The Washington herald., 1917-02-05
Interesting Chats
From Hotel Lobbies

Plans for q big Lincoln celebration at
Cumberland Gap. Tenn, February 10 II
and II, to mark the twentieth anniversary
Of the founding OF Lincoln Memorial Uni
versity, are practically complete. accord
ing to Frank W. Ryan, secretary of The
chancellor. who is registered today at the
St James Hotel
We're going to run a special train out
OF Washington February TO-" said Mr..
Ryan. ito accommodate the large number
Of Senators and Representatives who are
to take part in the celebration. Among
those who are to make the trip are Sena-
tors Townsend. of Michigan; Owen, of
Oklahoma; Watson, OF Indiana; Shields,
of Tennessee, and Williams, OF Missis-
sippi. Among the noted Eastern men who
will come to Washington to board the
special train here will be Gov. Samuel
w. Mccall of Massachusetts,: Gen Cole
man dupont. Bainbridge Colby, Adolph
lLewisohn, Henry Clews, John Hays Ham
mond and NJ. w. Harrison, secretary of
the Bankers Association of America.
Every State in the Union will be rep
resented at the celebration. Besides the
| special train from this city, another will
go from Chicago, carrying the Western
delegation. This contingent will be led
by Mayor Thompson, of Chicago, and in
cludes former Secretary of War Jacob NJ.
Dickinson and former Secretary of the
Treasury Leslie NJ Shaw.
The views OF Lincoln, as they would
apply to the momentous problems the ma
ton Is now facing. will take up a large
part Of the discussion during the three
days exercises at the university.
Lincoln Memorial University was
founded fn aid 40 nd
en- of the Cumberland Mountains, who
are otherwise shut of from educational
advantages"
DR.. Milton E. Hackett, Of Concord, N.
H, has made a life study of the many
forms of insanity and first-class imbs-
Giles. DR.. Hackett is stopping at the
Willard. He Is firm believer in doing
the unusual to accomplish a difficult task.
Il read in the paper day or two ago,
he said, that another crank had visited
| the White House. 1t strikes me that
these harmless bugs are not properly
handled. I know a case of a noted mill
l1onafre who has a very genial disposition
and who for that reason has a great
| many cranks and foolish persons after
| him. About two weeks ago he had the
| good fortune to get hold of a man who
looked enough like him to be his twin.
| And now when a persistent crank calls
on the millionaire, he sees the double
| and oftentimes these cranks are gotten
rid of without a fuss, although once In
while some one turns up who really is
sane.
ut would be good idea to have a
man who resembled the President enough
/ to deceive the average person. stationed
in the White House to receive these
cranks, excluding the Anarchists, and
| find out their story. Some of these tales
that folk want to tell the President would
make good newspaper stun. For instance,
man called at the White House last
year with the secret OF perpetual motion
another had a way to stop all wars right
off the bat; another has a message from
God; another has the secret Of a gun that
will shoot hundred miles, and others
had every imaginable device and COM
plant These boys ought to be humored
and allowed to tell their tale.
TT may sound strange, but one Of our
greatest inventions was put on the market
by man who worried dozens of busi-
, ness men to distraction and was arrested
and held as mentally Incompetent There
| are great many prominent men in every
walk of life who have to have crank
bouncers.' but the percentage of cranks
Eho call ut the White House Il small"