The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-03-08

Washington, March 7-(Speeial) )-"fhe greatest scoop l ever landed during my more than 20 years experience in the congressional press gallery was by the strangest accident in the world" said one Of the veterans of the gallery as we sat in our seats just over the speakers desk yesterday.
 Tt was during President Clevelands administration. I was at that time rep resenting q newspaper in one of the south ern states. I came into the House press gallery one morning just at noon and took my seat just about where we are sitting now Looking over the house l discovered Congressman c from my homo state. He had been absent for sev- eral days.
 'He was an old gentleman, a farmer, and one of the most jovial members of the House. We were good personal friends. had dubbed him Farmer C., and 1t had pleased him. He asked me to keep it up, that 1t made him strong back home.
 Well on this day when I saw him back in hls seat after a few days ab- sence 1t occurred to me that I would jolly
 
 scrihbed a note on a scrap of copy paper. The note read about like this Farmer C: I am glad to see you beck. sT'hat is a great story you have. l want 1t. Will meet you at once at the east door
 ''I sent the note down by a page and went down to the east corridor. I had no more idea that Farmer C---' had story than that President Cleveland was considering me as ambassador to Lon don. But when he hurried out into the corridor in response to my note he seemed greatly agitated and without a word of greeting hurried me out on the high steps eading into the capitol from the east side and far over 10 one corner where we could not be overheard.
 "'Who told you about that affair."
 "'Oh, that is all right who told me. want the full story and you must tell me-. replied, thinking all the time that he was returning the jolly in the same spirit that I had started 1t.
 "'Yes, but I want to know who told you about 1t. Only three men know any thing about the affair. One of them is the President I am sure that he told you nothing. It must have been Senator V-.'
 No, tine senator has told me nothing. but I have the story. or part of 1t, and you must tell me all I began to realize that had really stumbled on a story and a good one.
 "We buffed at each other for fully five minutes, when he finally belched out the whole thing with the understanding that l gave 1t out to no one, and especially that he had given me the facts. se- cured from him also the promise that he would give the story to no othen corre- spondent
 And it was a peach of story"
 "A politician from his state and my state had been appointed minister to one of the Oriental countries. It was an important position. The appontee had come to Washington, secured his creden- tiai from the President and started to his post by way of San Francisco. Before leaving Washington he had proceeded to celebrate his good fortune by tankng up good and proper. and had painted the map of the United States red all the way from Washington to San Francisco. He and the senator from the state had been called In hastily by the President, and the minister had been recalled from San Francisco. He had just that morning been intercepted at San Francisco by officials of the government just as he was about to sail.
 Next morning I had the whole story in my home paper exclusively. The\ Asso- ciated Press and the other papers carried the story 12 Hours later.
 T do not know if It was intuition or