Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-12-16

place In the office, and the people received
are generally those sent by members of
Congress.
Reporting White House News.
Up TO SIX years ago reporters and CORE
spondents called at the White House at in
| tervals through the day to see the President
or his secretary, generally the latter, but
there was not until that time an attempt
to cover each detail and happening Of the
White House as now. Reporters for The
star and other local and out-of- town papers
varied their visits to suit their ideas or ne
cessltles of newsgathering. Frequently not
one reporter or correspondent would be near
the building when some important caller
would visit the President and go away Now
the caller has no chance of getting in and
out of the White House without being seen
and interviewed by reporters 1t may be,that
only one man may know him and surmise
MS business. But he is almost sure to have
to give an account of himself Thus the
White House has become a regular assign
ment for reporters representing single news
papers or the press associations who re-
main at or near the building during the
business hours of the President and keep in
pretty close touch with what is going on.
The man familiar with the field possibly
has an advantage over a new man in know
ing the ropes and the people, and the rela-
tons of various persons with the President
or with this or that project.
Searching for Clues.
As a matter of fact the news secured at
the White House is nearly always the re-
suit of the efforts of the newspaper men
themselves. 1t is generally not the policy
of either the President or his secretary to
make public any information. A hint of a
story must be found before either will
talk. Appointments and similar official
changes are made public, but there is no
giving out of prepared news. So the re-
porters and correspondents find it them
selves. Their acquaintance with public men
all over the country, with cabinet officers
and departmental officials, enables them to
get the first start or tip" These same
friends develop the story for them, upon in
quiry. Som etimes it's a question of hard
digging, as the miner puts it, to unravel a
STORY" If the matter is one of impor-
lance. and the President and his secretary
and all others surrounding him are reticent,
being anxious that the news shall not get
out, the difficulties increased. Then is
when the regular reporter calls to mind
this or that association of a body of men,
this or that mans interest in a certain SUBJ
of a mans being summoned by the Presi
dent, and is thereby enabled to reach a clue.
1t is to be assumed that the President of
the United States his cabinet and all
others around him do not want matters to
become public until they have been finally
acted upon Even when this has been done
there is no man who feels that it is his par
ticular business to announce the fact. After
the President passes upon it the sub
ject passes from his mind. Cabinet officers
similarly inclined. Therefore it is
the business of the White House reporter
not to be far behind when matters of i'm
port have received the approval or disap-
prevail of the President or are waiting to
be acted upon by him
All callers at the White House are put
through a cross-examination process by the
newspaper reporters there. BY this time it
has become a rather familiar experience to
most public men, and they generally sub
nit to the buttonholing with good-natured
patience.
President Roosevelt.
President Roosevelt himself is most ac-
ceSsible to newspaper men who need to
see him. He knows how to talk with
them and leave to their honor and
good judgment the handling of what he
may say to them He talks freely on oc-
casions and upon matters not in shape for
publication in the newspapers, but his con-
fidence is appreciate by the recipient, and
weeks months pass before a word of
what has been said by the chief executive
gets in print. While it is pleasant to the
newspaper reporter thus to have the n