Omaha daily bee., 1889-04-08
WHAT OUR BENLAUCHS ABOUT
Some Humorous Incidents of Life
at the White House.
NOTE OF A MODEST HooslsR.
An Unscemiy Scramble For Dead
Mems shoes-why the President
Needs Private Residence
Gossip from Washington.
Diplomntic Coincidence.

The other day during tho excitement over
the disaster in Samoa by which three of our
men-of-war were dashed to pieces, and many
lives were lost, the president and MIR. Blaine
were in the formers room holding con-
sultation over the outlook. Naturally there
was very serious air around the white
house, as the sad incident had cast gloom
over all who knew of it, Queen Victoria
sent cablegram extending her coincidence
to the people of the United States through
the president, and IL was transmitted to the
chief executive through the charge
d'affars. The diplomatic officer was ushered
into the presence of the president while the
latter was consulting with his secretary of
state. Both the president and Mr. Blame
arose to their feet as the British
ambassador entered, and taking Off his hat
in the most formal way ne handed mes
sage to the first man of the land After the
message was read by the president there
was formal interchange of regrets and
sympathy, which lasted several minutes.
Then the charge d'affalrs bade the gentle
man good afternoon and departed When
the doors was closed Secretary Blame
turned to the president and observed:
"Funny, isn't it, how differently we re-
ceive people in this room and receive them
out west or in our houses9 Now, IL that
man had come INTO your house at Indian
apolis with such message, you would have
invited him to sit down and make himself
comfortable. Then you would have ad-
dressed him by his name, and thanked him
for his message. But 1t
WOULD NOT BE DIPLOMACY
to do that thing here. 1t was necessary to
treat the whole matter in the most formal
business way What great changes come
over us through an electionl'
On last Sunday an extraordinarily large
bundle of letters was received at the execu
tive mansion, and while the president was
asserting them over for the purpose of Sc
which appeared to be for himself indi-
vidualiy, he run across one addressed as fol-
lows:
"Ben.,
President of the United States,
Washington, ID. c."
Another letter written by an ardent
Hooser who wanted a position In the diplo-
matte or consular service was enclosed in a
large sized envelope, and addressed to
General Ben Harrison,
Executive Mansion, Washington"
A sheet of foors-cap writing paper was
used on which to indite the message. Dur
ing the campaign there were photograph
copies Of picture of General Harrison Cir
culated. They were about six by ten inches
In size, and were printed on heavy book
paper. This Indiana Office seeker had taken
one of these photographs, and cutting it in
two at the breast, had pasted the head and
bust on the upper portion of the sheet of
paper. Under this he wrote the following
letter
"His excellency is kindly requested to rec
ommend and support tho undersigned as
ENVOY EXTRAORDINARY AND MINISTER PLEN1-
POTENTIARY
or consul general to any of the following
states: Venezuela, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uru-
quay, Columbia and South and Central
America generally. This will
take the place of single-file handshake, and
dan pnp br1
zing in your ear, as now practiced by Office
applicants"
A short time after the disaster in Samoa
had been verified at the department of state
and copies of the cablegrams were sent to
President Harrison, and while the chief
executive was working through tears upon
piles of applications for office, q delegation
of friends of a naval officer called upon him
and asked for the promotion which will nat
urally take place by the death of the unfor-
tunate men on board the Nipsic and Van
dalia. The president did not say anything,
but received The officers kindly. He thought,
however, it was very remarkable proceed
ing. A few minutes afterward another dele
cation came in and insisted upon the recog-
milton of some other naval officer for promo
tion by reason Of the death of these men.
Then followed some more men who wanted
their friends in the navy promoted. This
was the straw that broke the camers back,
and the president informed his callers that
he thought it was a burning shame that
there should be so much unSeemly
SCRAMBLE FOR DEAD MEMS SHOES,
He said the friends of men in the navy
should wait until the bodies of the unfor-
tunate ones had been recovered and laid at
rest before there was any feeling over who
should secure promotion.
The plumbing in tho executive mansion is
being thoroughly overhauled When Presi-
dent Harrison went into the white house it
was discovered that in some of the rooms the
dampness and the sewerage had conspired to
cause green mould to form on the walls.
On foggy or heavy day the sewer gas was
so strong that it would make one sneeze IN
portions of the building, while in other
places it could be actually tasted. The eff ect
of this poisonous atmosphere was to make
Mrs. Harrison quite i'll, and she has been
confined to her bed or room almost constantly
for ten or fifteen days, and will
have to go away from Washing
ton in order to fully recuperate.
Meanwhile plumbers have been at work
tearing out the arrangements in some of the
closets and putting in new pipes around a
number of the water faucets.
Everyone who enters the white house ad-
mires the grandeur Of the od-fashioned
building and the natural abandon of the
place. The ceilings are high, the rooms
wide and square, the Railways broad, the
conservatory capacious, and there is a
warmth and cheerfulness which suggests tho
ease of splendid old southern home. II
looks ''sorter George Washington like" as a
woman from the west put it the other day,
and without any thought to health and com
fort for permanent home, tho visitor is
ready to exclaim: "How l should like to
live here!'
This is all just, on general principles, but
those who are not robust, or those who have
not been acclimated to Washington are
almost invariably made sick upon entering
the white house. The illness Of Mrs. Harri-
son, and the enormous amount of business
which has been forced upon the new presi-
dent, requiring greater offlce.room, have en-
phasized the necessity for the construction of
PRIVATE RESIDENCE
for the president of the United States. This
question has been agitatod number of times
by the republican senate, but has always
failed when it reached the democratic house
OF representatives. II is understood that an
appropriation will be mado during the an.
preaching session OF congress for new
building, where the president can live with
comfort and without RISK to the health of
himself and family ana where there will be
more than Ave bed rooms, single dining
room and three pnrlors In which to entertain
thousands of people every week.
Since Mrs. Harrison came to the white
house she has had with her all the members
of her immediate family, but she expects 10
be quite alono during the summer Her
daughter, Mrs. Mckee, will be some weeks
in the south during the spring, while her son
and his wife expect TO go to their home in
Helena Mont, very shortly. The president
and Mrs. Harrison will undoubtedly spend