The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1897-03-12

The S~ecretar1es, save Gage, Meet the 3D.
prems Cour n the white House and ars
Sworn in-Secretary Gage Takes the Oath
. & the Treasury-Di0c ulty In Finding q
Bible In the White House.
Washington. March 6.-AIl the MEM
bers Of the new cabinet except Mr..
Gage met In the cabinet room adjoin-
ing the presidents office at 1880 o'clock
this morning. when. accoring to ar
rangements. the chief justice a ex-
pected to administer the oath OF office.
Mr.. Gage had not understood this pro-
gramme. nor apparently had Chief 1--WE
tice Fuller. who had made an appoint
ment to swear-in the new secretary
ment at 11:15 o'clock. and Mr.. Gage
had issued a number OF invitations to
Illinoisians to witness the ceremony.
The entire supreme court also had an
engagement to call on the president in
a body at IL o'clock to pay their re-
spects. n this was the only part of
the days programme hat occurred
strictly on schedule time.
The confusion at the White house
vas extraordinary all the morning due
to the crowds OF person who had in
some way secured cards OF introduction,
and to the numerous congressman who
appeared with constituents who wished
to see all the apartments and who in
many instances succeeded.
Secretary Porter's office was over
u with senators n representatives,
but he denied himself to then and re-
manned with the president in the cabi-
net room. While the meeting of the
president and hiS odviCnrS WAS rnnfinn-
ing and every effort being made to
reach Chief Justice Fuller TO admins
ter the oath, the supreme court was
suddenly a few moments be-
fore IL o'clock and the president hur-
ried down stairs into the Blue parlor
to greet them. After the usual for
of this reception. when the
chief justice learned that the cabinet
had been waiting for him. he suggested
for convenience that the ceremony
might as we'll be performed at once in
the presence Of the court, and this was
promptly acted upon. The oath vas ad-
ministered to the secretary Of state at
11:15 o'clock and to the others in rapid
succession in the following order: Cen
eral Alger. Judge McKenna, ex-Govern-
or Long, Mr.. Bliss, Mr.. Gary and Mr..
Wilson.
The ceremony was in the nature ~ a
private affairs, but for all hat and the
limited number that witnessed ii. the
dainty Blue room was pretty well filled.
President Mckinley was seemingly the
most interested spectator. With him
were Mr.. Porter, his secretary, and
Lieutenant Gilmore of the regular
army, who has been assigned to duty
as temporary aid to the president. Nv.
T. G.. Bancroft Davis, the venerable re-
porter of the supreme court. n Mr..
Foust, the crier, were also present
When the president and the
Of the cabinet had assented to the sug-
gestion Of Chief Justice Fuller that
the oath of office be administered at
once to Major McKinley's official fami-
ly, it was ascertained that none or the
dignifed judges had brought a Bible.
Then a search was made for one aroun
the White house. An usher finally pro-
duced the required volume, a tattered
copy used in settling disputes on scrip
tural phrasology between two argu-
employees of the White house
force. The distinguished party mean
while had proceeded from the cabinet
room through the private part OF the
mansion 10 tie rear or private stairway
down which they walked slowly and
with dignity. The crowds in the lobby,
the office corridor and on the public
stairway were thus avoided and few of
the unfortunate throng that had good
fortunate enough to obtain admission
knew Of what was going on behind t"n
big proSaic door that President Arthur
had caused to De erected DeIWeen al
interested public and people who he
hind that official position, did not in
volve a total surrender of privacy.
Justice Brown is a Michigan nan a
resident of Detroit, n it was at the
request of Genera Alger, his fellow
townsman, that he swore in the new
secretary of war. The chief justice and
Justice Gray administered the oath to
the other members present. At the
conclusion of the ceremony the MEM
bers of the supreme court filed out of
the Blue room to the public lobby. the
tall and distinguished Justice Harlem
leading the way with the venerable
Justice Field leaning on his arm. The
president and his new advisors went up
stairs to the bin room to get their
Overcoats and hats, and then proceed
ed to their respective departments TO
meet the officials and employees of each.
Chief Justice Fuller n his fellow
iurists went over to the treas"~-- To-
partment and met Secretary Carlisle
and Mr. Lyman j. Gage in the office Of
the secretary. There the a was adj
ministered to Mr. Gage, before a large
number Of officials n clerks. Nearly
everybody in the department had a