Custer County Republican. (Broken Bow, Neb.) 1882-1921, 1907-11-28

uC Oilg DltCt vi ltdlly. PulC NUN
turc ever officially issued from the
White house is the proclamation APP
pointing a day Of thanksgiving. All
other papers written by the president
are business documents, the phraseol.
ogy of which Is technical; but this an
nual message TO the people is always
Il painstakingly worded and grateful
composition. A fairly illustrative ex'
ample will be found in Mr.. Roosevelt's
proclamation setting aside the last
Thursday Of the present month for the
Thanksgiving of 1906.
1t is the duty OF Mr.. Loeb (who runs
the machinery OF the presidents bust
ness, arranging all his engagements
for him) to call Mr.. Roosevelt's atten.
ton TO the fact that Thanksgiving APP
proclamation must be written. OF
course, it requires considerable time
to do this, and so busy man as the
chief executive of the nation might be
excusable If he handed over the task
to some subordinate. contenting him.
self with atiiXing his signature But
custom demands that the work shall
be performed by the president himself.
Accordingly, when the proclamation
has to be prepared, the president de.
votes some time to thinking out new
shape in which to put the more or less
stereotyped ideas which are to be ex.
pressed, ana, as he does so, jots down
Il few memoranda in pencil on a paper
pad. Then, touching buzz.button, he
summons one of the dozen stenograph-
ers who are always in attendance, and
dictates to him carefully the wording
of the document. 1t is short-not more
than 400 or 500 words-but daintily
and tersely phrased. This. however, is
only rough draft. 1t Is copied in
typescript by the stenographer, with
lines twice the ordinary distance apart.
so as to be convenient for corrections
and interlineations, and in this shape
Is handed back to Mr.. Roosevelt. He
alters 1t bit, modifying sentence
here and changing word there, until
it suits him-whereupon fair copy
is made, again submitted for correc.
ton, and finally sent over TO the de-
partment of state.
At the department of state the proc.
lamation is beautifully engrossed on
a great sheet of fine parchment by a
clerk highly skilled in this kind of pen.
manship. 1t Is a considerable task. and
occupies some days, at the end of
which the document is sent back to
| the white House to receive the presi'
| cents signature, and Is thereupon re.
| turned to the department to be signed
| by the secretary of state and sealed
with the great seal OF the United
States.
This seal by the way, is sort of
| federal fetch. 1t is the most sacred
| of all things that belongs to the gov.
| eminent; and no print of it is ever al
| lowed to be given away or sold
! though, Of course. 1t Is attached to all
! military and naval commissions, and
| To various other executive documents
II was made by New York jeweler al
cost of $4,000. and is kept in q
| beautiful rosewood box at the state
department. In order that 1t may be
used for stamping the Thanksgiving
proclamation. IA printed order to tha
effect must be signed by Mr.. Roosc
| welt.
The department of state is the per
manent depository of executive procla
nations. All the Thanksgiving proc
lamations ever issued by the presi
dents OF the United States are flee
away in its archives--back even t
1895, when George Washington Sc
aside the 10th day of February, in tina
year, as date on which the peopl,
should thank God for exemption from
foreign war and from instruction.
Consequently, the engraved proclama