The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1907-02-02
Tilt Between President and
Senator Foraker Subject
Of Much Interest.
mo REPORTERS
WERE PRESENT"
But Many Others Were In
Attendance, Who Told
the Story.
MEMBERSHIP OF FAMOUS DINING
CLUB INCLUDES MANY WHO
ARE NOT IN ACTIVE NEWSPA-
PER SERVIcE-AcTIVE MEM
BEERS BOUND TO SECRECY, BUT
OTHERS NOT.
BY William Wolff Smith.

w -. -, ESO- VI
years nothing has happened in Wash
ington to attract such general atten-
ton and interest as the recent clash
between President Roosevelt and Sen
ator Foraker at the annual dinner OF
the famous Gridiron Dining Club. This
organization is composed largely of
newspaper and ex-newspaper men,
and its dinners have long been a
feature of social life at the capital.
To give their guests, which always in
clude many prominent men, the full
est freedom of expression, they are
assured that mo reporters are pres
ent" and, as a general proposition.
only circumstantial accounts of what
IS said appears in the press. But at
the last annual dinner the debate be-
tween the president and Senator For
aker created such excitement that 1t
could not be kept quiet
Through an unavoidable combina-
ton of circumstances the Gridiron
Club, originally composed of forty &C
tive correspondents, has changed its
complexion until the active list, now
number fifty-eight, of which forty
eight are resident and ten are nom
resident, includes among it's forty
eight resident members about fifteen
who have vretiEed ,fzen Gle 1sUNResper
business, half Of them holding gov
eminent posiEQns. A number on the
nonresident list have also left the
business. Formerly no paper could
be represented by more than one
member but now two of the local
newspapers are represented by six on
the active resident list, of whom four
are credited to one paper, which also
has one on the limited list. The other
Washington dailies are not repre-
scented in the club. Subtracting the
fifteen ex-newSpaper men on the ac-
tive resident list and the six local men
leaves only twenty-seven memberships
for active correspondents, of which
one Is held by the editor of paper
six hundred miles away, and two by
representatives of magazines, two by
special writers and several by men
practically no longer correspondents.
In fact only eighteen out of the forty
eight resident members of the Grid
iron Club are active correspondents,
although the list might be stretched
to cover to twenty-fouT or half the
resident members. II is an open Sc
cret that the idea of combining the
club to active correspondents has thus
been abandoned.
q While those correspondents who
are members of the club were bound
TO secrecy as TO the speeches of the
president and Senator Foraker the
Aundred and fifty were under no such
pledge and they had no more reason
TO pass over the incident than if ii
had happened at any other public din
ner. Whether the president knew his
utterances would become public OF
not is a question. Certainly he did
not mince his words when dealing
with the senate or corporations. j.
p. Morgan and H. H. Rogers, to say
nothing of half a dozen others repre-
senting corporate interests, were pres
ent. also as guests of the Club. and
they did not relish the remarks OF
the president apparently directed prin
cipally at them. The hot repor;
handed out the next day by the Inter
state Commerce Commission. roasting
the Standard OIL Company, apparently
indicates the president had Mr.
Rogers. at least, in mind. President
Roosevelt then turned his attention tC
the senate, and, in brief, suggested
JQdI IL AdS AiCQullGSS III NlAcS OAO liz
concern it. when it took up the
Brownsville matter, and that he did
not care a rap what action il took
Among the guests were Senators Al
drich, Beveridge. Clay. Clark Crane
Foraker, Nixon and Patterson. Some
of them at least did not relish the
idea of the president lecturing then
in the presence of Heterogeneous col
lection of senator's, representatives
corporation men and newspaper men
When Foraker was called upon to re
shply he was as emphatic as the presi
kent. According to accounts ht
aroused the banquetters to enthusias
tic applause. At any rate it was the
most interesting event ever pulled
off by the Gridiron Club
Naturally the members Of the clut
regret the incident and the fact thai
n became public viii have the tenden
CIV to make public men feel that al
though mo reporters are present,
vet their utterances are likely 10 ind
their way into print If they are OF
unusual interest. 1t will not affect
che club seriously, however, for it is
comopsed of some of the best news
paper men and ex-newspaper men in
the city.