Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-12-24
MANY FRIENDS AT LUNCH
Will Dine at the Home Of Admiral
Cowles.
BIG DISTRIBUTION OF TURKEYS
Change in Route of African Hunting
Trip-Message to Congress on the
Secret Service Completed.

The approach of Christmas was not in
dicated at the executive Offices today. The
President worked the usual number of
hours. seeing such callers as had business
| with him and dictated considerable corre-
| spondence to Secretary Loeb.
But in the White House itself the
Christmas atmosphere pervaded. Through
out the morning Henry Pinckney. the
steward. was engaged in passing out big
fat turkeys. the gift Of the President to
the married men and women connected
with the White House and grounds. He
began the distribution last night, and
when he had finished today he had turned
over LIB birds. the best that could be OBJ
tanned from Virginia. Including the force
of police officers and the men connected
with the Office Of the superintendent of
public buildings and grounds who work
in and around the White House, the num-
| Der receiving Christmas birds this year is
| twice as large as it was few years
ago.
All the Family Here.
The President and Mrs. Roosevelt will
dine tomorrow at the home Of Admiral
and Mrs. Cowles. They will have
| large number of their friends at luncheon
at the White House.
| All the boys will be here. Theodore
Roosevelt, jr., has come on for Christ
was with the family; Kermit leaves Har-
ward for the holiday season: Archie has
left Groton. and Quentin several days
ago left the Episcopal High School near
| Alexandria. which he entered in the fall.
President Roosevelt will spend little or
| no time in his Office tomorrow. He will
probably go for a ride or a walk in the
| morning. returning in time for luncheon.
Quentin is the only one of the Roose-
welt children who will hang up his stock
ing tonight. He is eleven years old. and
is disposed to have some views Of his
| lection to receiving all the presents and
good things the old saint viii bring him.
Among older members of the family
there will be an exchange Of presents,
but no festivities have been planned.
Secret Service Message Completed.
President Roosevelt late yesterday aft
| ernoon completed his reply OF message to
Congress on the secret service. In the
| morning, according to trustworthy re-
| ports, he was in some doubt whether he
would send to Congress the reply he had
| pared and whether he would not lay 1t
| aside and write another. After consult
| ing close friends 1t was decided to send
| to the public printer the reply he had
written. after the addition OF important
| features dictated in the afternoon. The
names and will not create sensation 1t
| will merely seek to sustain the position
| that has been taken by the President.
To Seek White Rhinoceros.
| President Roosevelt will make special
- <S,;o Y.iy fn
cure two specimens of the white rhi-
noceros, about the scarcest animal in
Africa. The National Museum here is es-
pecially anxious to get one of these. and
| II the President obtains another specimen
! he will give 1t to the British museum.
| The President, too. will not end his jour-
| ney until he has got two elephants The
| advice he has recently received that he
! will get no elephants on the route he has
decided to take has caused him to de-
| termine to go as far into the interior of
| Africa as necessary to get elephants. The
! white rhinoceros will be found. if at all,
| On the headwaters Of the Nile, which the
| President will strike after leaving Lake
! Victoria Nyanza.
| The President today discussed with
Maj. Edgar A. Mearns, who will ac-
| company him, some of the details of
the trip and especially whether to take
| from this country most of the ammuni-
| tion to be used. 1t was decided to
buy the bulk Of the ammunition aud
other supplies at Nayrobi, about two
thirds of the way from Momba sa where
he will land, to Lake Victoria Nyanza
The real hunting will begin north of
/ Nayrobi.
Some Of the Days Callers.
Senator Aldrich visited President Roose-
Welt this morning. remaining with him
fifteen minutes. He did not make known
the purpose Of his call. Relative to the
work of the monetary commission, of
| which he is a member. he said that the
| commission is waiting upon the controller
Of the currency for valuable information
before making its report on "administra-
| tive currency"
Senator Perkins introduced Mrs. Lowell
| White of San Francisco, who appealed to
| President Roosevelt to take steps to pre-
| serve the big trees Of California, the
| sequoias. The President has lons been
| interested in this matter and will do all
| within his power to stop the continued
| destruction of these magnificent kings OF
| the forests.
Representative Hackney of Missouri in
| troduced some friends.