, more than anything else, more
than any one of those arguments,
what illustrates most plainly the er
ror of that delay is acknowledging
the legitimacy and the popularity
of the previous Martinez regime, is
the fact that Gen. Martinez, after '
having resigned voluntarily from the j
post six months ago, has Just been .
given by his countrymen, in compli- (
ance with constitutional provisions, a ,
popular mandate to head the Salva- '
dorian ship of state for another four ,
years.
(Oovyriiht. 1335.)
4
burn became the first Liberal prime
minister since 1905. The prospect was
dark for Mr. Bennett: it was appar
ent that he was destined for an in
glorious defeat. He decided to call the
New Deal to his rescue.
A royal commission has been inves
tigating Canadian business practices
for many months, following the lines
of congressional investigations at
Washington. It has disclosed highly
unsatisfactory conditions—low wages,
long hours, child labor, sweat shops
and exploitation of the primary pro
ducer. Its chairman was H. H. Stev
ens. minister of trade and commerce
in Mr. Bennett's cabinet. When Mr.
Stevens in a number of speeches com
mented in rather forceful language on
the disclosures of his investigation,
he brought down upon himself the
wrath of certain corporations; Mr.
Bennett virtually dismissed him from
the cabinet. This move threatened
to split the Conservative party, which
already was apparently doomed. Then
something happened.
Wields Thunderbolt.
On the night of January 2 Mr.
Bennett delivered the first of a series
3f five radio addresses; it came as
ι thunderbolt. He took up the torch
5f Mr. Stevens—and more. He poured
jut his wrath upon the evils and
ibuses of the capitalist system: he
=aw it doomed to extinction unless
subjected to governmental control and
regulation. In succeeding broadcasts
he outlined a legislative program to
carry his reforms into effect. The
legislation is now being drafted and.
it is understood, will be presented
to the present session of Parliament.
It will embrace the following meas
ures:
<a) Unemployment insurance;
<b) Health insurance;
(c> A revised system of old-age
pensions;
id) Federal enforcement of uni
form minimum wages and a uniform
maximum working week:
(e) Termination of child labor and
of sweat-shop conditions;
(f) Amendment of the Income tax
law to correct inequalities as between
earned and unearned income.
(g) Company legislation to prevent
stock-watering and to prohibit no
par value stock:
(h) Regulation of "concentrations
in production and distribution" and
the prevention of unfair trade prac
tices ;
(ii Appointment of an economic
advisory council.
Not Revolutionary.
This reform program is extensive,
but it is not revolutionary. It em
bodies provisions of Mr. Roosevelt's
N. R. A. and his projected social
security measures: it proposes nothing
nhich has not been tried in Great
Britain. In so far as it introduces
social legislation it will merely raise
Canada to the level of a normal
modern industrial nation. It is a
:ypical liberal program in the present
economic state of society. It is out
Df the ordinary only in that It is
proposed by the traditional party of
conservatism in Canada, presented in
'orceful language denouncing the
;vils of capitalism by Mr. Bennett,
wealthy bachelor, brilliant corpora
Jon lawyer and former bank director.
In enunciating his new deal plat
form, the prime minister has amazed
.lis own party no less than his op
ponents. Orthodox Conservatives have
always believed in making haste
slowly. ' They have witnessed with
mspiclon and fear the growing tend
;ncy toward state interference. They
have attempted to stem the tide,
jut now find their leader abandon
ing them. They don't understand It;
;hey don't like it.
Some may have hoped that the
;orch of laissez-faire and "freedom"
nould be carried on by Mackenzie
îing and the Liberal party. Mr.
Bennett hoped so, too: he devoted
lis fifth radio address to a slashing
ittack on Mr. King as the apostle
>f reaction. He hoped to provoke him
nto violent opposition.
King Political Strategist.
Mackenzie King was prime minls
er of Canada for almost nine years,
ie is a student of the social sciences,
ie initiated important social meas
jres, such as old-age pensions. He
s a past master In the art of po
itical strategy.
And so, when Parliament met, Mr.
