The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-12

CLEVELAND CONFESSED
TO NEWSPAPER MEN
Most Distinguished Private Citizen in tn
MorIdo Told His Experiences

been heretofore published outside of
, ST. Louis:
Former President Grover Cleveland's
| confessions and apologies to the press,
highly humorous and witty speech,
wholly foreign to any public Utterance
or the nations sometime executive,
| came as the great surprise Friday
night at the banquet given by Worlds
Fair officials to the visiting CORE
spondents from Washington and other
! OF the principal American cities.
Mr. Cleveland practically surrender
| ed TO the newspaper men and placed
himself unreservedly in their hands.
In his opinion the public man who
seeks to crafty ambition or gain a
desired end by antagonizing the news
paper world does not know the better
| part of wisdom.
After referring in a rather shy way
| to his long relations with the Ameri-
can newspaper, as a public official in
| various capacities, the speaker ginger
ly approached what he called some
confessions and apologies which, his
! conscience prompted him. were owing
to the representatives of great daiIies.
the names of who he knew personally
| being legion.
Il attended to-day a meeting of the
| Civic Federation" he continued, land
] - SA-N~N eAAiAC a NlAObShb NS1AdC " HiS'
/ Remembering the great principles of
! justice and humanity which that emil
| nent body stood for, the character of
| such men as Senator Hanna, John
| Mitchell, men of power and influence,
| suggested to my mind that it. was
| about time to get the Civic Federation
to arbitrate me and the press"
The sally struck home and Mr..
| Cleveland had his audience with him
| from that moment. He went on to
say that having heard that Senator
| Hanna representing combined inter
ests of capital and John Mitchell, rep
| resenting enormous aggregations OF
! labor, were to attend the banquet to
the newspaper representatives, he had
concluded it was best and wise for him
| to be at the same table, as he desired
! that no undue advantage should be
taken.
1T had been my observation" said
| Mr. Cleveland, that members of the
! press are always industrious.
II recall the time of my wedding trip
! the same characteristic zeal. am
| told that the genius climbed into the
windows of my car and even chung to
/ the brake beams in his anxiety 10
| serve his paper and the great Amer
/ lean reading public. l can assure that
! gentleman. ii present incognito, this
/ evening that Et would have been wei
/ come in my car, although it were d
! time when a man, of all times, does
require some privacy This * only
! another PROOF of their unfailing :!dds-
! try
! Mr.. CIeV elapd. in mo.H heroic tash-
/ len, tcck IareI from his po tx 1t ana
pretended to read, and this is what the
mS=''e pC'rCrted 10 state: y receive
! a letter to-day. 1t reads: I see that
| you are in town. Will you tell me how
much you made on that s62, 900 900 bond
| issue. Heard it was 100000 Now,
| s per cent. is a very large interest. The
| figures of my friend are wrong, yet
| the seed of truth is there"
| "I believe that it would be good
| idea to get up an agreement with
| newspaper men so that we plain citi-
zens might become their clients or
patrons. Then we might give them
| just what we chose to surrender of Of
| fetal or private secrets. l think that
by this means we might work up
| greater interest in the press.
But gentlemen, let me advise you
| that they are good friends to have;
men of broad and catholic sympathies
and full understanding of the weak
nesses and frailties of the race. quick
| to recognize and support its virtues
! therefore, the man who is in the bus
mess of harboring no good will to-
ward the newspaper man is in a los
ing business"