The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1893-09-24

oCSitslAlt1 dRESdAM.
their lives not only with an enormous
amount of routine work, but with grave
questions which must be decided quick
ly, questions in which it is SO easy to
make serious mistake. I called on
Secretary Gresham last Sunday. On
that day had supposed he would be en-
joying little leisure. Imagine my sur
prise to find him in his favorite attitude,
crouched down in huge easy chair
with his back to window, and in his
lap big bundle of documents tied up
with red strings and wrapped in blue
paper. These are the distinguishing
characteristics of state department docu-
ments. When you SEQ pale blue envel-
opes, large, we'll made and inscribed in
an angular penmanship, you may be
pretty sure without further inquiry that
they are from the American foreign of
tice AS to the red tape, that is o COM
mon characteristic in our government
departments. 1 am sorry to say that it
prevails throughout Uncle Sans shop,
both physically and indicatively.
Well, Secretary Gresham had little
pile of red tape lying on the floor by the
side of his big chair. Strings of red
tape which he had pulled from the thick
bundles of documents were drooling
down his person and wrapping them
selves about his legs. He had been at
work. For four or five hours he had sat
there reading those documents, and with
a tab of paper and lead pencil had made
notes enough to fill column of a news
paper. You see, he had brought piece
of work home with him Saturday night
and had put in all day Analysing, dissect-
ing, shaping the case. To tell the simple
truth, he had done a marvellous days
work He had gone to the inside of the
situation, bored to the very heart of it
and jotted down on paper memoranda
which in simple, strong words told the
whole story.
The secretary placed enough conf
dence in me to put these notes in my
hand tO, read, and 1 was struck by the
manner in which he had arranged the
logical delicate points of the controversy
SO that he had ON those few pieces of pa
per birdseye view Of an international
dispute which has been going on don't
how many years, and which has occupied
the time and talents of innumerable
diplomats, lawyers and courts. OF
course am not going to tell You what
case it was, but if complicated, intri-
cate matter were ever succinctly summed
up and arranged in what Henry Ward
Beecher used to call the apple pie order
of good logic, this case was thus summed.
AS l looked over these notes I was
much struck by another fact. It was
that most of the points set forth seemed
to be adverse to the position and inter-
ests of the United States.
"Mr. Secretary" said I smilingly,
''have you been retained for the opposi-
tion2 They couldn't make out q better
case for themselves if they were to try
for month than you have made out for
them right here"
"Oh, that is just way have of do
ing things" responded Secretary Gresh-
am. "I learned that from General
Grant. You will remember that Grant
used to say that he couldn't fight bat
tie or carry on a campaign till he had
mentally put himself in the enemy's
place and thought out just what he
would do if he were in the other fellows
shoes. When you have thought of all
the things tnat he has thought of, then
you are ready to fight and whip him.
That is what am trying to do in this
little game of diplomacy"
Gresham appears to be tireless work.
er. He goes to the department every
morning about 10 and rarely leaves be-
fore 6. Every evening he is studying
out one of the many important cases
which are always pending in the state
department. Every Sunday he takes
piece Of work home with him, just as
bookkespers have to do when their &C.
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