The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1905-01-29
CABINET SESSIONS
ARE NOT FORMAL
Pen Picture of President RooSe-
veItS Official Family
BRIGHT STORIES ARE TOLD
Between Serious Discussions of
Weiehty Matters at the Cabinet
Meetings a Good Deal of
Jolying Goes On.
STORIES ARE TOLD
BY MARGARET B. DOWNING.

!
BY MARGARET B. DOWNING.
Washington, January 2S.-Tuesday and
Friday mornings at Il O'clock, whenever
the flag is flying over the White House.
the President and his cabinet officers
meet in conference In anticipation of this
momentous event. times are lively on
those days during the morning hours
| The President reaches his desk good
half hour earlier than on other days
He must look over his mail and be
ready to meet his ministers when they
arrive. Mr.. Loeb the secretary to
the President does not loiter over
! Ills coffee and chops on Tuesday and
Friday mornings, but bustles in some
times while the ancient servitor is
| still raising dust in the executive office.
The venerable doorkeeper of the Presiden-
tial office, Capt Loefher, puts on spry
look and invariably sports a bright red
c1rnation ON cabinet days. His desk is
swept and garnished and oftimes adorn-
ed with bunch of poses. Clerks hurry
aeout with care written their faces,
ard all keep an anxious eye on IT, as
| phalt way, as though expecting a royal
pageant to appear.
Eut the expected guests arrive with
proud republican simplicity Only those
! like Mr.. Wilson, the Secretary of Agricul-
| ture, whose office is hard on a mile from
the White House, come in a coach and
! four. This symbolic vehicle generally is
| represented by the simple government car
|
Hitchcock. Secretary of the Interior is
| an exception. lie always comes in state.
He resented certain criticisms in con-
gress about the use of government car
| riages and norses by millionaire cabi-
net officers, 50 he displays his own
| thorough eds and a carriage that plays
| its part in international pageants when
he was embassaoor to Russia. All the
| other councillor of the Chief Executive
| come on their own more or less sturdy
| extremities, though 1t is said by Attorney
General Moodys colleagues that he is
| never sure whether he will hold out to
reach the White House. His unchanging
| orCer when h jauntily deseends the steps
of the Department of Justice is "Drver,
/ think l shall walk this morning; but
you follow along behind, for fear
change my mind"
Souls of Promptness.
The cabinet members are the souls of
promptness and so nicely do they time
the moment OF their arrival that Mr.. Will
son, who comes the greatest distance Is
driving up while Mr., Shaw, who lrops
down from the Treasury Building across
the way, is still struggling with the coll
lar of his overo cat, hastily donned as he
walks.
Mr.. Hay. the premier of the cabinet
looking cool and unperturbed as good
diplomat should. saunters over from the
State Department on the stroke of the
hour. He disdai to carry folio, as the
other councillors do, but sends his papers
a little in advance by his trusty mes
senger Eddi. the government bouneer."
This title was be towed on the faithful
African because he gave three offending
diplomats their passports and instructed
them to get out of the country All the
cs tinet members clad in the most
severe and conventional attire and all
wear high silk hats .rreproachable
gloves and shoes which rival the sun. Mr..
Shaw, the Secretary of the Treasury and
Judge Taft. the portly Secretary of War
once manifested n disposition towards
working clothes. but the blameless raim-
ent of Messrs. lay, Morton. Moody and
the others sooned shamed them into line.
The Cabinet Chamber.
President Roosevelt, as a rule Is in the
cabinet chamber slightly before his guests
arrive. This room is in the northeast
front of the Executive Office building,
structure which has provoked no end
of mirth and sarcasm in the irreyerent.
The Presidents office is separated from
the cabinet room by narrow hall where
II. is stationed the vgilant Loeffler. A
long Mahogany tdbel stretches from
north to south, at one end of which the
President sits. At the other end is seated
the newest cabinet portfolio, Mr.. Met
calf, the Secretary of Commerce and La
Dor. There Is no room for him next to
his colleague Mr.. Hitchcock, so he is
compelled to face the Executive, cir
cumstance which has led Mr.. Roosevelt to
ask Mr. Loeb to provide longer table.
This is the second recent request in re-
gard to the furnishings of the council
chamber The other was for specially
large and specially strong chair for Judge
Taft, the big man" of. the cabinet
Judge Taft's great weight, coupled with
the fact that he laughs great deal and
laugh all over, threatened the destruc-
ton one by one, of all the other cabinet
chairs
At the Presidents right sits John Hay,
the Sercetarv of State. At his left is Les
1 lie NJ. Shaw, the head of the Treasury.
/ which ranks next to the Department OF
| State. Next to Mr.. Hay is Secretary of
/ War Taft. Next to Mr.. Shaw. Attorney
] General Moody. Judge Taft's neghbor
4 OH the left is Robert j. Wynne, who forg-
4 ed his way from successful journalism to
the headship of the ostoffce Department
and a seat a. the cabinet table. Next to
. | M. Moody SITS Paul Morton, Secretary OF
the Navy, whose distinguished sire sat
, In the cabinet of a democratic president.
Mr.. Wynne's companion on down the
/ table is Mr., Hitchcock, the solemn man,
/ and "Uncle Jim of Tama," the Secretary
| of Agriculture. brings up the left side
Informal Affairs.
A cabinet meeting is one of the most in
formal affairs under the government.
l The men meet anu greet each other heart
lily, and as a rule some of them has 9
l distinguished guest whom he wishes tc
present to The President and his col
i leagues. On a recent Tuesday the Pres
dent presented Whittlaw Reid, and thai
i distinguished exponent of American
/ Journalism and diplomacy had quite