Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1916-06-16

<21oS and effective speech. Without being
in the least ELUSIVE, he is a good
mixer. You will find him full Of charm. Out in
Cleveland he lived in a modest frame house with
MS wife and three children. smoked fake tobacco
IN a 25-cent pipe. drove his Ford, and for
amusement read Greek and Latin books on the
street cars. Thus runs an article by Rowland
Thomas in the New York World
1T is interesting to notice" my informant added,
that he is the second of Tom Johnson's disciples
to be lifted into prominence by President Wilson.
Brand Whitlock is the other. 1t is hardly exagger-
alton to say that Brand Whtlock. in Belgium has
proved himself a great man. Will Baker be as
successful in the department? Frankly
much as like him personally, l am wondering
whether he will measure up to the job. What he
has done he has done well. But-he has never
been tested out in really big affairs. Has he the
capacity for them? You know 3S-caliber re-
voiver may be perfect weapon-as a revolver
but fail lamentably If pressed into service as
seacoast gun! Is Newton d. Baker big enough to
De secretary of war at time like this? That's
what I'm asking myself. That's what the country
Is asking ITSELF think"
Naturally those remarks through my head
as l talked with the new secretary Of war last
week l saw him twice. once in his modest bed
room at the University club, where he is living
for the present a bachelor because the children
are In school In Cleveland and we don't want to
break into their year." The second time he was
in his office in the war department the Office to
which one penetrates through that dread ante
chamber where hang the portraits of all the previ-
GUS incumbents of the Office.
On both occasions | got the same impression
OF the physical man. Nature in molding his body
did a neat job He is markedly small man. but
IN proportion all the way through. His littleness
carries no suggestion of the dwarfish. His head
is large, but not enough to make him look top
heavy His hands and feet are Of moderate size
all aI
enough to breathe in. waist which carries no
adipose luggage. His skin is swarthy his hair
black and straight. A pair of hazel eyes full of
life, but comprehensive rather than keen; the
wide mouth of an orator or actor mobile yet firm
of lip; the brow of scholar; face in general la
which the perpendicular lines of strength are &C
centuated. manner at once dignifeX and friendly
bearing which should call attentive rather than
aert-these are the characteristics of the outward
man.
His mentality is not easily characterized. |
shall have to try to bring it out for you in series
of rather detached glimpses. he himself re-
vealed II to me in the course of our conversation
Our talk ranged over many topics We had. for
instance. been speaking Of the extraordinary
amount OF reading of standard English authors
he had done before he was twenty years old, and
asked him whether the familiarity of his mother
tongue thus acquired had not been important
element in his various successes. He said: Il
think that is true Ability to express myself ef-
fectively in speech has been of great value to me-
This led to a brief sketch of his personal his
tory. Mr.. Baker was born in 1871 in Martnsburg,
w. Va, community Of 5000 persons, wherein his
fother was the leading physician. He was the
second of four sons. At the age of twenty. in
1891. he received his degree of Bachelor of Arts
from Johns Hopkins university having completed
the four years course in three years. Followed q
year OF graduate work u Roman law, comparative
Jurisprudence and economics. and then his law
course. which he took at Washington and Lee uni
versity. completing the two years work in one
year THAT compression" he told me. was done
for family reasons. Money not plentiful in
q country doctors family. and there were other
sons to educate" After his graduation in 1893
Mr.. Baker hung out his shinge in Martinsburg to
indicate that he was willing to practice law" as
he puts it, and remained in that receptive condi-
ton until 1896. the last year of the Cleveland ad.
ministration when Postmaster General Wilson
called him to Washington to be his private Sec
rotary Il divided my two cases between the other
members of the local bar" he told me. and went"
In 1899 Mr.. Baker invited to come to Cleve-
land. o., as partner with Foran McTigue one
of the citys leading firms of trial lawyers. He
went there met Tom Johnson and was magne-
tized; by that association drawn into local
politics and had fourteen years of active cam
paigning there. serving four terms city solicitor
under Mayor Johnson and two terms as mayor
after his chief was deposed He declined to run
for a third term. and had just resumed his law
practice at the beginning of this year when he was
called to Washington.
Returning to our topic. asked him to what
other qualities besides his ability as a speaker he
felt indebted for what he had accomplished. He
pondered that and said:
MAKES WORK FOR LAUNDRIES.
II would naturally be expected that the owners