The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-01-15
WASHINGTON IS
 CITY OF RUMORS Cabinet Changes Are Now Sub-
 ject to Speculation FOUR MEN MAY GO And It Is Also Rumored That There Is to Be a General Shake-up In
 NA l~uo
FOUR MEN MAY GO
By RALPH M. wHIrEsIDE

rumors. And "it Is said," can get quicker and wider circulation than 1t can in any place in the United States. Some of these reports turn out to be pretty fairly grounded at that. Others live their little day and then give way to other rumors and are forgotten.
 Here Is one of the latest Whether 1t will develop into the prophecy class the deponent sayeth not.
 President Taft, report says is to re- model his cabinet before the grass grows. Senator Knox. Macveagh, Wilson and Ballinger are the men upon whom the deadly prefix ''Ex'' is to be bestowed.
 According to the story Mr Knox Is tired of his job because he Is overshad- owed by Wickersham. Mir Ballinger's job is tired of him, because of more or less recent happenings. Mir Mcveagh's health Is bad and MT. Wilson feels now that he has beaten all records 1t Is time for him to retire.
 Representative Tawney of Minnesota, who will himself be entitled to prefix ex to his name after March 4, is said to be ~~~~S>NA Ballinger, either Collector Loeb or Pri- vate Secretary Norton to take the treas- ury department. This particular rumor has not selected men for the departments of state and agriculture
 Another interesting rumor, and this has more consistency apparently than the one next preceding, has 1t that there is n ha ut lro- ty, xt service next month. J. G. Schmidlapp of Cincinnati will go to Russia in place of Mir Rockhill MT. OBrien, now in Japan, will go to European capital, and former Vice President Fairbanks Is said to be slated for flrst-class embassy Other changes are also mentioned.
 Hannis Taylor, minister to Spain under President Cleveland, was in Raleigh when President Andrew Johnson went there to speak to old friends of his boyhood, whom he had left as tailor's appren- tice, and he tells the following story of the occasion:
 It was Johnson's first visit to Raleigh since he left as boy, and he was ex- pected to make a tremendous speech. He didn't. After being introduced as the former tailor's apprentice of Raleigh who had become President, he started in. He rambled around, stopping every few min- utes to raise his hand above his head and cxclaim: Where are the friends of my childhood? Echo answers, 'where?"
 He made this observation half dozen times. Then an old man who sat in the front row arose and said: "Oh, -. An dy, we're all here. Go on.''
 The retiring senator from Maine has long been regarded as man who. while not necessarily hunting for a fight in Congress, can put up pretty fair battle when occasion demands. An old friend of Senator Hale told this story the other day, and 1t is said to be illustrative of the Hale temperament:
 One of Hales sons, now an attorney in Portland, was then a small boy. One day he came into his fathers office and remarked that he was going to have a fight with another youngster the next day. His father reproved him, and said that he didn't want him fighting with his playmates.
 But don't see how I can get out of It, insisted the boy. He dared me to fight him, and I told him I'd fight him."
 My boy" said Senator Hale gravely, 'if you agreed to fight somebody, then don't fail tos fight him, and. above all else, see that you win"
 When Representative James A. Tawney of Minnesota retires at the close of the present session Serene E. Payne of New York will no longer have to divide the honor of wearing the largest sized hat In Congress. Tawney and Payne each wear 7A dome covering. When Presi- dent Taft was elected 1t was thought that there might be third in the TX class in Washington, but the President only wears 7ss.
 There Is a senator and representative of two who wear only 65h hat, but they seldom. If ever, go around bragging about 1t.
 Senator Thornton, the new senator from Louisiana, following the example of sev- eral new senator's has already become busy. It Is getting to be the custom for new senators to get into the speaking game early in their career.
 A different state of affairs existed some years ago. and a new man was rarely ever heard for a session or two. One of the first youngsters to shock the old senators was a MT. Mcconnell, who had been sent to the Senate from Idaho. The same leg islature that had elected him had chosen Senator Dubois for the long term and Mcconnell had only two months in which to make good. He got busy the second day His voice was ponderous, and. standing in the center aisle of the cham Der, he strode around and around, telling his hearers some things. Tn the midst of his speech Senator Edmunds came in. Turning to a senator near by, Senator Edmunds said:
 "who Is that fellow? What right has he in here?''
 "Why, that Is Senator Mcconnell"
 "senator Mcconnell? Where Is he from?'
 "From Idaho"
 "when did he come, and when was he shown inr' asked Senator Edmunds.
 yesterday" answered his neighbor.
 yesterday? We'll, it's about time for me to resign"
 Former Vice President Charles W. Fairbanks may not relish the business of being retired to. private life. but if so he doesn't show it. When he was back in q short time ago he told his friends he was glad to be rid of the burdens of public office, that he was en- jcying private life. and had no ambitions to get into the limelight again.
 He and President Taft had a long talk while here, but the nature of the confer ence was not divulged. A number of the are still loyal to him and greeted him with great cortiality when he visited the capitol.
 Some of them have been talking him over as a presidential possibility in 1912 Rut he Is showing no signs of taking 1t seriously. The vice president still has ha,nkering for his big farm in Illinois. and when he can get away goes to 1t. supervises things. and, who knows. per haps drinks buttermilk to his hearts content. --