Evening star., 1897-01-16

being the only individual represented in the
collection who has not held the Office of
Secretary of State. The pictures accom-
panying this article were made from photo
graphs taken by Miss Frances B. Johnston
hut Few Changes.
During Secretary Gresham's administra-
tion it became necessary to recover the
tables and reupholster end revarnish the
chairs and sofas, and this work was done
under the personal supervision of Mrs
Gresham. With these exceptions and the
addition of n few new portraits the ap-
pcintments of the room remain the same
as when first occupied. in 1879. A small
equestrian statue of General Washington
exhibited at the worlds Columbian expo-
sttion has been recently placed on the table
at the west end of the ROOM
All the diplomatic business of the gov
ernment is transacted in this room. All
the treaties made by the United States
since 1875. including the Hawaiian annexa-
ton treaty. have been signed there and all
the international conventions that have as
sembled in this city since that date have
made IL the scene of at least part of
their labors. A few OF these bodies have
held their sessions there, but the great
majority merely met there to pay their re-
spects to the Secretary cf State as a cour-
teous preliminary to sessions held else
where. Among the noteworthy assem-
blages that are associated with the his-
tory of the diplomatic room are the inter-
rational sanitary congress of 1881, the
Spanish-American claims commission of
1SS2, the court of commissioners of Ala
hama claims of 1889, the United States and
Mexican reciprocity commission, of whic h
General Grant was a member, of 1888; the
international conference, called for the pur-
pose OF fixing prime meridian and uni
versal day, OF which Admiral Rogers was
president, of 1881; the British-Americaan
fisheries commission, of which Mr. Joseoh
Chamberlain was member, of 1888; the
in oil rive nf ~.
pan-American congress of 1889; the Venez-
uelan claims commission, also of 1889; the
Samoan pianipotentiaries of Great Britain,
Germany and the United States, in 1883;
the intercontinental railway commission, in
1891; the Hawaiian annexation plenpoten-
tiarieS, in 1892; the Chilean claims COM
mission. in 1893: the Venezuelan Steam
Transportation Company claims commits
sion. in 1894, and the Venezuelan boundary
commission, in 1896.
There the Diplomats Talk.
The special purpose of the diplomatic
room, however, is not for the delibera-
tions of International bodies. but for the
quiet and uninterrupted transaction OF
business by the Secretary of State WITH
the individual diplomatic representatives
of the foreign countries with which the
United States has relations. Thursday Is
dploma tic day at the State Department,
and the foreign ambassadors and ministers
nave Deen given TO unueTSldHu tndt
business with the United States govern
rnent shall be transacted on that day. This
rule applies only, however, to ordinary
diplomatic business. Matters of import
ance, admitting of no delay, always re-
ceive prompt consideration, and a foreign
ambassador or minister can always secure
an audience with the Secretary of State
when his business justifies 1t. In the nego-
tiation of important treaties it Is fire.
quently necessary to have personal con-
sultations two three times a week, and
sometimes daily. On such occasions the
diplomatic room is invariably selected as
the council chamber. Its uses are so nu-
merous and sc varied that scarcely a day
passes that it is not occupied for one pur-
pose or another.
Secretaries Blaine and Gresham used the
room as Office, but not with their
predecessors or successors. 1t Is explained
that they did SO only to secure privacy for
the consideration of their public duties,
thing said to have been impossible in the
regular office set apart for the head of the
foreign office. Their office door was always
open and their visitors were legion. Con-
sequently, in order to find time to attend
to their official duties, they had to seek
refuge in the diplomatic room-a place
supposed to be sacred to the uses of diplo-
macy and exclusively foreign interests 1t
was while at work on his correspondence
in that room that Secretary Blaine suf-
fered severe attack Of indigestion that
confined him 20 his bed for weeks shortly
before the complications arose that re-
suited In his death.