The Fargo forum and daily republican., 1905-10-23
PRESIDENTS MUZZLE
PUT ON THE CABINET

Walter Wellman, in a Washington
special to The Record Herald. says in
part: "a
President Roosevelt's effort to sup
press the giving OF news TO corre-
spondents by members OF the cabinet is
the talk Of the town Secretary Loeb's
letter of Instructions to cabinet Off
GERS is one of the most amazing docu-
ments that ever came out OF the White
House. There is but one rational ex-
planation-that the president was SO
hurried in finishing his speeches and
closing ont the business on his desk
before starting on his southern tour
matter proper consideration. Ii was
one of those flashed off -in-a- hurry,
catch-as-catch-can affairs which the
president INDUCES in when he is. under
pressure.
This attempt to put gag in the
mouth OF cabinet officers by executive
order is received with a mixture OF
|anazement and amusement. Some OF
| the persons directly affected by it ~
members of the cabinet and representa-
tives of the press--give expression to
their feelings in cusswords, Others in
laughter. And it is difficult TO tell
with certainty whom the joke is orl----
| the eminent gentlemen who sit at the
cabinet table or the newspaper CORE
lspondents. Possibly in the end ii will
be found that it is upon the president
and his secretary, the usually clever
Mr.. Loeb.
The fact about this not very import
ant but highly ridiculous episode ap-
| pear to be as follows Z:
A small number of newspaper men,
representing press associations and af,,
Iternoon papers, and wanting their news
quick, have hung about the. White
House on cabinet days, and on rhs adj
Ijournment of the meetings have acs
Icosted members Of the cabinet and
lasked them what took place inside. The
newspaper men have a right to do this
A room is fitted up for their use al
1.-THE White House annex, with tables
| and telephones. This method OF gath
iering news has been in vogue many
years 1t is nothing new
/ .As rule the correspondents and the
tcabinet officers get on well together
1t is thrust and parry, joke and laugh
tier, between them. The cabinet off.
Icers are grown men, masters OF theii
tongues, it is presumed, and it is moi
Ito be supposed they are forced to tel
ianything they do not want to tell oil
/ THAT is improper to be told Tt is diff,
Icalt to see what possible objection
tfi,ara 1 u, H :, +s.,rr ~, a x,,ae
linen to catch on the fly" departing
icabinet officers and extract such bit,
lot information from them as they car
lCertainly there is nothing "unseemly'
about it, to quote Mr.. aLoeb's letter.
But it seems that President RooseI
welt does not like it. He does not lilt
lit because Of one incident Mr. Roosel
welt is greatly impressed by single in|
icidents, and often argues from inciden
Ito principle in somewhat arbitrary a13
Ihasty fashion. q as s''.'
Secretary Root was leaving TIL
white House one day when rlewspa
Iper man asked him what had takei
Iplace in the cabinet meeting. Moth
ling" replied Mr.. Root with smile
I.Oh that's ridiculous, replied th
|press man. You've been there twe
lhours." Whereupon Secretary Roo
became indignant. He gave that cor
Respondent lecturing which the young
Igentleinan will not soon forget.
4 President Roosevelt heard of thil
incident and in hurry out came Mr.
/ ILoeb,s letter to members of the cabi
met ordering them not to talk to spec
Il ial correspondents, as such conduct j.
sunseemly'