The National tribune., 1906-12-20
THE STORER INCIDENT.
1t Seems Ended for the Present, Except
for Gossip in the Offices aud Drawing
Rooms.

Rooms.
The popular excitement over the
RooSevelt-Storer correspondence seems
to have died away, altho it still con-
tinues to be a fruitful theme in Wash
ington circles. Society is waiting for
Mrs. Storer to open her Washington
ago that she would do. It may be
rather a risky experiment, for society
may hesitate to incur the displeasure
of President and Mrs. Roosevelt by sit
ting at the Storcr board or otherwise
hobnobbing socially with them.
Old timers in Washington society
were astounded at Mrs. Storer's state
ment that she intends coming to Wash
ington this Winter. While the Presi-
dent has but two years more In the
White House, he is still a power to be
reckoned with, and it remains to be
seen whether Mrs Steers friends in
Washington are hardy enough to stand
by her at the cost o. incurring the
Presidents displeasure. Thin ss appear
to have gone to such a point that
reconciliation is not to be thought of
now. The President and Mrs. Roose-
welt could hardly be expected to for
give the publication of his private cor
reSpondence
"reminiscences of half a century since
the statement of the former Embassa-
dor and the Presidents reply were
made public. 1t seems that Embassa-
dor Storer's father and mother figured
IN sensational incident back in the
time when George Evans was a United
States Senator from Maine. Bellamy
StOrer. the elder, who came from Port
land, Me, and was a Member of the
oath Congress from Ohio, was a col
league of Evans. They served together
in the House, Evans subsequently he
ing elected TO the Senate. There was Il
domestic affair between the two fami
lies that eventually got into the courts
and kept the tongues of high society of
that day wagging Cor many months.
Altho Mrs. Slorer. the wife of the
former ambassador. came back at
the President in vigorous terms, after
he had replied. tie President has n"I
'dea of contributing further to the con-I
troversy. He has said his last word.
and will stand on what he has said.
The President greatly regrets that the
correspondence ever re"ched the pub
iic. but as it seems that the Storers
were bound 10 have il reach the pub
lie. the President is glad that the dis
closures were made at the time theyl
we're made. Some of his friends strong
" advised him against noticing the
charges. It is said the Secretary of
State, Mr.. Root, and Senator Lodge al
most pleaded with the President to ig
more the charges entirely. but he de-
cided suddenly that it was due theI
people to know his side of the case,
and he acted accordingly.
The Washington public is divided in
Its mind as to who really got the best
Of the controversy. It is conceded that
the Storers have not materially i'm
proved their position. They have been
blown up with the dynamite they ex-
ploded to destroy the other fellow. But
official Washington doubts whether
they have materially damaged the
President in public estimation. Reports
reach here that the Catholics of New
York and other cities are aroused, be-
cause they reason that the President
was using the Church for political pur
poses. If there is any farreaching re-
sentiment on that score it has not shown
itself here.
Congressional and Diplomatic people
here discuss the exchanges and laugh.
It seems to them excruciatingly funny.
The Presidents Cabinet has been the
butt of ridicule. because of the Presi-
cent ittlGf IIlstt tnt 0lDEtTS lldue pun
lie following the Presidents reply. His
observations to her about there being
no one in his Cabinet early in his first
Administration who was big enough po-l
liticaIly to go out before the country
and speak with authority about his pol
icies put the laugh on several very
estimable men, some of whom, like
Secretaries Wilson and Hitchcock, are
still i'll the Cabinet. Senator Knox, Of
Pennsylvania who was then Attorney
General, has been badly tsased In the
cloak rooms about his ability to inter
est the country and speak authorita-
lively of Mr. Roosevelt's policies, espe-
Cia!ly as since then he has, on two Or
three notable occasions, undertaken to-
represent the President and expound
his policies.
Further developments in the con-
troversy are expected. altho there are
no indications yet as to whence they
will come The Storers plainly have
more letters they would like to make
public. and they seem to be waiting for
an excuse to give them out. AS the
President has said his last word, the
developments can hardly come from his
quarter.
The Ohio Republicans, including
Senator Foraker and Gen. Grosvenor,
arc highly elated because the corre-
spondeucc reached the public. They
like the StorerS none TOO well, ana thlnk
that the controversy has shown Mrs.
Storer in her true light They and the
Storers have had a political feud.
reaching back to the time when Me
Kinley was first elected President.
Senator and Mrs. Foraker have a mag
niifcent Washington residence and en-
tertain extensively. but ii is certain that
| the StOrers will not be welcomed there,
! any more than they were while the
Forakers and the Storcrs lived on
Grandin Road in Cincinnati. Repre-
sentative and Mrs. Nicholas LOngwOrth,
the former the nephew of Mrs. Storer
and the latter the Presidents daughter.
! maintain splendid domestic establish
! ment here, but 1t IS very doubtful
! whether the StOrcrs will darken that
! threshold this Winter during their
residence in Washington.
Cleaning Cars by Machinery.
Mechanical devices for cleaning rail-
I tt-a,- ,sg.af .s.ara