The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-07-13
nm WHITE HOUSE SCENES
uooKs AND CABINET OFFICERS
HoBNOB TOGETHER.

domination vas AN0OSA'S al
ua,ds Danced for Joy-'Twas Diff
f,rent in Other Days.
Fyou1 the Nero York Times
WASHINGTON, July 2.-The air OF In
,..r,slity which has prevailed at the white
use on two occasions, at least, when the
.,ss Of the country have been turned with
,s,aI interest toward that mansion, has
van something almost, if not quite. without
.-scedent in the history OF the country. The
fro occasions were the days when the news
.uon Minneapolis first told President Harri-
-, that he had been renominated for the
,,s,idency, and when, a week or two later,
enc committee came to give him formal
,otiA,ation of that fact.
On each occasion there was little OF the
,odness or stiffness which is supposed to
company affairs Of state, and on each the
b.bavior Of the President was so out of the
or5insry as to lead to the comment that ap-
o.rently there was a willingness on his
rsrt 10 dissipate the idea that it is icy in his
presence for those who come to do business
with MIN.
The ceremonies attendant on the recep-
.Ion OF the convention news. or, rather, the
sbseucs of ceremony, had never had q
counterpart in the white house.
since 1860 it has fallen to the lot of four
Presidents to receive word that they have
basn selected by the national conventions
~ their parties for another term. They
ware Lincoln, who was renominated in
lime. 1868; Grant, who was the unanimous
choice OF the convention Of 1879; Cleveland
Who was renominated in 1888, aud Harrison
In the cases Of Lincoln, Grant and Cleve-
kAn ara IvNtV
which prevailed in the minds OF many in
Mr. Harrison's case, for in each OF the three
the denomination Of the chief executive had
been a foregone conclusion.
The facilities for receiving news at the
white house then were not as great as now,
and the general service by bulletins was not
as complete aud that may account for
some OF the difference in the scenes.
When Lincoln was renominateG it ap-
pears from the published reports TO have
caused little comment or stir at the white
house. and in the reports in the daily papers
the simple announcement was made that
"the nomination was foregone conclusion"
twas added that in the evening of the day
the nomination was made stream of callers
came to congratulate Mr.. Lincoln.
When Grant was renominated the situa-
ton was about the same, and it was not
thought worth while to comment on the re-
ception of the news at the white house
Henry Wilson, who was nominated as the
vice presidential candidate. secured his
first intlmation of that fact in a telegram
from Supt. Eckert of the Western Union
company, which gave the result of the
ballot. More excitement was caused by the
announcement that Mr.. Wilson had won
the fight over Schuyler Colfax, who was a
candidate for denomination, than over the
announcement that Grant had been given
the first place on the ticket.
When the St. Louis convention was bal
lotlnR four years ago the arrangement OF
the Geographic service at the white house
was the same essentially as at present, and
bulletins came regularly. In his executive
Office Mr. Cleveland received them as he
would have received messages on any other
subject, SO far as his surroundings were
concerned. The news came Wednesday, q
little before O'Clock, when the President
usually goes to the east room for a public
reception. In the privacy Of his Office M
Cleveland learned that he was renominated,
and he went to the east room as usual.
There was no marked addition to the usual
Wednesday afternoon crowd. and, except
that some congratulated the President as
they passed him in the line, little was said
of the important event. Newspaper men
who were anxious to know how the Presi-
dent received the news obtained the facts
through the customary news channels, and
the facts were announced with the custom
airy white house dignity and, perhaps, brew
ity.
All this was vastly changed Cd Friday,
June 10, when Benjamin Harrison was res
ceiving the news from Minneapolis.
The doors of the white house had been
closed TO the public at the usual hour in the
afternoon. Every member OF the cabinet
was in the Presidents private Office or NOV
ing from that place across the ante-room to
49, nh oNry-
Many officials were there from the depart
ments and several well-known men who
we're on familiar terms with the official
family.
For the first time on such an occasion
newspaper correspondents were given free
entrance to the executive portion of the
building, and, with members OF the cabinet,
they strolled about the ante-rroom or sat
where they could hear the clicking of the
telegraph instrument. Probably twenty
correspondents were there.
The bulletins which came were the same
as those at the telegraph Office or at the
capitol, and the white house was the most
comfortable place to get the news. Russell
Harrison the Presidents son, and Secretary
Of War Elkins performed the work which
employees of the telegraph companies did at
other places where the news was coming,
taking the bulletins fresh from the wire and
hurrying with them to the Presidents room.
In that room members of the cabinet were
keeping tally for the chief executive.
Business in all departments Of the white
house waited while the result was being
ascertained. With charming display Of
democracy the white house cooks, the stew
ard and some OF the doorkeepers left their
work and, coming upstairs, touched elbows
with members of the cabinet Apparently
one was as much interested in the result al
the other and the eagerness Of both to know
II there was possibility of continuation
OF their jobs brought them into the crowd
the like Of which could not probably be
found at the headquarters OF any other ma
ton on earth.
The news came rapidly, and Secretary
EIklns pulled like messenger boy as he
trsmped back and forth from the operators
room to the President
President Harrison was outwardly as COO
as cucumber and as the news came IN ht
looked out of the window toward the chin
ney tops of sleepy old Alexandria.
But all the proceedings Of receiving thu
bulletins as the states were called were cole
and embarrassing compared with the scene
which followed the announcement tina
enough votes had been given the Pres
ident to insure his nomination. Ii /
had been the corridor of public hotel th'
rush from the operating room to the private
room where the President sat would hav'
been no more informal. Everybody wen
on the jump. Secretary Elkins ran like I