Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-12-01
CABINET RUMORS
PRECEDE HARDING
Lowden Suggested as Am
bassador to Britain.
Weeks for Navy Post.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

Cabinet rumors fly thick and fast
as President-elect Harding approaches
Washington. Two sets Of opinions are
to be encountered here. One is tnat
Mr.. Harding not only hasn't commit.
ted hiYnself to anybody, but hasn I
discussed cabinet with any one IN
such concrete terms as to Wafranl
any accurate speculation ABOUT PeI~~
sonnet. The other is that nan
dosAn Of Ar. Haroings Insnos ars az
tfapesAnd seendpcttng-c nfsrsnces. e g
|fhe heps 81 Inning up s list Of cabinet
saS III 8 Is lister group csmss sl1 M
s .a!sf.a ssea the nsnysss lsss Sssp tss i@. g.
prsss,0s pnsas Cow snis Frank 81 gesdsn q fiii-
noie to 70 abroad to 8kcome ambas-
sador to Great BritalA instead .of
becoming Secretary ofsthes Treasury.
The suggsstion u i1tsrwSves 9os,vsy sensior Wtor
John W. Weeks of MASSACHUSETTS,
who has always been Inentioned az
the probable selection OF Mr.. Harding
for Secretary Of the Navy.
Has Knowiedse ef Navy.
Mr.. weeks ts a graduate Of this
United States Naval Academy. and
while a member Of the Senate commit
tee on naval affairs showed great In
terest in the development of the Navy.
senator Weeks is banker. and was
one of the group of republicans VINO
voted for the present federal reserve
act Although he is represented as not
anxious for any cabinet post whatso-
ever. there is sentiment among his
friends that he would be happier in the
secretarysilip of the Treasury than the
Navy, particularly because he is, a
banker by experience and likes nnance.
Heretofore 1t has been supposed that
Gov. Lowden, who won nationni atten-
ton by his business administration In
Illinois. would become Secretary OF the
Treasury IL he wanted it. Unquestion-
abIy Mr.. Lowden can have anything in
the cabinet he wants. It is said thaf
he himself is not eager to go to WASH
ington or anywhere else In pubic Of
ace. and that Mr.. Harding will have to
do great deal Of persuading to get
Mr. Lowden away from his farm In
Illinois.
Root Seems to BE Choice.
AS for Secretary Of State. friends
Of Elihu Root are insistent that he
will eventually be Mr.. Hardings
choice. 1t is an open secret that
while some Of the original Harding
men can't see how Mr.. Roots views
would fit in the Harding administra-
ton, they admit that Mr.: Root has a
prestige throughout the United States
which would give the Harding cabf-
net aSgood start with public opinion.
In other words, they admit that
the Secretary of State will have to
be the top-liner of the cabinet this
time because Of the prominence OF
the league of nations and foreign
Senator Philander c. Knox Of Penn
sylvania is. Of course, first choice
with most Of the Harding men who
believe that Knox reflects better than
dent-elect on foreign policy: But Mr..
Knox's health is the doubtful factor.
Some say he doesn't want cabinet
responsibilities and would prefer to
stay in the Senate. Others say he
could be more useful as chairman OF
tee il Senator Lodge were to be taken
into the cabinet. Some of those who
want Mr.. Lodge to go into the cab
met are thinking of the vexed ques-
tion of the leadership in the republi-
iii, the duties Of leadership would fall
largely on Mr.. Lodge. And there isn't
an altogether harmonious feeling In
the Senate about Mr.: Lodge.
Everybody's good humor was more
Of the last session Of Congress, and
Mr.. Lodge was between two mill
stone-the "reservationists'' and the
'1rreconcilables." There has been
some DISCUSSION about new leadership
in the hope that the sores Of the
treaty fight would be healed by an en-
tirely new deal in the Senate. Such a
plan contemplates the promotion of
Senator Lodge to the portfolio of Sec
retary of State, though 1t is insisted
by friends Of Mr.. Lodge that he pre-
fers to remain at the head of the for.
eien relations committee and steer
the new administrators foreign pol.
icy through Congress-.
fCopyright 1901