The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1907-02-24

diplomats. or Supreme Court judges. do
more 70 keep the wheels of National Cap
ital affairs well creased than these six:
Thomas P. Cleaves, clerk OF the Senate
Appropriation Committee.
James c. Courts. clerk Of the House APP
preparation Committee.
Speaker.
Asher C. Kinds. clerk to the Speakers
desk.
Charles \. Edwards, clerk in the minor
iu room: and
William Loeb, secretary to the Presl-
dent.
OF the six Mr.. CIeaves has been longest
in the service OF Uncle Sam. He began
in practically his present place, away
back in 1870. four and thirty years ago
when the Hon. Lot n. Morrill,, of Maine
appointed Kim clerk OF the Senate Appro-
priation Committee, which had been a
part of the Senate machinery only six
years. Mr Loeb has seen less govern
mental service than any other Of the half
dozen. yet. because he IS next 20 the
Chief Executive, he is Oftener mentioned
in print than all the others put together
Mr.. Loeb is foTty-One He began to fight
LIES battle seriously in Albany, n Y,
where was an unassumiHg. rather timid
court stenOgTapher when Roosevelt was
made governor. His salary might have been
larger. and, with several others Of his
calling, he used to frequent the crumbling
State capitol after his regular daily stunt
was over. hoping to get an occasional job
OF typewriting for some one of the news
paper correspondents. One day, in 1859
directly after Roosevelt's Inauguration as
governor, when such work seemed un-
commonly scarce, the governor himself
stepped out of the little private Office
which Gov Hughes now, declines to use.
into the big room" where he receives
everybody, politicians and ordinary worms
of the dust impartially. and asked that
a good stenographer and typewriter be
sent in.
You go in. Loeb. said some one.
Loeb went in and made pothooks to
the tune of Roosevelt's dictation for an
hour or two. Some time later he deliv-
cred the typewriter copy It must have
been uD 10 the Roosevelt standard. for.
next day, when the governor repeated
his request for a stenographer. he said:
Send in the man 1 had yesterday; he's
all right
From that day on the young court ste
noGrapher was busy for Roosevelt made
him his private secretary. Later hc
brought him 10 Washington and made
him his secretary while Vice President.
When elevated to the Presidency Roosa-
Welt put Loeb I'm as assistant TO Cortelyou.
then serving the third President as sec
rotary. Cortelyou's promotion to "a Cabi-
net place lifted Loeb TO the proud level
OF secretary 10 the President. with at
tendance at Cabinet meetings a part of
his duties.
Il is only the truth that Mr. Loeb was
not very well liked at first by the news
paper men and some others at the Na-
tional Capital with whom he came in
contact. They thought him a bit of
crank, and, with few exceptions, could
not understand what Roosevelt could see
in his new secretary. The exceptions
We're the correspondents of certain news
papers who had served the same papers
in Albany, and had found out something
about the Loeb mettle
They knew him to be that rare thing.
thoroughly intelligent stenOgrapher, pos
sessing wide and correct information upon
"a vast variety of topics; such "a stenog-
rapher as can be trusted to brush IN
hating sentence without running the
risk of distOrting it, and To correct an
error of fact made I'm the hurry of die
tatiOn- They also knew him 20 be dis
"a d MI.
and not wanting in the persistence that
wins.
Roosevelt had caught a gIimmering at
the real Loeb when giving him the first
dlctauon; the impression then received
had been strengthened each time the two
had come in contact; Loeb's rise was the
only logical thing under the circum-
stances To-day he stands very well in
cced among the correspondents.
There is nothing easy about the job
held by the secretary 60 the President.
Its intricacies need hardly be enumerated;
they have been described in print at al
most regular intervals ever since the DAYS
OF the late Dan Lamont. VINO. like COrteI-
you, made the place a stepping stone 10
secFetaryship, and was the first man
holding the post, after John Hay, 10 ap-I
proach the latter in efficiency Probably
no Presidents secretary. before Cortelyou
and Loeb ever had so eXacting d superior
as theirs.
Mr.. Loeb was born in Albany. His edu-
cation was confined to the ward and high
schools. BY the time he was twenty-six.
before Roosevelt found him. he had been
private secretary 10 two or three short
term State officials and had done a good
deal OF Official reporting. He is a trihe
above the average height dark of skin.
hair, mustache. and eyes. His face is
longish. and his nose is long. but not
beak. lie wears glasses. His voice is low.
lie seems to have his jaw half set when
lie talks, and he doesn't talk much. He
thinks and listens a good deal. however.
He hears what you have 10 say. pauses
as IL 10 turn your proposition over ia his |
mind, and answers in the fewest possible |
words, with great elaboration, and, gen
orally, with hnality
He is a Well-groomed man I'm every
sense lie wears q frOck coat mostly. and |
the suit always fits. He exercises regu-
larry, using some sort Of patent exer-
c!ser at home daily. He walks also, and
he rides frequently and Well He is fond
of outdoors, and likes to shoot.
Last summer he spent six weeks in /
JacksOn's Hole. that magnificent hunting /
ground Just south of the Yellowstone f!
Park where horse thieves and other far /
Western bad men are supposed to fee 4
whenever a sherin's posse gets too close /
Thus he keeps in health. though he is a /
little stouter than when he was first seen
IN Washington. lie never has TO make I
pothooks now. having several pot-hookers /
under him. He is a Baptist
/. w. Busbey's AIultifariOus Duties. |
Soon after Uncle joe Cannon felt sure /
that he was 10 be Speaker Of the House 4
Of Representatives he began to do some 4
hard thinking about his helpers. He 1
thought harder upon the necessity OF |