South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1914-02-14
STATESMEN
REAL AND NEAR
BY FRED G. KELLY.

BY FRED @. KELLY.
WASHINGTON. Feb. 13-Sen. At
lee w. %Cnerene Of Ohio has an I'M
whiting faculty of lending "a certain
atmosphere Of mystery TO nearly
everything that he does or says.
If the senator were TO walk up TO a
man and ask fer a match, he would
do it with such unimpassi oned gravity
that the man would wOnCer: What
is this fellow up to-"
A few mornings ago PCmerene ap-
peared at the white house to keep an
appointment with the president. He
was accompanied by one or two men
from out OF the city and all looked
rather serious, though none so much
preston from glance at Alice that
the president was about to be APP
prised OF something extremely sad and
weepful.
Two or three newspaper represen-
tatives rushed NJ TO Pomerene to
learn what manner of rueful rumors
he bore. and braced themselves to
hear the worst.
But POmerene merely shook his
head sadly and declared:
Il can tell you nothing
A moment later he led his compan-
ions into the presidents office, with
every outward appearance of one
carrying words of woeful wisdom.
BY that time the newspaper toilers
who had seen Pomerene were becom-
ing alarmed. They waited for anOth
er look at the senator when he came
out Of the executive chamber and his
face confirmed their suspicious It
was amply evident that the brief con-
ference had been one of much mo-
! ment-one affecting not merely this
/ nation alone, but affairs of interna-
tional significance and OF the utmost
/ consequence To many generations yet
unborn.
/ do tell us what 1t was all about p"
/ they asked Pomerene in hushed wills
pers.
"'Fhere really is nothing Of inter
\ est that l can tell you" replied At
/ lee.
Nothing at all?"
Absolutely nothing"
BY great diligence, however, the OBJ
/ jet of the conference was learned.
And what was ii that had brought
/ Pomerene TO the white house?
He was there to introduce a man
! who desired TO invite the president 10
a college dinner!
One of the pleasant features Of be-
| ing president Of the United States is
the fact that one does not have to do
much talking over the telephone.
Owing to that happy circumstance a
president can save a great deal OF
! wear and tear on his temper in the
course of a day.
Every effort is made to shield the
president from the deadly telephone.
He talks over the phone To cabinet
| officers nearly every day, but that
about lets him out.
The average senator doubtless feels
that he is a fairly important feature
CT the cosmos, and yet he is likely to
find some difficulty in placing himself
into telephone communication with
the president. If the matter is of the
utmost Importance that is considered
| all the more reason why the presi-
| dent should not talk about ii over the
phone. and if it is not important, that,
too. is a perfectly valid reason why he
should shun the phone.
Occasionally a senator will grasp a
phone and ask for the president in an
urgent tone, intended to convey the
| impression that the national honor
depends on the two holding an imme-
date conversation. But even then the
presidents buffers make a concerted
effort to persuade the senator to send
his message through one of the white
house secretaries, or else write a note
or drop in and see the president face
to face.
Ordinarily the president Will talk
by phone less than half a dozen times
a day. and perhaps more than half OF
those calls will be initiated by him
self.
Sen. Miles Poindexter, who is al
ways being mistaken for Rep. Hob
son, and who has a sense of humor
was riding along peaceably the other
night on a street car. middle-ageC
man who had been reading one OF
Hobson's temperance speeches, sa
down beside him and inquired:
Captain, didn't you ever drink p
Just once" replied Poindexter. II
was a great many years ago, but
shall never forget il. / had fallen il
with evil companions one night anC
they tried 10 persuade me to drlnl
with them. For a long time / with
stood their gibes and jeers. but finall!
. / yielded, feeling that perhaps afte
= all it was manly to do as they did
Laughing gayly. we made our way L
place where all was spicb and spar
and white and alluring. 1t was
dairy lunch room. I went in with tn
, others and drank two large cups o
buttermilk before I realized what
had done"
Sen. Lawrence y. Sherman Of iii
nois may often be seen browsing
5 about secondhand book stores look
I ing over sallow-leaved tones an,
making an occasional purchase. Lik