The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1908-11-08
The First Lady of the Land.

Whether Mr. BILLY" Taft, or Mr.. Bill
Bryan would be our next President, and
whether his tootsy wootsy, the Duke
D'Abruzzi, is coming over to his own
wedding to Miss Katherine Elkins in two
ships or three undoubtedly have been the
leading questions in the public mind Tor
loi these many moons. Now, that we
know beyond a peradventure that Mr..
Taft will fill the highest office within the
gift of the people, and that Mrs. TAFT is
to be the first lady of the land, we
can settle ourselves down to business
and worry along until the royal hula
balloo" is safely settled.
For positions of highest honor and
greatest responsibility. President-elect
and Mrs. Taft are deserving of diplomas
of the choicest order. They have served
a long and tedious apprenticeship patient
" and with a constantly growing knowl-
edge that has become superlative be-
cause of being backed by the keen In
telligenee that never throws down OPP
portunity to learn more. In this study
and work of years they have held them
selves -quite-unconsciou to the
reserve and dignity, the self-effacement,
that In itself fits them to step In safe
ly-safe for them and safe for eAle
people-to the position and the intricate
conditions of highest executive. In this
reserve and all-time dignity Mr.. Taft
seems to have hidden himself behind
his famous and encouraging smile and
Mrs. Taft has held herself in control al
ways back of silent, direct look-a sweet
womanliness which characterizes her
every attitude and her broad and tactful
view of people and things, which makes
her prominently fit AS one of her
friends observed-'the best smile is that
Ia
she meets en- masse or privately she
answers without showing or throwing
away any of her own trumps." Isn't
that the highest order of popular praise?
Women, of course, are interested in
Mr. Taft's position as our chief execu-
tive, the typical American, who has been
carried along through his personality to
the strongest position, who has grown
through his judicial mind-the innate
logic-that grasps the situation to the
control of other minds, but naturally
feminine taste has more to do with Mrs.
Taft.
In the first place the lady Of the land
IS our queen. There are certain written
and unwrtten social political laws or
rules that can control the social life
at the White House, the same as at a
court in Europe. And this does not mean
imperialism Far from it. 1t means
simply the recognition due to the Of
fetal workers of a republic and of those
who are entitled first to the courtesies
of the White House.
Mrs. Taft is just the woman the coun-
try needs in the White House-that an
executive needs. Our present mistress
of the White House will retire as hav-
ing been most successful because she has
made no mistakes For the iealOIsies
heartaches and the usual mistakes the
''proxy''-the social secretary-must an
swer. Whether 1t be true or false 1t
has been generally conceded that Mrs.
Roosevelt has left all responsibility to
a social secretary and this secretary has
been accused right and left of getting
even,' playing favorites' and goouness
knows what not, until the invitations to
the White House and the receptions that
belong to everybody have lost out as be-
ing considered the acme of social am
bition, which is most unfortunate
When Mrs. Taft assumes her duties
next March in the White House she will
stand at the helm herself She is too
fine a politician-without dabbling at all
in politics--to be careless about the wrong
name put on, or the right name left off
the White House visiting list. Precedence
is as much part of the game as politics
itself She will be the autocrat of the
White House social world and she will
know where influence creeps in and where
power is lost.
Few women have had the advantages of
experience which Mrs Taft has enjoyed
through finished administrations in our
Capital City. and pioneer or colonial diff
hculties in the Philippines, where a breath
in the wrong direction can upset the