£ing took the offensive. He did not
>ppose. He challenged Mr. Bennett
ο introduce the projected measures
mmediately. He offered to co-operate
η the enactment of all legislation
informing to Liberal principles. He
uggested that the proposed reforms
vere in large part copied from the
jlberal platform. He is not going to j
.(Continued on Tenth Pace.), J
4
WOMEN'S VOTE GROWING
ISSUE FIFTY YEARS AGO
Carpenter Describes Work of Susan B,
Anthony in Interview With Famous
Suffragist Leader.
This is the forty-filth of a series
of weekly artiiles on interesting
persons and events in the Nat'onal
Capital during the 80s. by Frank
G. Carpenter, world-famous author
and traveler. The next chapter in
the series will be published next
Sunday in The Star.
CHAPTER XLV.
BY FRANK G. CARPENTER.
SUSAN Β. ANTHONY Is here at
the Riggs House, carrying on
her usual woman's rights cam
paign. She is looking well and
tells me she expects to have
considerable agitation this year in
Congress.
"Twenty-five Senators," she says,
"have already told us that they are
not opposed to us, and I do not per
ceive the ridicule of the past In the
attitude of public men toward woman
suffrage. The cause is growing, and
especially in the minds of women of
the South. Men from the Southern
States invariably say that the women
of their sections want nothing to do
with woman's rights. They know less
about the opinions of their women j
than they did about the desire of the
Negroes for liberty. One of the high
school teachers of New Orleans is a
niece of Jeff Davis: she is woman's
rights to the very backbone. There are
400 female teachers in the schools of
New Orleans to about 8 male teachers,
yet the Governor will not appoint wom
en to places on the school boards. There
is a growing sentiment against this.
The day will come when the South
will be as anxious for the rights of
women as the Territory of Wyoming."
Miss Anthony is now engaged upon
the third and last volume of her his
tory of woman's suffrage, which will
soon be ready for the press. It will
comprise three large volumes of 1,000
pages each, finely illustrated with
steel engravings of the leading people
connected with the cause.
Col. Hay.
Col. John Hay has shown in his
new Washington house the triumph of
architeture in brick, and in his par
lors and in those of Mrs. Whitney, j
the wife of the Secretary of the Navy, <
you may find the triumph of comfort
able furniture in wicker work, gilded
so that it appears to be made of golden
wire and upholstered In rich brocaded
satin of many colors. There are sofas, I
easy lounges, tete-a-tete chairs and
tables of this rich material, and while
visiting Col. Hay I noticed little foot- 1
stools of golden wire with satin tops.
The satin and the gold give a warm
tint to the furniture, while the clastic
nature of the wicker makes the whole
the most comfortable of seats and
loafing places.
Perry Belmont.
Perry Belmont is one of the smallest
and youngest men in this Congress.
He is 35 years old and he does not.
weigh more than 125 pounds. He is
of medium height and so slim that as
he walks up the hill to the Capitol,
with his frock coat buttoned closely
about his thin form, it is a wonder
that our strong Potomac breezes do
not blow him away. He stands very
! straight and carries himself with a
j great deal of dignity. To look at him 1
no one would suppose that he had all
the Rothschilds at his back and that;
he was one of the most influential
young men of the country. His hair
and eyes are dark. He wears a thick
mustache and his nose above it curls
with a misanthropic air. He is one of
the most pleasant men at times, and it
is said that his tongue can be bitter
and sarcastic upon occasion.
This young man's father. August
Belmont, is a New York millionaire, j
who was the son of a German farmer
near Frankfort, the city from which
the Rothschilds started and in which
the people still point out their old
banking place in the Jewish quarter, j
August Belmont attracted the atten
tion of the Rothschilds, and after
working in their bank at Frankfort
was sent by them to Naples. In 1837
when he was 21 years of age. he came
to the United States where he has
since represented them. He under- ;
stands his business well and has kept !
in close touch with diplomatic circles, j
He was appointed consul general to j
Austria in the latter part of the 40s
and he has been Minister to The
Hague, where he was engaged in a
duel. Belmont was wounded so that
he walks with a limp to this day.
