Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-01-25
FcENSyrAcEEE cG5S,,,,r}, AuTogEocnAEn-No. 50

PENNIPACRER AUTOBIOGRAPHY-NO. SO
'Copgr'ghh 1918, bD Public Ledger CompoayJ.
THIS successful effort to enhance the rep.
4 utation Of the State was a qualification
20 all Of it's decent citizens. There was,
however, ny in the ointment The North
American was lying in wait for a chance.
When my proclamation was issued, cali.
ing upon all citizens and their descendants
who could to bc present, the newspaper
reporter either through design or acci.
dent, copied the reference to the ami.
versary Of the Battle Of Fallen Timbers
as the one hundredth instead of tho one
hundred and tcnth. Tho editorials FOL.
lowed, saying that I made the battle oc.
cur after the death of Wayne An OK.
animation of the original proclamation
in the Office of tho Secretary of the Com.
monwcalth disclosed, however that II was
the newspaper reporter who made the
mistake and the plan of attack fell Nat.
Those In charge Of tho agricultural dis.
play had because Of his supposed know
ledge of the subject, employed a Demo.
crat. grafg. %" at tho state College, and
he 1-.snt 3D. quantity OF seeds, for which
he paid .-l md placed them on cNhibl-
remo"r. .u May. The North American
got la0 Of the story aud cuuninGly eN.
plotted II on the nineteenth Of August just
in time to reach the exposition on Penn.
sylvania Day, and as far as possible spoil
tho demonstration. TO make a sensa-
ton, it Gavc to the subject nine columns
and seventeen pictures, with caricaturc
and other nonsense. 1t talked OF "unpar.
allclcd fraud and graft" though this
suggestion in connection with sum Of
$3.50 was suprcmcly silly 1t concocted
an interview with member Of the Com.
mission, which he denied IN which he
was made to say that not n leaf OF Penn.
syNania tobacco was in the exhibit al
through our display Of tobacco received tho
highest award at the fair Indignant at
the bascncss Of tho scheme and the way
in which it was carried out, | did what
] could at the moment and tclegraphed
to the Ledger, branding the publication as
a malicious falsehood intended TO harm
the State. There is an honor among the
members or this fraternity. as in another
which bands them together and the
Ledger suppressed tho dispatch and en-
dcavorcd to excuse the North American.
Some Personal Incidents
On September II thirteen monuments
to the soldiers of Pennsylvania regiments
who fought in the battle of Antietam
were dedicated and handed over to the
custody Of the United States Government.
7 was present with my staff and made an
address.
During this month there occurred two
events OF personal nature which made
an impression on me. A hoy in a junk
store in Maryland town came across,
amid tho old iron, n stove plate with the
name pennybackcr on it, and he wrote
10 me about it. bought it--a rather
elaborate piece. with the inscrir;ion. ID.
Pennybacker His Redwel Furnace, Sep.
tember "a. 1881" lie was an iron master
and the grandfather OF the late Judge
Isaac s. rennybackcr, United States SEN
ator from Virginia, of whom President
Polk in his journal, speaks in terms of the
warmest friendship. A day or two later
I received letter from Thomas Gate.
wood. a messenger in the public buildings
in Pittsburgh, who had been a slave in