The Savannah morning news., 1901-01-27
THE GRIDIRON CLUB
WASHINGTON PRESS BOYS HAVE
THEIR ANNUAL FEAST.
PUBLIC MEN BURLESQUED
OUT FOR FUN AND DIDN'T CARE
WHOM THEY HIT.

non, Bryan Represented Grinding
Out Copy and Declining Nominn-
tions-Chinese and Turkish Min
listers Made Speeches.
Washington, Jan. 26-The annual din
ner of the Grdiron Club, composed of
Washington CORES ponderts, was given to-
night at the Arlington Hotel. About 200
guests and members were at the hand
somely decorated tables Among the
guests were distinguished men in all
walks of public life. cabinet officers,
members of the supreme bench, senator's,
representatives, army and navy officers
and ministers of foreign countries.
The reputation of the club was sus-
tanned in the matter of unique features.
buresques of public affairs, roasts on
public men who were guests, new stunts,
all being interspersed with bright
speeches, songs and choruses. President
Arthur w. Dunn gave the keynote in well
coming the guests, saying the Serious
side was in eclipse" during the Gridiron
dinners, and from the flashing of the
gridircn until the end there was abundant
merriment.
The menu was an old style primer both
In printing and Illustrations. being the
alphabet with rhyme for each letter
which hit off some public man or passing
event.
The Inauguration of the president furn-
ishes an opportunity for the vice president
to protest vigorously, because he was not
in the procession, and finally TO appear
with mountain lion and assert that he
would have an Inauguration of his own.
| Early in the dinner several members Of
the club came into the dining room, sing
| ing Benny Havens, o." and asserted that
there were fourth class men present who
had not been qualified" Whereupon
the army officers present were brought
forward, duly "hazed,' and notified that
| as soon as the present investigation was
over, they would be "called out"
Many men were present who are neith-
\ er editors or business managers of. large
| newspapers. These were called up, but
when all the names had been read, a
member OF the club noted the absence of
a distinguished editor and Immediately
presented another member, representing
William j. Bryan. The last arrival
began Immediately to grind out copy, and
when FIVE banners with nominations from
1904 to 1920 had been presented he de-
cined but another member Immediately
came in and accepted. lie looked like
| Cleveland, and bade the rank and file"
to follow him, and as the procession
marched out the club man sang, -Four
years more of Grover"
Congressional guests received attention
in a Senate press gallery symposium .
where good stories on some were told,
while songs burlesqued others. The
dead ducks" those who fell in the No
! vember battle or since in the senatorial
elections, were duly remembered. Uncle
Joe Cannon was remembered by
| the following song to the tune or
! Baby Nine" alleged to be his latest
effusion:
From the land OF suckers, many
Ilinoisl Illinois!
But of statesmen few, If any,
Illinoisl Illinois!
For two years thorell be a pause,
Then wen have youug Charley Dawes,
And wont that be corker
On US poor old boys"
Gen. Grosvenor was declared to be hand
squeezing for 1901 Senator Chandler was
presented with a toy railroad train. and
admonished to begin over again. These,
with other quips and jokes, were enjoyed
by the guests, even those who were on
the gridiron.
Speeches were made by Secretary Root,
Justice Brown, Senators Chandler, Depew.
Carter ex-senator German, ex-Gov. Fran
els OF Missouri, the Chinese minister the
Turkish minister and others.
Among the guests present were Secre-
taries Root. Long, Hitchcock and POST
master General Emory Smith, Mr.. Justice
BI own. Mr. Wu Ting Fang, the Chinese
minister; All Ferrouh Bey. the Turkish
| minister; Senators Carter, Chandler, De-
pew, Hanna, Platt of Connecticut, Scott.
Spooner, Stewart, Wolcott; Representa-
tives Allen, Cannon, Grosyenor. Joy, Ke-
hoe, Llttleheld. Morrell and Richardson;
Gen. II. c. Corbin, Gen John M. VIII.
son, Maj. Richard l.. Hoxie, Maj. John
VI Carson, Jr., Capt. Lansing II. Beach.
| U. S. A; Rear Admiral Hichborn. Y. s.
N; Gen. George II. Harries. Consul Cen
! eral John Goodnow, Shanghai; Ernest
| Won Halle, Germany; George B. Cortel-
you, secretary to the President; Hon. Ar
thur =. Gormon, Maryland; Thomas T..
| Walsh, Paris commissioner; ex-Gov. Dav-
ID r. Francis Missouri; James d. You
| man, Interstate Commerce Commission:
Frank b. Noyes president of
the Associated Press; II Clay Evans com
| missioner Of pensions; ~. T.. Posllewaite
| Pennsylvania Railroad Melville f.. Stone.
general manager OF the Associated Press:
4 w f.. Quinby Detroit Free Press; n. IT.
Kohlsaat. Chicago Times-Herald George
/ AIDE, 1nlcdkO tttcOTus SCOTT u Bone,
| Washington Post; J. II. Maddy, Baltimore
and Ohio Railroad; Frank A. Vanderlip,
assistant secretary OF the treasury;
George n. Daniels, New York Cen raj
Railroad: J. j. Mcdowell, Cincinnati En-
ouirer: Theodore W. Noyes, Washington
Star; George p. Rowell, Rowell's News
paper Directory; Victor Kaufman. Wash
ington Star; Hammond Lamont, New York
Evening Post; Robert S. Mccormack.
] Vrfb
/ troller Of the Currency; Prof. Willis L.
Moore. chief Of the Weather Bureau; Ma
than Frank, st. Louis Star; Hon. Seth w
Cobb, st Louis; George w. Boyd. PENN
sylvania Railroad; r. f. l.. Bunch Sea-
hoard Air Line; w. a. Turk Southern
Railroad; Richard c. Kerens. Missouri; !;
S. n. Hardwick. Southern Railway; c. c.
wells philadelphia Press; Henry L.
stoddard New York Mail and Express;
Solomon b. Grifnth and Thomas j. Fee
ney, Boston Herald.
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