The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1919-10-20
WHITE GIVES
CONFERENCE
PERSONALITY
Glowing Portraits, Full of Life
and Color Sketched of
Leaders of Industry Confer
ence, by Famous Writer.
GROUPS ARE SEPARATE
BY WILLIAM ALLEN WHITE.
Copyright, 1919, by The Wheeler
SYQdicafa Incl

Copyright, 1919. by The Wheeler
Syndicate. 1nc-)
WASHINGTON, D. c., Oct. 20
The Industrial conference is largely a
play Of personalities. 1t is trying to
do the most important work done in
America for the generations by any
parliamentary body. and what it final
ly will do. will be largely the result
OF the play Of personalities, the give
and take which men are able to stand
under pressure.
1t probably Is more or less easy
for the play of give and take to run
smoothly in National Tennis Players
association, or in a Y. NJ. c. A. con-
venton, or a conference of advertis-
ing men, or even insurance men. For
Whatever men give and whatever they
take in such assemblages, the second
rate things Of their lives are involved,
but here in this Industrial conference
men are playing with tremendous
forces, deeply personal to themselves
and to their own fortunes. Here give
and take is personal and personalities
are under great strain.
The reader must understand that
this conference is assembled in three
Sioopos IlS ldUOI BIOup, tut tlupIOy-
ers' group, and the public group. 1t
Is important to know also that these
groups is in three separate wings,
labor on the left, public in the center
and the capitalists or employers
group on the right They are not
mingled one with another
Each group sits by itself and men
in each group are continually getting
group feeling and group interest.
This was graphically illustrated one
day when the entire public group
which Is represented. by all sorts of
conditions of men, manufacturers,
bankers, corporation lawyers, acade-
mictans. writer's. publicist, all voted
against the capitalist group, excepting
one man. The one man whose per-
sonality was able to break through
the group was Judge Gary of the Steel
Trust In spite of~his group he was
a capitalist and voted for the capital
ist group, He is the most noted fig
ure in the conference, the best known
man there. Judge Gary sits in the
midst Of the public group, generally
flanked by someone Of his kind, like
Mr.. Langdon and Mr.. Endicott, and
watches the convention with rather a
cold gray eye, exceedingly bright, ter
He Is the dapperest man in the room
Sometimes he wears a light brown
greyish suit with rather a splendid
light vest; generally in his button
hole there Is a boutonniere. He Is
dressed as if sitting for his portrait
with clothes creased, linen immaculate
and hands manicured. They gener
ally rest clasped together in his lap
as though sustaining his stomach
which is not large and needs no sup
port.
He tmpresses one as being a nerve
less man. He sat for thirty minute:
without moving a muscle except once
or twice to brush his chin while Sam
uel Gompers stood arranging the
steel trust and all its men in power
full speech one afternoon. His ter
rier bright eyes glistened as they
gazed dispassionately at Gomper'!
face, but they did not finch at Com
pers' climax. and no color came o.
went into his face as the tide o
Gompers' oratory rose and fell.
The whole conference, so reporter:
and a room full of spectators were
looking at Judge Gary while Gomper
spoke, and Gompers was looking a
Gary with rather a fiery eye. Blu
never d l"lICu lAOFSo HdI ldSC
Not even by the movement of a foo
or hand did he indicate that he Wa
under the slightest nervous pressure
The cold, determined. indomnitabl
physical nature of the man never ha,
more perfect test than it had tha
afternoon under the Gompers arraigr
ment.
Gompers Is Figure.
Gompers himself is something Of
figure, probably on the whole the mos
interesting figure in the conference
He is little man. feet 5 or prot
ably, stock almost fat but not quite
and, with moth eaten hair, smoot
shaven features and rather leather
pink skin, sloping rather than squar
shoulders, long armed and short les
ged.
He is Judge Gary's antithesi:
Gompers rarely sits still. One Nigh
know how the conference is going b
looking at Gompers halfbald heac
which flushes pink and pales whit
proceedings go forward. pleasing @
dispIeasing He does not fidget, bu
he rarely may be found in the sam
position ten minutes at stretch
He has his group we'll IN hand; II
deed he is the soul OF his grou]
There is not much consultation in pul
lie, but Gompers sits by Frank Mo
rison and keeps running fire whis]
cred talk to him. Gompers is nervous
lie likes to sputter in speech. H
shows in a thousand physical ways ii
pleasure and displeasure. His face
mobile. his mouth is large and strOn
his jaw is rather brutal and indomi
able.
He has the big nose of the ruler
but his eyes-there is the mystery
They are sheathed with thin sauria
lids When he opens them wide
gives a flaming effect to his fact. Ge
orally they are half closed and bac
OF them sits the Jew, the quiet Orie
tai, grim. purposeful imaginative,-tf
ewes Of a man who sees great vision
The soul back of them dreams hig
dreams and yet the face around II
IContinued On Page Fifteen.l