The Kansas City sun. (Kansas City, Mo.) 1908-1924, 1915-11-27


as secretary of state in the cabinet of President
Wilson. He was succeeded by Robert Lansing.
These two statements of fact are put together
because it may be justified by the human inter
est which seems to exist in the fact that John
w. Foster is the father-inlaw of Robert Lansing.
1t is probable that no two men more entirely
dinerent in temperament and in manifestations
tnereof ever existed than William j. Bryan and
his successor in office, Robert Lansing. Mr..
Bryan was more or less inclined to be hail fell
low well met with men. Mr.. Lansing has little
OF the hail fellow we'll met in him, but never
theless he is approachable, genial and almost
without question the best listener that the state
department has had for a great many years.
NOW 1t is said frequently that the man who is
a good listener is more apt to get results than
the man who is, we shall not say a good,
but a great talker. Those who know the pres.
ent secretary or state say that there is no chan
mel connecting one OF his ears with the other.
Ihls simply is their way of expressing the fact
that nothing that goes into one of Mr.. Lansing's
ears finds exit from the other. He holds fast
what he hears and later he acts on his knowl.
edge or refuses to act on it as seems better to
MS understanding of the case.
Ordinarily speaking, persons like to hear
stories about men in high positions. 1t is prob
ably no exaggeration to say that there are a
thousand stories about Mr.. Bryan, about Mr..
Knox, about Mr.. Root, and about one or an
other of the predecessors in office of the present
m to one about the present incumbent
himself. When one says stories, of course, he
means human interest and humorous stories. Mr.
Lansing does not lend himself readily to the ex.
p~loitation Of fun making. He is a grave man, a
receptive man and therefore not at all an ex.
uberant man. His sense of humor, however, Is
(een and he enjoys a good story we'll told and
enjoys it with an evident, If quiet, showing of
appreciation.
The kind of story they tell about Mr.. Lansing
when a story is demanded is in character some
thing like that Of the man himself, grave and
~dignifed. and not possessing the qualities which
make up the more or less substantial story with
a substratum of humor.
For instance, not long ago two ambassadors
representing foreign countries, and one high
official Of the United States government, ex.
pressed a desire for an audience with Mr.. Ian.
sing on a certain Thursday evening. Mr.. Ian
sing said that he would be happy to see the
gentlemen at almost an other time, but on
Thursday evening | must go to church."
Now, Robert Lansing is a Presbyterian, and a
good one. 1t took real sincerity of purpose for
a secretary of state, who is supposed to be ready
at any hours of the day or night to listen to
the plenipotentiaries Of foreign powers, to say
in effect, NO, state matters must wait until
after prayer meeting"
When Mr.. Bryan was secretary of state he
saw the newspaper men frequently, and his inter
course with them was rather of the free and
easy sort because the Nebraska gentleman was
and is a newspaper man himself. The CORE
spondents, however, did not get any extraor.
binary amount of news out of Mr.. Bryan despite
his ~afability. Mr.. Lansing has regular business
meetings with the correspondents. There are
few stories to fly back and forth, few quips of
humor, and there is the usual reticence on many
subjects which marks diplomacy, but Mr.. Lam
sing. nevertheless, always gives up a story. a
news item of minor or greater Importance, when
ever it is proper for him so to do, and, moreover,
he is a pretty keen judge of news values despite
the fact that he is a lawyer and probably does
not know a 4-em dash from a linotype machine.
Some people say that Mr.. Lansing had several
. months training as secretary of state before he
took Office actually. These are the people who
think that he did most of Mr.. Bryan's work.
This probably is unjust to Mr.. Lansing's prede.
cessor. but It is known definitely that the pres
ent secretary was consulted constantly and con.
sistently upon most of the matters relating to our
J foreign intercourse, which recently, as everybody
| knows, has been in a state not only delicate, but
t perilous.
l 1t is pretty definitely known now that when
, Mr.. Lansing was counselor for the state depart
ment he aided the president materially in writing
3 the note to Germany which was penned June 8
t 1t was the tone of this note which Mr.. Bryan
thought was too militant, and it was this note II
3 a way which caused the Nebraskan to resign his
position as chief of the presidents cabinet.
When it is said that a man is grave, a good
! listener and not o~vergiven to talking. the i'm
8 preston received is perhaps that he is lacking