The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-04-26
IT'S NO FUN TO Be
CLOSE RELATIVE OF
NATIONS EXECUTIVE
Brother Charley" Found 1t
Out and Joe Wilson Had
His Awakening
JOE HAS PATHETIC
LIST OF TROUBLES
Instead of Being an Advantage to Be
Presidents Brother, 1t Has
Caused Him All Sorts of
Embarrassments
Rx C. n. STEWARD

Washington, April 25.-(Specia1 )-Hay-
ing President of the United States in
ones immediate family may be a very
fine thing, but it has its DISADVANTAGES.
Charles P. Taft of Cincinnati, the BROTH
er Charley" of the last administration,
discovered this fact, and Joseph Wilson
of Nashville, the Brother Joe" of the
present administration, is just learning
his bitter lesson.
Charles P. Taft spent something like
100000 to place his brother, william H.,
In the presidency, and in the effort to
Keep him there, and all he got out of it
was a lot of unpleasant notoriety and
adverse criticism. He found out that lust
because he was brother of the Presi-
dent he could not get so much as a fourth
class postmastership, when it came to pa
tronage matters, and he learned that
everybody expected him to have great in
huence with the administration, whereas
he really had done at all.
Then, too, Charles p. wanted to be
United States senator from Ohio, and 1t
was supposed that he would have the
backing of his brother in the White House
real trouble. Instead he learned that
being the Presidents mrother handicap pped
him in his senatorial fight, and that as
matter of fact his brother actually op-
posed his election to the Senate on the
ground that it would be embarrassing to
the administration. Indeed. Theodore
Burton was able to show members of
the Ohio legislature a letter In which
President Taft expressed the hope that
he. Burton, would be chosen senator.
So blood kim didn't get Charles p.
he heard the refrain, You may be a
brother of William H. Taft, but you ain t
no brother of mine"
Joseph Wilson's story to date is but
slightly different and certainly has its
touch of pathos. A few years ago Joseph
Wilson was plugging away at newspaper
work in Nashville. His ambition, the
one thing he dreamed about, was to write
politics, and to manage someway to get
to Washington where he might be one of
\ the critics in the greatest theatre of poll
tics in the world. But he saw little pros
poets of gratifying that ambition. The
biggest opportunity that came his way
was when a Nashville paper neededsa new
city editor and rendered him. the job at
the magnificent salary OF SIS week.
Joseph grabbed the city editorship and
plodded along at his work with one eye
always on tho possibility that something
might happen that would land him in
Washington. Few of his associates knew
that he was the brother of the president
of Princeton university, and it was not
until WOODROW Wilson had been elected
governor of New Jersey that folks down
in Tennessee began to sit up and take no.
tice of Brother Joe.
Then the big thing happened. Wood
row was nominated and elected President
of the United States. Immediately fol-
lowing the election, so the story goes,
William Randolph Hearst sought out
Brother Joe, away down in Nashville,
and offered him a salary of $4,000 year
to come to Washington and write nothing
but politics for the Hearst publications.
Just to pile it on thick, Brother Joe
got similar offer from another source.
His dream came true in fashion that
was almost too good to be true. He
could go to Washington and write nothing
but politics. and he would receive a salary
four or five times as large as he had
really ever hoped for. And then
Brother Joe woke up-or rather, some
one woke him. He went to talk it
over with Brother Woodrow. and he
learned that Brother Woodrow simply
would not agree to have his own brother
writing politics from Washington, no
matter what sort of a salary Brother
Joe had been tempted with 1t would be
a constant embarrassment to the admin
istration and might lead to all sorts of
complications. If Brother Joe was to
continue in newspaper work, the farther
away from Washington he remained the
better it would be for them both.
1t was some jolt to have a beautiful
dream like this had been all busted up
through 10 fault of his own, but Brother
Joe tried to be philosophical and returned
to Nashville to the city editors desk. A
little later ON Senator Luke Lea con-
ceived a brilliant idea of doing some
thing for Brother Joe, thereby making
himself solid at the White House as he
supposed, and started Joseph Wilson's
boom for the secretaryship OF the SEN
ate This job is a sinecure, the salary be-
ing $1,000. and the duties far from oner-
Gus.
But it. like the other. exploded. The
President did not look with favor upon IT.,
1t is said, and the Senate did not, SO
once more Brother Joe was disappointed.
On top of all this the President issued
an edct that no one who was in any
degree related to him should be appoint
ed to any official position under MS ad-
ministration. Moreover, the President
has .sUncle john Wilson. who is a gene
illogical expert. constantly at hand to see
that no relatives are put over on him.
Uncle John is the custodian of the
Wilson family tree. and he can inform
the President on short notice just who
is and who is not member OF the real
Wilson family.
There are many who declare that Joseph
Wilson is patriot who is cheerfully sac
rificing much for the success OF his
brothers administrator and others who
saw that he ought to have grabbed that
$4,000 year offer to come to Washing
ton to write politics, and vetoed the Pres
ident's objections. No doubt the Presi-
dent would have vigorously opposed such
a plan, and would not have liked 1t at all,
then he should worry about that-not
Brother Joe.
NOTICE
WE THE UNDERSIGNED MEM
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