The Washington herald., 1918-10-20

chemical engineering expert. After
year the General Electric discovered
I him and brought him to Pittsfield.
Mass, and as he had always meant
to come to the United States ultimate
/ ly he was quite satisfied.
Eight years ago he went back to
Switzerland, and four years later was
sent back to New York to take charge
of the business of supplying Swiss in
dustries with American raw material.
He soon acquired such a reputation
as an expert on American commercial
conditions that when Mr.. Sulzer was
appointed minister he asked Mr..
| Oederliu to help him as his CONNER
| ciaI adviser. Mr.. Sulzer should be
back by the end of the month, prob
ably would lave been back before
now had any one realized that things
were going to happen in such a hurry.
Meanwhile, Mr.. Oederlin is holding
down the rather complicated job of
being not merely Swiss charge, but
also charge d'affaires for Germany,
which promises to be rather a stren-
uous undertaking.
Oh yes, thank you, he likes America
He's glad he came. And on the whole
he's not sorry that his chief. Mr..
=
so very interesting OF course he has
long ago recognized the high plane
of American idealism, and quite un-
derstood that America was not a ma
| tion ruled by dollars and cents. as
too many Europeans have hitherto
regarded II, but n people ruled by the
/ same lofty and democratic ideals that
inspire the ~epublic of Switzerland.
Perhaps the most humanity whole
some thing that happened last week
was the Presidents trip down to
Galt's late Monday afternoon to buy
his wife's birthday present There
| was unrest in the air 1t was known
| that Germany and America were not
to be kept long in suspense. The
, President had returned to Washing
| ton Immediately on receipt of Prince
MaXimilian's answer on behalf of the
central empires. The evening papers
had announced that the Secretary of
State would see the newspaper men at
o'clock. and that at the hour of
going to press, the President, having
consulted with his Cabinet. and Col.
House, was busy framing his reply to
Germany.
People were restless and captious.
=,
| heard it in the little knots that
gathered on the corners, and before
the newspaper bulletin boards. They
were inclined to be critical, especially
| to pick on Col. House. What's he got
to do with it?" seemed to be a very
general question. In a crowded ele-
| vator a voice reading from the eve
ming paper-"after consulting with the
Cabinet and Col. House" Well I'll
be - And the voice trailed away;
while an old man murmured, Upon
what meat does this, our Caesar,
feed?" 1t is absurd. but the American
! people, as represented by the man
on the Washington street, actually
seems to be Jealous of Col House.
And then the White House car
rolled down the Avenue and stopped
at Galt's, and the President got out
and disappeared into the shop. The
one or two who had seen him go in
fingered to watch him come out. 9th
ersSsaw the White House car and lin
gered In a few minutes there was
| crowd that almost blocked traffic.
| The President was an unconscionable
time shopping.
Finally he came out with a small,
neat package IN MS hand, looked at
the car, hesitated. and then, bowling
and smiling to the cheering crowd,
wheeled sharply to the right and
started up the Avenue toward the
White House on foot. He looked very
young. 1t was the first time had seen
him in anything SO warm and human
as brown. Usually he wears grays
/ and blacks and white. sometimes I'm
summer, blue serge-cool, judicial.
stand-off sort of neutral colors. OF
course the crowd tagged along. BY
the time 1t reached the Treasury 1t
was a mob-an rentirely orderly. well
| behaved, Observation-Disclosures so
I-mob
The little package was suggestive
and suddenly remembered that Mrs.
Wilson had a birthday just about
now, and I had hunch that It was