Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-01-24
PRESIDENT URGES
LEADERS TO HUSTLE
Wants Congress to Clear Way
for the Administrations
Preparedness Program.
FEARS THAT BUSINESS
WILL BECOME CLOGGED
Receives Many Requests for Addl'
tions to List of Cities in His
Speechmaking Itinerary.

President Wilson started at 10
o'clock this morning upon the
busiest day he has had in the
White House in months. partly
concluding at ; o'clock this after
noon. when he finished confer
ences with chairmen OF commit
tees in Congress in which he
sought to get legislation pushed
along SO that the grind OF that
body may be we'll advanced be-
fore the big work OF the session.
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES in sight.
Those will. the President this after
noon were Representative Flood, chair
man of the House foreign affairs com
mittee; Representative Page Of North
Carolina, chairman of the subcommit-
tee on appropriations handling the Dis
trict of Columbia appropriation bill;
Representative Stephens of Texas.
ative Lever. chairman of agriculture.
and Senator Hitchcock, chairman of
the Senate Philippines committee.
The President and congressional
leaders are said to feel that the legis-
lative wheels are moving slowly and
that the prospects are for a great clog
ging unless the decks are cleared for
Z, x1,hic 10 n LAT N
Appropriation bills, especially, are
Seemingly delayed longer than had
been expected, and the hope Of those
responsible to the country for legis-
lation is that those in charge Of neces-
sary appropriation and other measures
will hustle their bills toward enact
ment.
Outlook Not Favorable.
1t has been the hope of the President
and democratic leaders in Senate and
House that Congress will conclude the
important work mapped out for 1t and
adjourn early, owing to the political
phases of the summer and fall, but the
outlook has been getting worse and
worse for early adjournment, with the
possibility of a snari that may do the
democratic party little credit in the
approa ching campaign.
The President it became known to-
day, has reached the conclusion that he
must fight to put his preparedness pro-
His coming trip through the middle
west, to appeal to the country for sup
port. is already said to be bearing
fruit favorable TO his purposes. He
does not believe that anybody is delib-
erately cumming UP the legislative ma
chinery, but he is sure that the situa-
tion will he much better for the most
important legislation if the less impor-
tant bills are out of the way within the
next month.
Requests for Changes in Itinerary.
places not now upon the itinerary of
his first tour. delegations continued to
call upon Mr.. Wilson today. and let
ters and kilograms arrived at frequent
intervals The President has agreed
to stop at st. Louis February 3. He
will be entertained at breakfast by the
Business Mems Association. Senators
Stone and Peed called upon the Pres
dent today and obtained his acceptance
of the invitation from that organiza-
ton and the people of the city.
The cities now included in the itin
erary at which speeches will be made
are Pittsburgh. Cleveland, Milwaukee.
CITY and St. Louis Speeches from the
train may be made at other points.
but this has not been definitely de-
cided upon. In fact, the itinerary Is
still open and will not be announced
for several days. it is said.
Secretary Tumulty has let it become
known that the President prefers that
meetings TO be addressed by him shall
be as public as possible. He feels that
the subject of preparedness is nom
partisan and that all the people are
interested. To have his audiences
made up of exclusively invited per-
sons would be objectiona BILE to him
if some other method could be, de-
vised. He wants to talk to the people
generally and not to any class or or
ganization.
Callers With Urgent Pleas.
Senator Chiffon of West Virginia
called on the President today and
asked that West Virginia be included
in the itinerary, with a stop at Wheel
ing: the South Carolina delegation in
Congress called with an urgent request
that South Carolina be visited: Repre-
sentative Edwards Of Georgia and w. J.
Pierpont. mayor Of Savannah. Ga,
called to ask that Savannah shall not
be overlooked. Representative Hefin
spoke word for Birmingham. Ala:
Senator Oliver and Secretary Wilson OF
the Department Of Labor pressed upon
the President the idea of accepting an
invitation heretofore given him to
speak to the Pennsylvania State So
ciety at Philadelphia in February or
March: Representative SABBATH of Chi
cago told the President that the Indus
trial Club of Chicago would feel bad
IL he failed to talk to that orga
when in Chicago.
Baltimore put in bid for the Presi-
dent by sending a committee from the
Old Town Merchants and Manufactur-
ing Association asking him to attend
the thirty-second annual banquet of
that organization February %.
Invited to Virginia.
committee from the Virginia lexis-
.lature. escorted by an array of United
states senator's and representatives
formally invited the President to spea K
before that body before it concludes
its sessions March IL. The President
took the invitation under advisement,
hut Indicated that he would like tn nc