The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1919-04-24
COL. HOUSE MOST:
POPULAR MAN AT
PARIS AFTERCH|E
Lawrence Discusses Confreres.
at Big Peace Council and,
How Europe Regards. Ian;
sing, Bliss and White: s

WASHINGTON, april 24.-ofa all
the personalities at the peace sconfer4
ence the status Of none Is, mor&Mhiqbe
than that Of Col. Edward M. House,
member extraordinary Of the American
mission to negotiate peace. So far as
rank Is concerned, he is entitled to
no more distinction than any Of the
other sixty delegates, but he gets more
n any other person with the posi-
BILE expection Of President Wilson him
self.
A glance at the visitors book, which
a couple of American bluejackets flank
as they sit on guard at the entrance
10 the apartments of Col, House on
the third floor of the Hotel Crillon in
Paris Is cCayincing proof Of the e.
has long been the personal repressn-
tative OF the president in Europe.
Premier Clemenoeau drops in for a
conference.-the often comes withpot ar
ranging u previous appointment. For
elgn Secretary Balfour and Lord Rob-
ert. Cecil are frequent callers. Even
Marshal Foch has been on the House
register twice in tho same day, On
one afternoon President Wilson, who
had come unblddal, interrupted a CON
ference between Col. House and Pre-
mier ~ClemenCeau. Lord Robert Cecil
had the next engagement. The French
premier overstayed tho hour for the
meeting with Lord Robert, and as a
consequence the secretaries attached to
Col. House. found themselves In a
~quandary tying to keep the schedule
of engagements and the distinguished
visitors In harmony.
Every Day Busy.
Every day is a busy one with the
colonial III Hnnn mana Fnntl6 ilIAT n INV
other delegate in Paris. He rarely
leaves his apartments to go calling on
his colleagues. His health has been
poor, and with the exception Of an
hours walk with his physician In the
morning and an hour with some mem
Der Of his family in the afternoon, Col:
House Is seldom away from the Hotel
Crillon, As a consequence the IA
nous covenant which is at present
being discussed the world over was
framed In the little red room which
adjotns Col. Houses living quarters.
There for three weeks. nearly every
night, President Wilson and thirteen
other delegates representing Great
Britain, France, Italy, Japan, Belgium,
China, Greeo@. and Brazil gathered as
a special coNaanittee of the peace con-
ference to draft a plan for the league
Of nations.
1t is not from American sources in
Paris where naturally respect and ad-
found, but from the delegates of other
countries that ] obtained this impress
sion Of his enviable position, Many
of the delegates feel that q conference
with him Is just az good as ono with
the president, because the minds OF the
two men run along the same lines with
respeet to American participation IN
most of the problems involved. These
men will tell you privately that they
like TO do business with the colonel,
and that they are very fond OF his
gracious ways and pleasant ann
So far as the AlnSs3tan correspon.
dents were concerned, they received
far more guidance from Col. House as
to what was going on in Paris than
they did from any other member OF
the American mission. Tho president
was usually too busy to see any cor
respondents, and the other members
Of the delegation, with the exception
Of Col. House, didn't feel that they
OF policy for publication.
Work in Past.
There Is every reason to believe
Col. House viii concern himself a
great deal with the arguments made
In the American senate against GER
tain features Of the league OF ma
'btle IT wac WI i'oR "i'Nt ~
anxious to see a provision for COM
pulsory arbitration put in the cove
nant, agreed to the omission because
he believed the American senate was
opposed to so advanced Il step at this
time. Be 1t said in passing that the
advice Of Col. House with respect Ia
the Republicans has been constantly
In the direction of harmony. lie Ia
known, for instance, to have adyo-
Gated the selection Of Elihu Root to
be a member of the American mission.
Indeed. Col, Houses chief Influence
Mt the peace conference Ia that Of a
harmonizer Of opposing views. His
skin In bringing men together and In
getting thoin to agree through the
timely suggestion Of compromises IL
always commended whenever one asks
any Of the foreign delegates for ar
estimate Of the work of Col. House
He has paved the way for the presi.
dent in many a delicate situation
and Mr., Wilson has come to lear
heavily " Col. House IN steering. thu