Omaha daily bee., 1909-12-05
OF RUINED SILK HATS
Taft Tour Upset Traditions of Presi-
. dental Jaunts.
EFFECT OF THE USE OF THE AUTO
Taft Less Particular I'm the Matter OF
Dress Than Observation-Disclosures
of COmmitteemen-speed-
ing by the President.

President Tafts long jaunt around the
UNITED States. Without the aid of he
automobile it would nave taken the presi-
dent almost four Instead of two months
to cover the same circuit.
The use of the automobile also made
the Taft tour unique in the history Of
presidential %jaunts. President Roosevelt
never rode in an automobile when he
IcOuld get a carriage with a team of horses,
and in the days Of Mckinley the choo-
Ichoo wagon hardly had come into its own.
President Roosevelt was a fairly lively
citizen, but on his long trip through the
west he didn't begin to cover the ground
in each city that Mr.. Taft covered. Mr..
TAFT Is the friend of the automobile
witness it's Introduction into the White
House stables-and on his trip the auto
mobile was a mighty useful friend to him.
The use of the machines has, however,
knocked a good many frills out of a presi-
dental tour. 1t has been a hard blow 10
the plug hat and the frock coat. Those
who followed Mr.. Taft over the $4,000
miles realize that '%hese things have no
place in the up-to-date tour.
Local committeeman haven't adjusted
themselves to the new conditions yet but
they will. Another visit or two by Presl-
dent Taft. a few more brand new silk
II6bb SpDll6u at 70 q HN
committeeman will revolt.
End Of the Plug.
The president and ALI the members OF
his party started out from Boston win
the idea that the old plug hat was to be a
vital part of the Taft show, just as 1t had
been on every other tour of the nations
chief executive. A fifteen-mile automo-
bile ride through streets OF Chicago on
the first day out started a different train
Iof Thought. Those who occupied the MP
Ichines toward the end of the long pro-
cession felt much more strongly on the
subject than the ones who hao pl1ces
nearer the head. but all had acquires
enough Chicago real estate to make them
wonder IL the inventor of The SILK nat ever
really intended It to be subjected 10 such
An AUTOMOBILE ride on the second day
Of the trip from the center OF the city ol
Milwaukee out to the Wisconsin sla'e
fair grounds satisfied the entire party
that a dust covered plug hat was not d
thing of beauty and was totally unit 'or
a presidential parade-thst is, on an orul-
nary head. The newspaper correspond
ents after that Milwaukee trip held a meet
ing in the baggage car OF the tart Tram
and. piling their dust stained Plugs, TO-
sether. took a solemn oath not TO appear
in them again except by executive order
The executive order came on only Two
occasions on the 1S,0oO-mile trip ana
there is good reason to believe that II
originated each time with one OF Inc
presidents advisers, not with the presi-
dent himself. At any rate the entire
troop of Taft one night ISLANDERS ap-
peared in full afternoon uniform only
twice after leaving Milwaukee-at the
Seattle exposition and at the Taft-Diaz
ceremonies in FL Paso.
Taft Not So Dressy.
In this matter of dress President Tart
isn't nearly so particular as Mr.. Roose-
welt was. Mr.. Roosevelt used to issue
orders to his party in regard to their
dress before they entered each city. The
nigh hat and frock coat were customary
unless there were special instructions,
The etcret service guards, whether
tramping through the dust beside the
Roosevelt carriage or riding on the box
with the driver, always were attired like
the president himself.
President Taft didn't care a rap what
his secret service men or anybody else
in the party wore. one Of the guards wore
a khaki uniform, riding trousers, puttees
and sombrero most OF the time, while the
other favored a blue serge suit and one
Of those new tangled soft hats from Bos-
ton that always look as II they need a
shave. The Taft-Diaz meeting was the
only occasion on which the presidents
guards pulled out their old Roosevelt re-
gala.
Mr.. Taft himself wasn't at all particu-
lar what he wore. on many occasions
he paraded wearing a derby and once or
twice with his golf cap on. He soon
learned that it was the part of wisdom
always to have this golf cap with him.
He never could tell when he left his train
Just what sort OF automobile trip he was
going to encounter.
All the committees promised In advance
to nave the roads well oiled. but few Of
them lived up TO their promises. The
president would wear his silk hat on the
parade through the city streets and then
shift to his golf cap when the committee
steered him out into the country.
That was where he always had a laugh
on the committee 1t would have grieved
the heart Of any local committeeman to
appear in a TaftSparade without a stove
pipe, but to have the glossy structure as
sumo the appearance Of a dull clay CHM
ney and a brand new frock coat made to
look like a light linen duster was often the
cause Of far deeper sorrow. The average
committeeman had been looking ahead for
weeks to the applause of his fellow towns
men as he rode by In state, and then to
be greeted with laughter-it was pitiful!
One on the Committee.
The president had a lot OF fun with the
local committeeman Of Corpus Christi, Tex,
on this silk hat proposition. He had been
stopping on his brothers. ranch and the
COMMITTEES came across the bay on a rev.
enue cutter to get him. The mercury In
the thermometer was lurking around O.,
but every committeeman was arrayed In q
silk hat and a frock coat.
They were standing on the pier hopping
their brows when the president appeared on
the brow OF the hill wearing an ordinary
business suit and a Panama straw hat.
The Corpus Christi IN gasped.
I'VE want to apologize for dressing up
so much" they said to the president a little
later.
"Oh, that's all right" said Mr.. Taft with
a chuckle. Il can stand II IL you can"
well there's one consolation" sighed
one Of the committeeman as he cooled his