The Salt Lake herald-Republican. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1909-1918, 1909-09-25
President Taft's Staff.


The personnel of President Taft's staff
is divided about equally between assist
ants and serVltOTs who accompany him in
what might be termed official capacities
and intimate personal friends, who 90
upon the Presidents invitation and whose
status IS that OF guests Each class has
its responsibilities however. The hired
helpers keep in order the Presidents port
able habitatiOn and facilitate the trans
action OF the pressing executive business
that always seeks the White House on
wheels. no matter where ii may be side
tracked. On the other hand. the PTeSi-
dents intimates and aids bear part of the
Drunt OF receiving and entertaining that
constant stream of distinguished and
near-distinguiSh callers for which the
presidential car Is mecca from one end
to the other of such a journey. Indeed,
If the President gets any uninterrupted
sleep or the opportunity to paTtake of
meals leisurely. it is due to the good Of
fices of the proxies on board the special
who temporarily hold at bay the enthusi-
astic admirers clamOring for word or a
handshake.
The Taft tour is to go down into his
tory as the longest ever made by Pres
ident. and by an odd coincidence the staff
of the President is the smallest that has
ever attended a chief magistrate under
like circumstances. Not more than eight
or nine chums and helpers of the nations
ruler are with him continuously through
out his TecOrd-bTeaking jaunt. in ad-
ditlOn there are about half a dozen news
paper correspondents and several rail-
road officials, but this contingent like
wise is more limited in numbers than has
been the case i'm some preceding presi-
Dental excursions. The explanation of
the limited number of participants in this
most notable of personally conducted
tours is found partly in President Tafts
policy of reasonable economy and partly
in the laws which have been enacted cur
failing free transportation on the rail
In Good Old Days.
In the old days the TRANSPORTATION COM
panies which derive many indirect bene-
fits from the journey of a President over
their lines-nOtably the opportunity to
haul eNcurSIOnIStS to every point where
he speaks-raised no objection no matter
how large a personal staff accompanied
the President. A special train was in
vaTiably provided and the number Of pas
sengeTs was a matter of little concern
Nowadays. everybody must pay fare and,
tickets for the men who accompany him
at his invitation, To be sure, President
Taft was I'm the closing days of the spe-
cial session of congress. voted $4,000 for
travelling expenses i'm addition to his in
creased salary of $4,000 a year. but a trip
such as this considering that two special
cars cost Sl09 a dayl, makes a big hole in
the fund, and the President obviously can
not afford to give out passports indiscTim-
inately.
It was the original intention Of the Pres
q T.
but when it was found that there must
necessarily be fifteen to eighteen persons
aboard all the. time, TO say nothing of
others that will travel short distances
with the party. it was decided to utilize
two special cars. However. the time
honOred custom of having Uncle Sans
best paid servant travel by special train
was abandoned. Only for limited stretches
in the lengthy itinerary do the two cars
run as q special At other times they
are attached to regular trains. This plan
results i'm a decrease in the number of
railroad officials that must of necessity
have place in the official party When q
presidential special is to be pilOted over
q crowded steel-traeked highway, it re
Quires the personal supervision not only
of the general railroad representative in
charge of the tour, but also of the off
cials of the road over which the train is
passing. However, with the presidential
headquarters on board regular train-a
known quantity, as it weTe-the amount
of train dispatching and other detail is
materially reduced.
Captain Archibald Butt.
The Presidents right hand man in this
achievements is his military aide, Captain
Archibald w. Butt. President Taft has
faculty Of getting very chummy with
the men with whom he is thrown i'm con-
tact by official duties. as witness his in
timacy with General Bell and General
Clarence Edwards, but with none of his
associates has he ever become more in
innate than with this handsome Georgian.
Taft has found Butt an agreeable com
paniOn I'm motoring and horseback riding,
but especially does he delight to play
golf with the young army officer. and
wherever Taft tarries during his strenu-
Gus tour for taste Of his favorite pas
time, it will be safe TO look for Butt in
the role of partner or opponent
incidentally il may be noted that this
military man who has made a hit in the
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