The Washington critic., 1888-03-24
Mr.. KEIM CRITICISED.
Who First Extended Recognition 10
Washington Correspondence
IT WAS NOT Mr.. CLEVELAND.
An Alleged Misstatement In Mr..
Kcim's Society in Washington.

] happened to pick up Randolph
Keim's Society in Washington the
other day and was much surprised 10
read the following statement III a chapter
devoted to Washington correspondents
and their families:
president Cleveland was the first Of
the Chief Magistrates to recognize the
Washington correspondents as class in
the list of invited guests to the state
leyees at the Executive Mansion
quote Mr.. Keim word for word, cap-
tai for capital, exactly rs printed I'm his
book. Mr.. Keim names the correspond.
ents IN the chronological order OF service,
and is himself third in this order. In
his by far the longest biography gwen
to ancestry and career, | find that Mr..
keim has been many years I'm Washing
ton--oh and on, since 1868 and perma-
nently since 1872. / also find that, ac-
cording TO this lengthy biography, he has
since 1872 represented ''at different times
leading metropolitan journals East and
West"
All this makes Mr. Keims statement
the more astonishing for its inaccuracy.
General Grant was President in 1872.
Since that time there have been four
Presidents in the White House-Mr.
Hayes, Mr.. Garfield Mr.. Arthur, and Mr..
Cleveland. Now, does Mr. Kein intend
to give the impression that, until Presi-
dent Cleveland recognized "correspon-
dents as a class i'm the list of invited guests
TO the state levees at the Executive Man
sion,' they had been going 10 the White
House on official occasions unnvited?
If he does mean TO give this impression, =.
then he also gives the impression that
| there was sCant courtesy oil the part Of
| Presidents not TO invite correspondents,
and very little selfrespect on their part to
| 90 without being invited.
The reader, and especially the reader
| out of Washington can arrive a. no
other conclusion after reading Mr.. Keim9
| remarkable statement. Had he sent ID
| out broadcast in newspaper letter it
| would have been read and forgotten.
| But Mr.. Keim ought not to compile
| book on Society in Washington" un-
| less he can found IL on facts. A very
| little research would have furnished him
| with the truth. He need not have gone
| farther back than one administration for
| evidence that President Cleveland was
not the first Chief Magistrate to include
correspondents in the list of invited
| guests.
President Arthur invited correspond
ents to the White House by card. He
sent ont handsomely engraved cards OF
| invitation TO correspondents, and in every
regard rs handsome as those sent to Con-
| gress. There are plenty of people who
could have given this information to Mr..
| Keim, had he desired Il. They could
haYe shown these cards, and could do so
now, as the best proof in the world that
correspondents were asked TO White
House parties by President Arthur, lust
as he asked other guests. II is true that
President Cleveland has invited cOrre-
spondents, but his form of invitation diff
iers from President Arthur's invitation.
M fNUn ms i4 IN
White House receptions have been a re-
quest from the President to the President
| of the Senate and Speaker Of the House
to invite to official receptions correspond
ents who were entitled to seats in the re-
porters' galleries. OF course women do
not sit in those galleries, and they were
not included in this invitation.
The invitation to women correspond
ents was written on the back of Private
Secretary Lamonts visiting card. The
form was, for example. "The President
and Mrs. Cleveland request that their in
yitation for Thursday evenings, January
12 and 20, and February 9 and fuesda
evening, February IA, be extended to,
the name following.
| / have no criticism TO make on Presi-
dent Clevelands form of invitation. 1t
is direct recognition of correspondents
as class. But II is not recognition OF
correspondents as individuals or as indi-
1 q.
| that President Arthur invited corre-
spondents to the White House receptions
il was his mifortune, but probably not his
| fault. One is reminded Of the French
kings: "The King is dead. Long live the
King" 1t could in no wise detrnct from
President Cleveland's courtesy TO the
press had Mr.. Keim given President Ar
thur his due.
In the times of General Grant and Mr..
Hayes the receptions at the White House
were, as q rule, public receptions. There
were very few official receptions when
invitations were sent out. There were
few occasions then when it was not per-
feCtly proper for correspondents TO 20
like other people to the White House
without formal invitations. But after
official receptions became almost the
rule it certainly could not be expected
that self-respecting people would 90 10
the White House without being invited,
, whether they represent the press or rep.
resent society. An unlimited person is an
intruder whoever he may be, whether he
goes to the White House on an occasion
of invited companies or goes to private
houses.
Mr.. Keim does not include women in
the chapter on correspondents. But wo-
men do large part of the newspaper
work, as correspondents, and as writer's
for the local press. Unfortunately for
women, they do vast deal of work, and
good work, too, for which they get no
credit. They are supposed TO be restricted
to describing other women's toilets
luncheons and parties. Now, on the CON
trary, there are number of women cor
respondents in Washington who dc
writing, for which men secure the credit
and authorship. 1t is not surprising that
Mr.. Keim should omit them from his
| chapter should agree with him, that
they have no place in his book. And
their place in society is just what they
themselves choose to make it
AGATE