The Washington herald., 1912-10-13
WHEN PRESIDENT SWINGS
AROUND THE COUNTRY
Hard Work for .Jack" Wheeler, the Presidential Ad
vance Agent" -Al Details Arranged by Him.

vance Agent -Au "
The time was when ccmparativefy 1T
tie attention and care were given 70 the
preparations for q Presidential journey.
says q writer In the Railroad Mans
Magazine. But since the assassination
Of President Mckinley the Secret Serv-
ice department and the Presidents per
sonal stan have immensely improved
their provisions for protecting him.
The Secret Service men responsible for
'his safety were picked for their aiert-
ness and physical strength. James Sloan.
jr.. 10 chief Of the squad. Richard Jar
Wis and Lucien Wheeler are the other
regular members. The fourth is Joseph
Murray. Of the Boston once of the Sc
cret Service. The last named acts as
substitute when any one Of the trst
three is Ill or for any other reason ID
unable to attend to his duties.
Lucien. or Jack. Wheeler. a. he is best
known by nearly every police chief. rail-
road oficial, and newspaper reporter N
the country. is the pivot upon which the
Presidential journeys turn. He II the
man who travels ahead and makes the
arrangements.
The Presidential advance agent" u Q
name that has frequently been given him.
and he lives up to It. He II about nve
1eet ten inches IN uclButs dL1o tAPos She
scales at about 175 pounds stripped. Al
ways in the pink Of condition and Inn
maculately dressed, he presents the ap-
pearance Of q prosperous business man
more than anything else.
When the President decides to travel he
makes his wish know to his secretary.
and between them they decide how long
his duties will permit him to be absent.
Then the matter of the itinerary Ii
taken up. Unless it's a hurry trip, pro-
vision is made for speech stops along
the route.
This matter is turned over to the
White House office force. and a tentative
itinerary is prepared. This rough scned-
ule is made up from list Of the inv
tations which have been extended to the
President by local organizations These
invitations come in to the executive Of
fees from all parts Of the country at the
rate of from one to a hundred a day
Then the travelling passenger agent OF
the railroad on which the Presidential
trip is to start is called into consulta-
ton. He is given a copy of the tenta-
tive schedule. He takes up the matter
with each of the other railroads over
which the President Is to travel and
makes arrangements with the Pullman
Company to supply a special car.
Each railroad submits list OF trains
to which the Presidents special car may
be attached. From this information the
final itinerary of the trip is compiled.
The temporary itinerary has TO be cut
when it is found that the proper con-
nection cannot be made, for the Presi-
dent of the United States is a very
busy man. The next step is the accept
ance of the invitations where his time
and route will permit.
Ahead Of President.
About two weeks ahead of the trip
Jack Wheeler usually covers the ground.
He has no special car, but travels like
any one else. When he reaches the
Presidents first stopping place Mr..
Wheeler at once confers with the chief
of police. The two definitely outline the
police arrangements. Then there is q
call on the members Of the various
local committees who are to welcome
the President.
After that Mr.. Wheeler starts at the
. station where the President will leave
the train and personally goes over the
Presidents entire line of march. He
makes a map Of the route, with notes
of the character of the streets and the
people who live on them. He commu-
ncates with the nearest Office of the Sc
cret Service and makes arrangements to
have a certain number Of their men on
duty.
In such cities as New York and Chi
cago the police are sometimes asked to
patrol the roofs of the houses along the
line of march. Mr.. Wheeler looks up
the criminal records of all the local
suspects" and they are shadowed by
the Secret Service operatives. both pre-
ceding and during the Presidents visit.
Then comes the military protection.
Congress will not allow the President of
the United States to travel with big
military escort, such as other rulers
have The people of this country insist
upon seeing the President. 1t would not
please them to see him surrounded by a
heavily armed detail Of soldiers. A GER
tain number of troops. however, is
sometimes required for police duty in
the crowds. So Wheeler in order to
have the necessary military force must
bring them from the nearest army post
If that is too far away he must depend
on the local militia
Where Mr.. Wheelers diplomatic abil-
ity comes into play'is in the arrange
ments for the social side of the visit.
The President is usually the guest of
honor at banquet, a reception. a din
ner. or a luncheon. Wheeler often has
the job OF saying who shall sit at the
Presidents right hand. at his left hand.
and in fsct all around the table.
Congress appropriates $1,000 a year for
ing his four years in office he will have
covered about 100000 miles at a cost of
100000. There may come a time
says the writer. when better facilities
will be provided for these journeys. As
1t is, the Presidents car is hooked onto
all kinds of trains, usually on rear ends
where the danger is greatest. He must
eat his meals. conduct business, and hold
receptions all in the small observation
room at the end of the car
Plans have already been drawn for a
special train for him and without doubt
It will not be long before he has a train
which will be in keeping with mis- pri-
vate yacht his automobiles, and his
private entrance and waiting room at
the Washington Union Station.
THE plans and specifications for this
proposed special train call for three cars
of steel construction. dust and draught
FREE TO