The Forrest City times., 1907-11-22
APPOINTING THE DAY OF THANKSGIVING
PROCLAMATION FROM THE WHITE HOUSE IS ONE OF THE MOST SERIOUS DUTIES THAT DEVOLVE
 UPON THE PRESIDENT

The only piece of really pure litera- ture ever officially issued from the White house is the proclamation ap- 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 painstakingly worded and grateful composition. A fairly illustrative ex. ample will be found in Mir Rooseyelt's proclamation setting aside the last Thursday of the present month for the Thanksgiving c: 1906
 It Is the duty of Mir. Loeb (who runs the machinery of the presidents busi- ness, arranging all his engagements for himl to call MT. Rooseyelt's atten- tion 10 the fact that Thanksgiving ap- breaches, and to remind him that proclamation must be written. Of course, 1t requires considerable time to do this, and so busy a man as the chief executive of the nation might be excusable if he handed over the task to some subordinate, contenting him. self with affixing 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 10 thinking out a 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 few memoranda in pencil on a paper pad. Then, touching buzz-button. he summons one of the dozen stenograph- CTS who are always in attendance, and dictates 10 him carefully the wording of the document. IL is short-not more than 400 or 500 words-but daintily and tersely phrased. This, however. is only a rough draft. It is copied in typescript by the stenographer, with lines twice the ordinary distance apart, so as 10 be convenient for corrections and interlineatiens. and in this shape is handed back 10 Mir Roosevelt. He alters it bit. modifying a sentence here and changing word there, until 1t suits him-whereupon a fair copy is made. again submitted for correc- tion. and finally sent over 10 the de partment of state.
 At the department Of state the proc. lamation Is beautifully engrossed on a great sheet Of fine parchment by clerk highly skilled in this kind of pen. manship, II 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 tAereupon 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 fetich. II is the most sacred of all things that belongs 10 the gov. ernment; and no print Of il is ever al. lowed to be given away or sold though, of course. Il is attached to all AAAAAlNeAl anu LeA fcl COMMISSIONS. and to various other executive documents It was made by a New York ieweler at a cost of sl0000, and is kept in a beautiful rosewood box at the state department h order that 1t may he used for stamping the Thanksgiving proclamation, a printed order to that effect must be signed by Mir. Roose. welt.
 The department of state is the Der. manent depository Of executive procla. nations. All the Thanksgiving nroc. iamations ever issued by the presi. dents of the United States are filed away in its archives-haek even Tn l795, when George Washington set aside the 18th day of February. in that year. as a date on which the people should thank God for exemption from foreign war and from instruction" Consequently the engraved proclama.