Evening journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1888-1932, 1913-06-03
NEW NEWS OF YESTERDAY
residents Without the
Sense Of Personal Danger
By HOnsnG

A few days after the Republican
national convention of 1884, at
which James G. Blaine was nominated
for President, l was passing through
Jackson Square in Washington at a
very leisurely step, for the afternoon
was of unusual warmth even for
Washington. heard a step behind
on the path which leads northerly
from the Jackson monument. It was
that of a man who seemed to be
walking slowly. A great clump of
shrubbery concealed him until we
were directly face to face.
He was President Chester A. Ar
thur. He lifted his straw hat to wipe
the perspiration from his forehead,
and he observed that if he had known
how warm It was he would probably
have deferred his walk until later in
the afternoon.
You have just returned from the
Chicago convention, have you not?'
the President asked
! told him that l had returned the
previous day. The President said that
if / had nothing of importance on
hand he would be pleased if l would
stroll along with him and tell him
something about the convention.
told the President briefly some
things which | thought would interest
him, and then ! ventured to ask him
If he were in the habit of strolling
out in the afternoon unaccompanied.
/ % nd Iof he hnd
present at a little entertain
ment at the house of a pri-
vate citizen in Washington a year
or two before and had seemed at that
time to be greatly interested in a
group of four OF FIVE Indians, who had
been brought to Washington by Frank
Cushing from somewhere in the
Southwest.
Yes" said the President Il was
much entertained by Cushing's little
lecture, and now recall seeing you
there"
Mr.. President" I said, 81 remem-
Der having heard that the President
never went out TO a private house
and never went to walk unaccom-
panied yet / saw you at this private
house, and this afternoon / find you
walking all alone"
General Arthur smiled. as / thought.
at the temerity of my remark. yes,
he said, II know that is a popular
opinion. When l first entered the
White House as President, ] thought
that / should have to shut myself up
something like the Pope in the vat
lean. But I was speaking one day 10
John Davis, Secretary Freylinghuy-
sens son-in-law about this. and he
told me that that idea. while It did
prevail, was all nonsense He said to
me, You can go anywhere you like,
at any time you like. and in any Jay
you like even though you are Presi-
dent, because there are abundant
precedents.' I asked him to tell me
what some of these we're.
'He said that when Lincoln was
President he used often to call upon
friends in Washington informally
and if it had not heen for the appre-
hension of personal danger in war
3 days he would have strolled about
Washington exactly as though he
we're a private citizen.
Il remember to have heard" Cen
eral Arthur continued. that it was
Lincoln's habit almost every evening
to 30 unaccompanied from the White
House TO the office of the secretary
OF war Mr.. Stanton, and spend an
hour or two chatting with him.
John Davis also told me that Cen
eral Grant frequently went out walk
ing and often called at the houses of
his personal friends Davis said that
ne knew OF one instance when Presi-
dent Hayes went from the White
House TO the hotel in which a Sen
ator lived and paid a personal call
upon that senator which lasted over
an hour. / remember too. when !
was Vice President. that one eve
ming met President Garfield strolline
along New York avenue toward the
White House, and he was all alone
u spoke to him and he asked me
to walk along with him
Nov, IN view of all these prece-
dents which John Davis related tC
me. | think | am fully justified in 60.
ing to any private house to call upon
a friend, or in taking a walk all
alone il ] want to in the afternoon
l asked the President If he had
any sense of personal danger when
walking alone.
mot the slightest" said he
There isn't any danger if you arc
not afraid of it, Besides that moth
ing but imprisonment in a solitary
cell could prevent an assassin from
carrying out his purpose if he had
made up his mind sooner or later tc
get at his intended victim"
(Coypright, 1913. by e. J. Edwards
All rights reserved.
Tomorrow Mr. Edwards will fur