St. Paul daily globe., 1896-03-15

ed out, and only the important letters
are left. Mr. Olney has learned from
his work as a lawyer to leave details
to others and to save himself where he
can. He first takes up his personal
mail and goes through it. He then ap-
plies himself to the letters of the de-
partment. He takes up letter, rapidly
glances through it, and then dictates
his reply. He dictates quickly, seldom
stopping for word, and seldom chang
Ing a sentence after it has been dictat-
ed. This work goes on until about 10
o'clock. AT this tine he begins to re-
ceive his callers. On his busy days he
sees only those who have something of
Importance to discuss with him. He
takes one man at a time, and finishes
up with him before he goes to the next.
He appreciates the value of his time,
and he gets to the point quickly. If a
man does not say what his business is
he asks him. He decides most matters
off-hand, and as rule, knows his own
hand
After having finished with his callers
his mail is brought in to him to sign.
He is very careful as to his part of his
work. He dictates the letters very
rapidly, but he signs them very slowly.
He reads over every letter, word for
word, before he signs it, and in case
there is doubt as to policy or meaning
he lays the letter aside or changes it.
At 1890 his Boston mail comes in. He
looks over this, and by / o'clock is
ready to leave for luncheon. He drives
home in the department carriage, and
is gone about three-quarters of an
hour He eats moderately, drinks but
little, an does not chew or smoke. After
he is through with his lunch he goes
back to the department and works
steadily until 4, when he leaves for his
walk or his tennis.
THE BAYARD LETTER.
I have said that the secretary die
tates answers to all of his letters. 1t
is interesting to know how he prepares
his state papers. When he has any
thing very important to write, he does
not use stenographer He first takes
pencil and pad, and writes out care
fully just what he wants to say, and
then hands the manuscript over to his
typewriter to be copied. He reViSes
carefully, and when the paper is COM
pleted it represents his exact thought.
All of the important state department
papers which have been sent out during
his administration have been whitten
by him. He wrote all of the Bayard
instructions except the last paragraph.
This was written by President Cleve-
land.
HE Has "A bkAChbONEs
I called upon Secretary Olney some
time ago at the state department. He
talked with me for some time, but
would not permit me to quote him In
the newspapers. could see, now
ever that he has a number of new
ideas as to our diplomatic service, and
that he is a big enough man not to
be twisted around the fingers Of Ju-
liam Pauncefote, the British minister, or
any of the other willy diplomats of
Washington. He is, l judge, man
with a strong backbone. He has opin-
ions of his own, and is not afraid to act
upon them. He comes out in striking
contrast with Secretary Bayard, who
had no backbone at all, and who was,
I believe, the weakest man who ever
held a portfolio of state. Bayard was
always an English trimmer. When he
was secretary of state he knuckled
down to the English, and he was only
happy when he was giving luncheon
to some of the Englishmen who now
and then come to the capital.
OLNEY AND CLEVELAND.
Secretary Olney has summer home
not far from Gray Gables, where Cleve-
land has been spending his summer
vacations, and it was probably through
the acquaintance there formed that
the president chose him as attorney
general. I am told that Olney took
the place thinking that his work would
be, to a large extent, judicial in it's
nature. He found it was much more
political than anything else. 1t Is said
that he was much disguSted with 1t,
and that he was glad to leave it for
the secretaryship Of state. While he
was attorney general Cleveland ad
vised him as to state matters, and the
two are very close to one another
upon all matters relating to the all
ministration. Olney is made of diff
ferent stuff from the average cabinet
minister that Cleveland has had. Dur
ing his last administration the differ
ent secretaries were only clerks to the
president, and this is, to a large ex-
tent the case today, with the exception
Of Secretary Olney. Olney has an opin-
ion Of his own on every subject. He
always has a reason for his opinion,
and Cleveland, obstinate as he is on
most matters, is always amenable to
reason. AS to whether Cleveland really
wants a third term or not I am not
able to say. AS to whether he wants
Olney to be president I do not know,
but it is very certain that Olney would
make a better presidential candidate
than any other man in the cabinet
WORD ABOUT MRS. OLNEY.
ington in house on the corner of Sew
enteenth and Rhode Island avenue.
His house is within two blocks Of the
British legation, within a stones throw
of the statue of Gen. Scott and about
six blocks from the White house. IL
is a cream-colored brick of three stOr-
les, and contains in the neighbornood
of twenty rooms. His wife presldes
over the establishment, and one OF
his daughters, Mrs. Minot, is with
him. He has, I believe, a second
daughter, who is married to a physi-
clan and who lives in Germany Mrs
Olney comes Of an ancestry quite as
noted as that of the secretary. She
is a daughter of the Judge Thomas,
with whom Mr.. Olney studied law
While the future secretary was court
ing Blackstone he courted Miss Thorn
as as well, and the result of his court
ship was marriage. The Thomases
came over to this country from En-
gland at very early date. Mrs.
Olney's eat-great-grandfather was
Isaiah Thomas, one of the founders of
the Massachusetts Spy. This paper
began its publication in ITO. 1t was
tri-weekly, and was very strongly
anti-British. The Tories tried to break
it up, and Mrs. Olney's great-great-
grandfather had to flee a number of
times with his type and machinery In
order to save it. This man Thomas
was with Paul Revere on that famous
ride, when he carried the news of the
crossing of the Charles river by the
British troops to the inhabitants of
the interior towns. It was the ride
celebrated by Longfellow in that
poem which begins as follows:
Listen, my children and you shall hear
OF the midnight ride of Paul Revere
On the eighteenth of April, in seventy-fve;
Hardly man is now alive