Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-08-12
All the Luxuries of Travel offered a
Chief Executive.
M'KINLEY'S ARABIAN ,TROTlERS
President Cares Nothing for Hunt
ing, Fishing or Golf.
BUT HE TAKES A QUIET SMOKE
Written for The Evening Star.


States makes known his desire to travel
fresh troubles begin. Rival lines leading to
his destination, directly or indirectly, COM
| n1ence a hot contest for the honor, not to
mention the advertising profit of transport
ing such valuable freight. They vie with
one another in extravagant inducements.
The private car the railroad president is
at his disposal The parlor car companies
offer new coaches built especially for his
use. His suite Will be provided with as
many of these moving palaces as they de-
sire. The markets will be searched for their
richest viands, the choicest of birds to be
made hot, the most pungent of bottles to be
made cold, the most fragrant of cigars to
be puffed into smoke. The rarest of flow
ers breathe out to the executive man
sion-on- wheels the scented air of Araby the
Blessed. The heaviest of plate and cut
glass, the most transparent and Wafer-llke
of china, the most elegant OF linens Will
adorn the dining compartments and an
elaborate menu will be engraved for the oc-
Casion. The most trustworthy of tra!nInen,
the most skillful of chefs the most Chester
fieldian of walters, the most aristocratic of
porters will be selected for the trip.
special schedule will be printed and all
traffic viii be suspended, if need be, to give
the distinguished slave of nearly C,000, 900
exacting masters the right of way.
President Mckinley has enjoyed such hos
pitality during his term, noticeably when
he departed for Thomasville, Ga, last
spring. A week two ago when he left
for Bluff Point Lake Champain he made
known that he wished no such ostentatious
display repeated The trip was to be taken
primarily for Mrs. Mckinley's health. He
saw no need of carload of press CORE
spondents. He was to travel now merely
as William the husband, and not as Mr..
President He wanted no faVors from
| any one. He wished to be left alone. And
he was.
Much Desired Guest.
But such troubles, worse and more of
them, had begun to pour like the driven
rain upon the executive head long before
his determination to return to Bluff Point
had been announced, and this announce
ment was delayed late possible for
obvious reasons. The White House was
flooded with the usual invitations from
ShreWd promoters ambitious to employ no
less a parsonage than the head of the
mightiest state on earth as a means of adj
vertising some particular resort hotel,
railroad or steamship line. Companies and
corporations wishing to boom this or that
obscure strip of coastline, tract of noun
tam property, or struggling railroad lead
ing thereto made eXtravagant offers in the
way of newly buir summer homes any,
thing to tempt the nations head to their
net In some instances elaborate plans,
drawn by architects, were submitted with
requests that alterations be suggested. In
deed these INSCRIPTIONS boomers and pro-
motors have not infrequently gone so far as
to have it indirectly and publicly announced
retinue had decided to come their way
hoping in such cases to attract the advance
How OF tourists, always ambitious to come
early and avoid the rush in engaging quar-
tiers near the Presidents place of recrea-
ton Yet however pure his motives, and
Wherever he may install himself, he still
hnds himself powerful advertising
medium.
The suite which he now occupies ct the
Champlain Hotel will be known henceforth
as the presidents Apartments" There is
lOtpl which q President bac
which does not in this way brand his occu-
pied rooms and realize a goodly price for
the name, while a cottage rented for sea-
son by an executive not only greatly rises
in value itself, but hoists surrounding
property with it.
Ex-President Harrison will never cease
TO regret the fact that during his admins
tratiOn he accepted a summer cottage at
Cape May Point, presented to him by Mr..
Nanamaker and several other subscribers
interested in real estate there. So great
was the opprObrium heaped upon him for
this apparently honest transaction that he
finally whipped out his check book and in
an impatient moment paid for his domicilc
to the tune Of $4,000. President McI<in-
ley has already suffered such experiences,
though to a milder degree. Just previous
to his election he made chance mention
in a purely personal letter of excursion
ne had taken on d lake steamer. He said
that he liked the boat and that he had had
a particularly jolly trip. After he became
President the posters of the line, distrib-
uted from city to city, quoted his words in
conspicuous letters and great was the
profit reaped thereby.
No Sportsman He.
The intelligence was wired from Lake
Champlain the other day that President
Mckinley had at last developed a sporting
ambition; that he was contemplating deer
shooting trip in the celebrated hunting
grounds of the Adirondacks, within a few
h IL. tl,a+
also manifesting a growing interest in golf.
Immediately after his election the vast
army of inviterS crowding one another in
line to dispense hospitality in exchange for
possible court favor did all but subject the
executive blood to microscopical test to
discover, II possible, some sporty atom
such as they might humor. His record was
dlscouraging. He cared not for following
the hounds, as did the father of his coun-
try; for poker, as did Tyler, or for cock
fighting, did Jackson, or for hunting and
fishing, as did Cleveland. He had mani
tested no love of golf, wheeling or the ma.
tional game Yet 1t was prophesied early
in his career that before ne should feel the
harness of two three administration
years he would manifest some ambition for
out-of-door sport. 1t was recalled that
Cleveland never cared much for fishing or
hunting until after he had lived in the
White House. He found these sports a
soothing balm for the wounds worn by his
shackleS there.
Previous to his election Mr.. Mckinley
made it a practice to walk three miles a
day. He has always had fondness for horse
flesh, but one which has never approached
the penchant of Grant. He had been in the
White House but a few days when he was
seen galloping toward the boundary in silk
hat and frock coat aStride a trusty steed.
For some reason this diversion was sudden
| ~ abandoned But now his chief diversion
is driving, and it is conspicuous that he
lately prefers to hold the reins himself
something which no President since Grant
has done.
Presidents New TrOtters.
1t was but a day or two before his de-
parture for Lake Champlain that there ar
| rived in Washington two brand new scions
Of noble, indeed royal, horsefiesh, to be add
| ed to the executive equine household. A
| few connoisseurs who have already peeped
| through the White House stable door pro-
| nounce these the finest steeds in Washing
| ton today. They journeyed all the way
from Wisconsin in a baggage coach, and not
| having before seen city life are now in
| their masters absence, being accustomed to
| its noise and hurry, before being allowed
| to draw their precious freight. These
tcfa le- hole h,-nth nr- nd