Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1917-01-02
WILSON AND PRESS
.,orNr RESUMES WEEKLY
CONFERENCES WITH THE
CORRESPONDENTS
THUS GIVES OUT HIS VIEWS
49,. Executive Is Careful to AVOID
0 +hs Possibility of Being Misguided
Bin Stories Sometimes Come from
These Talks.
Nv GEORGE CLINTON.

CEOhGE
,vosbfngfon.-President Wilson mas
.,,,,ss his once-a-week conferences
..;,1, The newspaper men. Every MOI
w. w., - or 20 washington correspond
VOC .ssanble at the White House 10
.D, Inns over with the president and
,nbli,b some of the things that ne
nrovidpd he will let them.
:, c.,s GOOD while ago that Mr.. VIII
r,.I4d of the meetings with the
no,rsosuer men promising to resume
Them when it was possible so 10 40
IT.. ,aason for the stopping OF the In
.ar.h,no.s between the president and
en-. ravs CATERERS was that Mr.. WIZ
e,, falt he could not discuss Foreign
.r.;-s and rs they were upperm0st IN
,to r..-.....s minds the conversation
n,+nrslv would drift to them ana
4 =. MD h.. difficult to avoid reference
& thereto.
If Is entirely probable now that the
,.,..ren4r men will avoid asking any
onastfous ahout foreign affairs which
arc in their nature too delicate for the
,,-osf.l.pr ro answer. Other subjects,
bovever will be discussed thoroughly
and even if the president does not WISH
his views Oh certain matters to be
.,,,..,, ont his words will be guide to
the newspaper men and will prevent
Them from making possible errors or
Indictment when writing on the sup
uo-ed attitude Of the administration
toward rhis question or that.
Careful About Being Quoted.
When the president is willing that
his views on certain subjects shall be
pat GA the wires at once he so slgnl-
lies. but he frequently says he prefers
# shall he said that the president views
"a certain matter in a certain light,
rather than To put his words in quota
ton marks.
Occasionally. however, Mr.. Wilson
agrees to be quoted and then it is al
most his inyariable custom to ask the
stenocrauher who is always at his
,Ibov 10 take down what he has to
say to make manifold copies of it on
the tvpcwrirer and to submit a copy
"a him for approval. In this way he
avoids possible misquOtatiOn. although
II can he said that rarely has the pres
ident Of the United States had occa-
sion to say that any of the correspond
cnts have miSconsrued his v ords or
mistaken his meaning.
Sometimes big story comes out of
these newspaper conferences. About
three and half years ago the presi-
dert in the middle of one Of the talks
With the newspaper men said: There
Is IN insidiouS lobby working in this
city" II is proper to quote what he
said because he allowed himself to be
quoted at the time.
Instantly newspaper men said almost
IN chorus. There is a biz story in this.
Mr.. President, if you will allow US to
quote YOU He called in Il stenOg-
rapher and made the statement con-
corning lobbying methods in congress,
Il statement which resulted in the great
lobby investigation in which the doingS
Of some men were shown up in rather
an unpleasant light.
These talks with the president are
interesting affairs. The round Office
room of Mr. Wilson when the talks are
ON looks like the setting of an old
fashioned spelling bee. The CORE
spOndentS, shoulder to shoulder. are
lined in a Semicircle about the presi-
dent who stands in what would be
the center Of the circle if ii were COM
plete. and answers questions or parties
them as he sees fit. More than occa-
Sionally he puts the question himself.
National Press Club Flourishes.
President Wilson, cabinet officers
and prominent men from all parts of
the world will address the National
Press club of this city before the win
ter has waned. This national organi-
zauon of newspaper men, it is a pleas
ure to chronicle, is in houriShing
condition.
Once in Il while a man likes to talk
shop, and if those who have to listen
may be believed, the once in n while
comes often. The Press club of this
town is just what its name signifies,
q national organization.
Years ago there was Il press club in
WASHINGTON which went the way of
death before it had attained many
years OF age and. it may be said with
out acrimony, before it could attain
the age Of entire discretion. 1t was
succeeded after lapse of considerable
u'ne 10y the present National Press
club, which has been succasS sipca
its inception.
when II is said that the Washington
" SAu'zauon Is national press club,
'"e proof can be adduced by a glance
I'll IRE list of active members and NJ
INA, '' the papers they represent II
- Almost unnecessary to saw that most
% "a Washington correspondents
1ole from the towns in which are To-
l".ed The papers which they repre-
. S-'- ID either words. here in Wash
. .Le''1 are gathered newspaper men
VINO have done reportorial work in
, ,'S' O' Tie big cities and in many of
NE smaller towns Of the United
~. -.'oAlns az the list Of active mem
i,,, -~ anu The papers represented, we
JUMP within the space of a line or two
70 Straighten . s,.