Evening journal., 1909-08-23
KNOWS time OF
MANY TRAINS
Man Who is Arranging PreSi-
dents Trip is a Wonder

While every State In the West and
South IS asking the President 10 stop
In its smiling midst. Edward Walter
Smithers, chief Of the telegraph and
cipher bureau Of the White House,
charged with the duty of arranging all
the details Of the forthcoming Presidcn-
tial tour, is having his troubles.
He lives in forest of railroad maps
land moves about IN broad cNpanse
OF time tables lie has TO map down
to a minute where the President viii
be on any given day. how low he can
stay In PodunlS Gap and how fast he
must travel TO reach Blithersyille on
time Whenever a change is made In
the itinerary the world is thrown out
Of Joint for Mr.. Smithers. lie has to
fix up all the holes made in his plans
by the change
Has His Head Full.
II anybody thinks It is an easy lob
to arrange for a President 10 travel
about 10000 miles. carrying two special
cars, a lot OF baggage. Cabinet Off
GERS a part of the time and Omitted
states Senators the rest Of the time.
a little conversation with Smithers will
show him he has the task sized up
wrong
Smithers has committed to memory
all the movements Of all the fast trains
on the Union Pacific, Southern Pacific
and Santa Fe. the oregon Short Line
the New York Central and the South
lern Railway, not TO mention the other
roads, large and small in the country.
He can close his eyes and see stretch
cd before his vision all the stations
ON ~ of ese roads. lie could stand
iup i'm any railroad station Of the South
or West and call off the outgoing trains
with the precision OF am old hand at
the business.
/, Hitchcock Wakes Him.
Last week he leaned back with a sigl
of relief ana allowed himself to believ,
he had the whole trip settled. He coult
tell YOU what time the President woult
reach Chicago. what minute he would
roll into Seattle and how many sid,
trips he would make there. When hc
Iawoke each morning he was repeating
20 himself mechanically the stops In
san Francisco and six Southern States
Tho thing looked good. He was a tray
cling Hercules. holding the transporta-
tion world on his capacious shoulders
Then Postmaster General Hitchcock
appeared on the scene and woke him
lup.
Mr.. Hitchcock persuaded tho Prosi
dent that he was not taking the right
route through Arizona and New Mexico
After that Smithers had 10 get bus,
and rearrange about 5000 moro mile,
iof schedules ANA trains. lie telc.
'graphcd his arm Off sent frantic ord.
ers for more time tables and went {,
work all over again. lie hopes to hay,
1t Strengthened out by the end Of thi,
week.
What He Will Do Next.
After that he will begin 10 memoriz,
the names of the boats and steamer
the President will use before the tou
, ends. II a few airships and subma
rincs are thrown in, Smithers will no
mind. His memory Is getting goo
from long usage
But IL must be said that he lives 4
/. continual dread. The itinerary has bee
changed so often tina the believes n
= will wake up any morning to find tina
additional changes have been ordcro,
IL is easy enough to order them br
o Smithers Is the man who has to max
! the arrangements that MI the orders.
Thus IL is that amid the cool breeze
or Beverly and the atmosphere Of re.
and recreation. the man named Smith
= ors has as much work as he can we
!, perform. lie knows all about the raj
: roads and he reads time tables as
they were the most exciting novels.