August Belmont married Oliver H.
Perry's niece and it is thus that Perry
Belmont gets his first name. The Bel
mont family is one of the richest and
most aristocratic of New York, and on
both sides of the house, Perry Bel
mont has a great deal of political in
fluence to back him.
Slrigtung in WasninRton.
Washington Is having its first good '
spell oi sleighing in years. Pennsyl
vania avenue is alive every afternoon
with sleighs of all kinds, and their
occupants, the ladies in sealskin
sacques and the men in fur overeats, j
form a strange sight In this Southern j
city. All the dignitaries are out daily. !
There is many a double sleigh with I
Its coachman in livery, and sleighing
parties are all the go. Southern j
beauties of this new administration !
are taking their first sleigh rides.
Everything imaginazle that can be
turned into a sleigh has been util
ized and the combinations of some of
the rigs are as wonderful as the most
intricate inventions of the Patent
Office.
A friend of Tom Scott, the noted
president of the Pennsylvania railroad,
told me last night how Scott's choos
ing of railroading as a profession
hung on the flipping of a penny.
"Tom Scott told me the story him
self," he said. "He was the toll collec
tor on the Pennsylvania Canal at Co
lumbia when the railroad authorities,
hearing that he was a bright young
man, offered him the position of sta
tion agent at Altoona. Scott was pop
ular and when he told his friends of
his offer, they urged him to refuse it.
to stay on the canal. He resisted their
importunities, but finally taking a big
red copper in his Angers, said. 'Boys,
I'll let the fates decide. Heads Al
toona and tails Columbia!' He threw
the copper into the air with a twist
that sent it through a dozen somer
saults. It fell heads up. His friends
then said that one trial was not
enough. It must be two out of three. I
Scott threw again, heads turned up
ance more, and the railroad won. Had
the copper fallen on the other side,
who can tell what his future would
have been."
Trolley Ride*. ,
Some of the street car scenes of
Washington are worth as much as the ι
theaters of another city. The great- ι
est of the great ride in the street cars I
here, and it not an uncommon thing
to find yourself wedged in between a ; ;
Senator whose presence would bring
thousands to hear him speak and a ; ι
general whose deeds will live in his- ι
tory as long as time lasts. Today your <
companion may be a noted lawyer. 1
tomorrow you may lit beside a dis- ι
tinguished litterateur, and on the next i 1
1
day you may hob-nob and chat, If you
will, with a cabinet minister.
Ï rode home from the Capitol list
night In a car in which there were a
half dozen Justices of the Supreme
Court, and when ofl the bench you
will not find a jollier set of fellows
anywhere. They had left their gowns
in the disrobing room, and came into
the car in overcoats and mufflers.
Stanley Matthews led the procession;
he took his seat away up near the
fare box. where during the trip he
bobbed up and down putting in fares
and getting change for the people be
hind him.
Just opposite Matthews sat Judge
Miller, beside him the Chief Justice.
At one stop a little ruddy-faced boy
of perhaps 6 years of age got into the
car but failed to find a seat. Chief
Justice Waite took him by the hand
and said, "How do you do. my little
man, let me have your fare and I
will pass it up." Stanley Matthews
put the boy's fare into the box while
Justice Miller took hold of his little
hand and. drawing him up between
his fat legs, gave him a seat on the
edge of the bench.
Confederate Money.
In a street car the other day I saw
a fine looking, gray-haired, white
whiskered Congressman giving away
$10 bills to his fellow travelers. More
than this. I was one of the men who
received two of them. The giver was
the Hon. Otto R. Singleton of Mis
sissippi, and the bills bore the stamp
of the Confederate government. It
was stated on their face that the
Confederate government would pay
them two years after the signing of
the treaty of peace between the
United States and the Confederacy.
Mr. Singleton had been in Congress
six years before the war broke out:
he had left Washington in 1861 to
take a seat in the chamber of the
Confederate Congress at Richmond;
after the war he was again elected to
the House; and he is now serving his
sixth term since then. I had asked
Mr. Singleton a question about the
Confederate Congress, and while an
swering it. he drew forth a great roll
«vf /-* /-J i- » ' '
of the outside pockets of his overcoat.
