The Detroit times., 1911-10-28
PRESIDENT TAFT HOLDS
RECORD FOR WANDERlUSI
Has Covered 298,728 Miles at
Expense of Government Since
Entering Service in 1900.

| WASHINGTON, Oct 27.-William
Howard Taft. president OF the United
States and champion traveller of the
universe, is now doing little tour OF
tventyfour states of the union to add
about $4,000 more miles TO his record.
il Is wonderful record for getting
over ground even in these days OF the
fast express trains and giant ocean
steamships. that the president has es-
tablished and when he returns TO
Washington he will have travelled
since he entered the government SER
vice In 1900 as a Philippine commits
sioner, 29S72S miles. This computa'
tion Is based on the simple steamship
and railroad travel, and does not take
into consideration the thousands OF
miles the president has journeyed by
automobile in side trips at the innum-
cradle four corners of the world that
he has visited.
Since he has been in the white
house. Mr.. Taft todate has travelled
6l,774 miles. To this will be added
the exact mileage OF the present
Lswing around the circle that he is
making. and which has been figured
out TO he at least $4,000 miles.
President Taft likes to travel. The
clipping and jar OF car wheels and
the humping OF ship propeller are
music to his ear. Up to the present
he has spent 335 nights in sleeping
cars and 221 nights aboard steam
ships. The sleeping car record will
be boosted slightly by Nov. /.
That he is proud of his travel rec
ord is mac (, plain to any one WHO
reads the biography OF the nations
executive as published in the Congress
sional Directory, biography which Is
prepared under the presidents direc-
! tion. In 1t he tells Of his many dashes
to Panama, to Cuba, TO the hilippines
and around the world. The local
travel. little journeys around the
United States, seem to be of little
consequence from the presidents
point of view. for no mention Is made
OF his frequent excursions, not even
OF his trip that took him into thirty
nine states and territories and over
the bridge at FL Paso to shake hands
and say "Howdy" to the then presi-
dent of Mexico, Porfirio Diaz.
The travel microbe stung William
Howard Taft in 1900, when President
Mckinley selected him as one of the
| Philippine commissioners. Up to that
| time Mr.. Taft was used TO the court
| room, and on his maiden trip to the
Orient he was affected with what has
proven TO be an incurable case OF
travel mania. Since that first trip, a
little over ten years ago, he has trav-
eled almost necessarily, and from the
presidents personal standpoint IL has
been most enjoyable, for all of the
trips and journeys and excursions up
10 two and a half years ago, were
made at government expense For
since his first appointment as a
Philippine commissioner. Mr.. Taft has
been continually on the payroll of
Uncle Sam. excepting the short
period between his nomination for the
presidency In 1908 and his installa-
ton as president on March 4, 1909.
Since he has been president he has
travelled also at government expense,
for the president is allowed 5000 a
year TO cover his getting around" ex-
penses, an appropriation that came in
to being when the railroads cut off
free transportation and congress en-
acted an anti-pass law.
Since 1900 his annual travel record
has been as follows:
Miles
190l-To Philippines and back TO
Washington to testify in
congressional inquiry 49,. -, $50
l9O2-To Rome, and TO the Phil
irpines ..........,......23 ,145
automatically "A year of rest,
as travel was confined to
the Philippines. ........ 5000
ls04-Returned 10 become sec
rotary OF war and cook
a trip to Panama 49,. .11.72i
ls05.-Nisited the Philippines with
party OF congressman.
a trip that resulted in
the marriage of Miss
Alice Roosevelt and Rep.
Nicholas Longworth 1850
l90G-Went 10 Cuba TO straight
Ell out the Cuban repub-
lie ...........,....... 1908
l907--Journeyed to Panama and
TO the Philippines ...... 3S, $50
19os--The year he was a 2rcsl-
dental candidate -. 1920
lso9-Tfe first year Of his presi-
191O-The second year of his
presidency 32,271
19l1-IIis record up to Nov 1 OF
this year will be, ...... 23.213
On two of his Philippine trips, Presi-
dent Taft Swung around the circle"
that Is, he came back the longest
way, travelling through Siberia and
Russia, looking in on Emperor Will
liam Of Germany, peeping at the gay
sights OF Paris and inhaling the fog
of London. before crossing the Allan
tic to his starting point.
Because he eliminated his proposed
visit TO Tennessee and other Southern
points In the jaunt the president is
now entering on. there is rumor of
violent opposition to a continuation
of the practice of allowing $4,000 a
year for presidential travel expenses.
II congress should be so rude as to
remove the means il is a certainty
that the remaining year and half
OF the presidents term OF Office will
be spent mostly in Washington. To
travel requires a lot of money, an
amount which President Taft does not
personally command.