Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-10-28

cabinet information to any newspaper man,
and the thing worked beautifully.
AT a certain period during the admins
tration of MI. Harrison he. too. issued what
was said to have been pretty stern verbal
mandate to his cabinet members virtually
forbidding them TO give out any news OF
cabinet doings. This was at thu time of the
high tension between the United States and
Chile. on account OF the slaughtering of the
sailors of the cruiser Baltimore down IN
Chile. The United States was right on tho
edge Of war with the then chesty little
South American republic over that matter.
and the members OF the cabinet were hold
ing more good and proper information be-
hind their teeth than seemed right or
proper.
AT the height OF the tension I went to
one OF the secretaries. who from the very
nature of the department OF which he was
the head. was supposedly in possession Of
all the facts In the situation. had known
MIN for good many years. and he was
printed.
when I asked him to let me have tine In
innate nub Of the Chilean story he prompt
ly whitfield me-
Couldn't think OF saving n word my
BOY. he said, determinedly Couldn't
cream OF IT, Strictly against the Presidents
ORDERS Tor any member of the cabinet to
say so much as word on that topic.
mighty sorry, and I'd like TO favor YOU bu,
It's simply out-of-the-auestion. Lips
have been sealed
Oh. l know, Mr.. Secretary said Z,
that IL wouldn't do to print ANYTHING as
coming from you. but the situation. as YOU
know, is a whole lot strained on account OF
this Chilean incident-stock markets tremu-
ious. folks In the land and sea services all
worked up and
The Typewriting Machine Incident.
oh. there's a lot OF talk. I know
broke in the Secretary. but I can't violate
Thereby the way. do you do your writing
on a typewriting machine?
Well. that was such a queer question
coming at just the time 1t did, that II
caused me TO cock up my ears | had
what's called hunch that II might mean
something doing.
Il told the Secretary that did all of my
work on a typewriter.
Well said the Secretary there was an
insistent sort of a typewriter agent In to
see me yesterday afternoon He wanted me
to recommend the adoption of a typewrfting
machine of which he is the Washington
agent Good-looking machine. too. 1t has
elite type. l believe. Drop in here a
couple OF hours from now, and I'll have
my young man show the machine to you.
I'd like to get your opinion OF It. as a prac-
tlcal typewriter operator
1t sounded pretty good to me- that lit
tie curiously dragged in talk about a type
writing machine.
Il did drop in couple OF hours later.
L
machine. said the Secretary, with an air OF
the most perfect solemnity. L believe my
young mamie was referring to his ste
nogra pher-'is working on it now in the next
room. Go in and look 1t over
Il strolled into the next ROOM where the
Secretary's private secretary and the Ste
nographer had their desks. The room was
empty On the stenograp piers desk was the
new typewriter, OF a make just then COM
ing into the market. l walked over to the
desk to take look at the typewriter.
Stuck In the typewriter was sheet OF
fooscap size linen paper, covered with type
writing work right down to the bottom
line. To the casual eye IL looked as IL the
typewriter operator had finished the sheet
and left the room before pulling il out OF
the machine II m, ye-eh That's the way
it looked to the casual eye.
But my eye wasn't what you could prop
erly call just casual In those days and
well. yes, just sat down and pulled that
sheet of paper out of the machine. and read
the stuff printed on it from top to bottom
read 1t three OF four times so as to get the
Information strongly impressed on my mind.
Statement of the Whole Situation.
'It was statement OF the Chilean situa-
tion embodying the inside cabinet doings
in that connection, and fairly bristling and
soaked and saturated with whopping news.
I got 1t all pat in my mind, as | say. and
then stuck the sheet of paper back IN the
machine, just as l had found it. Then l
passed out into the corridor by way OF the
Secretary's room.
L like that machine. Mr.. Secretary l
said to him, with a solemnity equaling his
own, l passed out. 1t looks bully to
me. l like the style of type. too. / glanced
over some work that your young man had
been doing on it, and it certainly does look
neat
'Um-well, IL you like it, maybe I'll
order some of 'em for the department, said
the Secretary, shooting a lightning
glance of perfect meaningfulness out OF tho
corner of his eye-and that's how / got
something important from another Secre-
tary who didn't give me a single thing
did he?
There's no need for worry. The cabinet
news will be printed right along all cor
rect enough. and it won't be in the shape
of one of Mr.. Loeb's slips. either