Like many another noted southern
er. Mr. Singleton had a lot of Con
federate money when the war ended,
and a short time before the final
crash, he sold a fine plantation for
517.000 in this money. He has pre
served these bills well and he has
them now in the same fresh $500
bills which he received away back in
1864 or '65. Mr. Singleton is not the
only man in Washington who lost a
fortune by investing In such Con
federate money. I doubt not but of
the score of Confederate soldiers now
in Congress, there are many who have
trunks full of this paper which was
once worth so much and is now worth
nothing
James Russell Lowell.
James Russell Lowell has been here
during the past week talking to the
Senate on the need of an internation
al copyright. I watched him closely
as he spoke to the Senate committee.
He is a round well-formed man of
medium height with a big head cov
ered with brownish gray hair which
he parts in the middle and combs «s
carefully to either side as if he were
a society belle. He has a remarkably
long face, almost rectangular in
shape, the most striking feature of
which is the silky iron-gray beard of
ι curious cut that covers the lower
part of it. This beard is bushy and
the mustache has been so trained that
it covers Mr. Lowell's upper lip and
jutting out at each side moves on
iownward. It pushes its way down
to the beard and extends for 2 inches
oelow it. each end kissing, as it were,
the notch in Mr. Lowell's coat collar.
These whiskers of James Russell
Lowell are as wavy and curly as
though the crimping irons had been
used upon them, and Mr. Lowell is. on
the whole, a not unhandsome man.
He has a broad, high, full forehead
which rises from his eyes to his hair
in the shape of an almosL perfect
half moon, and which has four lines
of wrinkles running diagonally across
it. The eyebrows at the base of the
forehead are bushy and the twinkling
eyes which shine out of them are full
of the fun which was given to the
world in the Biglow papers.
Mr. Lowell was dressed in black,
and his coat seemed to fit badly. He
talked easily in a low. soft tone with
a slight English accent, gesturing a
little and urging by all means the en
actment of an international copyright
law.
Though he does not look to be over
50, James Russell Lowell will see his
66th year on the 22d of this month.
He was born on Washington's birth
day and 47 years ago was the class
poet at Harvard College. The Biglow
papers made him famous away back
in the days of President Polk, and
since then he has been one of the
literary lights of Washington. In
England, as Minister, he has been
feted and honored and he received
similar treatment when he was our
Minister to Spain.
Wales' Visit to Vienna
More Than Mere Trip
(Continued From First Page.)
museum brought results, and I found
myself In the presence of that incom
parably beautiful blending of pure
gold and enamel.
Through all the misery and disas
ter of the last 20 years. Austria has
preserved not only her art treasures,
such as pictures, jewelry, etc., but
ilso the buildings and grounds which
surround them. That a people so
hard pressed could have done that
seems hard to believe, but the beau
tiful evidence of it is on all sides.
Vienna is still a jewel city.
Strangely enough, the people of VI
;nna have emerged with their old
îpontaniety and light-heartedness
from all their misfortunes. They are
>ustaining operas, theaters, music
:lubs and all the things that go with
ioyful living. In so doing they are,
>f course, stimulating the revival of
hat tourist business which, for the
jresent. seems to be their chief hope
tt is as yet, however, a very slow
tain, counted in thousands today in
stead of the tens of thousands of
jetter days.
More than 60,000 small apartments
lave been built in recent years here,
η spite of the fact that whole acres
>f living quarters in former palaces
ire unused. The answer in this case
s probably to be found in the fact
hat the Immense, high-ceilinged
ooms of the older buildings would
>e too costly to heat.
As for the Hapsburgs, who were
upreme here for nearly 1,000 years,
t find no remnants of support on
heir behalf. The only recent use of
he name has been in advertisements
if the "Habsburg Hand Laundry" on
he outside of the 1932 telephone di
ectory—which Is proof enough of the
tnpermanence of even Imperial glory.
A