The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-04-18

Taft administration came in, was one Of the cleverest of those of the past 20 years I don't know better story for this col 1 umn for this morning than that of the dinner as told by the Associated Press writer. Here it is:
 The broiler of the Gridron club that famous organization of newspaper men, was kept busy tonight serving up wit and humor at a special dinner compli- mentary to the new administration, given | in the banquet hall of the New Will lard.
 | Care was taken that men prominent in the public eye got all that was coming to them in the way of thrusts and jibes that kept the great assemblage in constant state of uproar. And then, too, there were some skits by an aggrega- ton of scintillating stars that would have put to blush many who count themselves in the class of professionals.
 Of course President Taft was there, as were Speaker Cannon, members of the cabinet and the diplomatic corps. sen- ators and representatives, men high in the industrial and financial world and plenty of others of distinction.
 In the absence of President Henry Hall, who is just recovering from a long ill., ness, Vice President Scott c. Bone of the Washington Herald presided over the evenings doings The onslaught on the banquet room began when the clubs old fashioned dinner bell announced that everything was ready.
 As soon as the diners were seated the room was thrown into darkness, while musical welcome was extended to the distinguished guests. Then the mammoth electric gridron flashed into view, the lights were turned on throughout the room and the fun commenced. Almost the first thing to greet the guests was hand-bill distributed by some speedy | would be a great minstrel show by all- star performers, including ''vocalists, comedians and cabinet officers" This, undoubtedly, was the hit of the evening. In true minstrel fashion, with all the ac- compartments of dusters and more or less discordant band, this troupe of tall tl, baI ing on the stage" The programme of the show was clever imitation of the real thing, even to the naming of the executive staff, together with a special mote by the management" which called attention to what was to come and with the injunction that there should be no flowers.
 Eating through Georgia" was the opener, and it ran like this:
 Sound the good old dinner horn, we'll sing another song
 About the trip that Taft once made,
 when, with digestion strong, He ate his share of everything that they would bring along.
 As We went eating through Georgia" I've tackled the opossum that they took
 such care to bake
 We didn't even draw the line at alli-
 gator steak
 As we went eating through Georgia. By southern hospitality our hearts were
 surely won
 And we resolved to do the very best
 that could be done
 For democrats; and so we saved some
 pie for Dickinson As We went eating through Georgia"
 And the chorus, well. it would grate on the nerves of hungry man if he heard these words:
 'eHurrahl hurrah! we sound the jubilee "Hurrahl hurrahl twas something fine to see
 We put away three meals day And sometimes three times three, As we went eating through Georgia"
 Then there ensued some live conversa- ton between the middle men who posed as the Vice President and the Speak ficers' who composed the balance of the troupe.
 After good deal of sparring over what , was the meaning of dead literature and whether 1t referred to Sanscrit or Aztec the end man declared 1t to be Presidents messages"
 Say, MT. Vice President" a member of the Cabinet" inquired, do you re- member the morning when all those boil CTS blew up and scared a lot of peo- ple?"
 | Ohl yes I remember it perfectly. but I do not see why 1t should have scared anybody. It was merely a big noise."
 Yes that was it. Everybody thought MT. Roosevelt had come back .Please Leave the Dear Old Trusts I Alone; They're Seeing Things at Night" | was the title of a song by James s. Henry of the Philadelphia Press, 'the wonderful soft pedal barytone" in which | the trusts informed Attorney General | Wickersham that they were tired and sleepy, too, and appealed to him to put l them in thelr little beds.
 The White House COW, now already