The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1907-05-26

Voyaged IN Arctic regions in quest Of
the lost expedition of Sir John Frank
lin.
1t was in 1s45 that Sir John Frank
lin sailed from England to find the long
sought Northwest passage He never
came back, and series Of relief ex-
peditions were sent out in search of
nm, no fewer than twentyfour vessels
being thus dispatched, of which thirteen
were American. One of the vessels, A
British warship named the Resoute,
was abandoned. and. being afterward
found by Yankee warship, was towed
to port, repaired, reftted. and pre-
sented by the Congress Of the United
states to England. Long afterward,
and broken up. the desk here described
was made out of her timbers and given
by Queen Victoria to Mr.. Cleveland dur
ing that gentleman s first administra-
tion.
Adjoining Mr.. Roosevelt g " study"
(as 1t is called). which was the old
Cabinet room, is room twice the size,
used as business office by Mr., Nc
kinley. by Benjamin Harrison and by
Grover Cleveland-all three of whom
did their work at the desk in question.
But this large apartment has now been
converted into guest chamber. like
all of the other rooms in the east end Of
the second floor of the White House.
Next to it is the old War room. occu-
pied by busy telegraph operators dur
ing the Spanish conflict-at present n
bedroom. with bath partitioncd off at
one corner. Opposite. across the main
corridor, is similar bedchamber. with
a bath. Which leaves unmeutioned only
one room, of large size, directly across
the hall from Mr. McKinley's old of
fee. and occupied in his time by his
secretary. It is today the handsomest
bedroom in the dwelling.
Mrs. Cleveland Disappointed.
When Mrs. Cleveland first came to the
White House, a bride, she expected TO
do great deal of entertaining, and to
invite many of her girl friends TO come
and stay with her-knowing as she did
what an event such a visit would be IN
the life of any Young woman, Her dis
appointment was correspondlngly great
when she found that the available sleep
ing quarters were so restricted as to
render such hospitalities practicable
only on very small scale. That is
to say. three or four people at time
were about as MANY as could find beds
in the domicile of the President.
Likewise Mrs. Benjamin Harrison bit,
terly complained to her friends that she
had left n house containing twelve
When one comes TO think of it, 1t was
an absurdity; and it is certainly mat
ter for congratulation that the Presl-
dent s House Gts original official deslg-
nation) possesses today tota of nine
bedrooms, with six baths-thanks TO the
changes made by Mr.. Roosevelt; OF
course. the Roosevelt family is large,
comprising (even now that Miss Alice
is gomez four boys and girl nearly
grown to Young Iadyhood-so that the
old quarters are barely sufficient to ac-
commodatc the members of the home
circle The bedrooms newly provided in
the east wlng-wbich, by the wny, are
beautifully furnished in massive ma
hoganv, with brass bedsteads-are util-
lied as guest chambers.
Bedrooms Redecorated.
Incidentally TO the recent reconstruc-
tion of the White House the old bed
rooms were redecorated and to a con
siderable extent refurnished, whatever
seemed antiquated OF shabby being re-
placed by something new and handsome.