The Washington herald., 1921-03-06
INAUGURATION WITHOUT
PARADE AND GRANDsTAND.

since.
INAUGURATION WITHOUT
PARADE AND GRANDsTAND.
By Thursday things and people
were "all set" for the very simple
Inauguration. And how different It
all was from every other inaugura-
tion day Washington has known
since I can remember, at any rate.
Usually the streets are buried under
stands from which visitors could,
for price, and a pretty stiff one
see the inaugural parade or at any
rate sit and shiver while It ws pass
ing and probably hear the mnsic of
the bands. For two weeks sur
rounding March 4. the public build
tngs on the line of March and all
the little open squares and parks
| which make one of Washington's
chief beauties, have been buried be-
hind grandstands.
4 4 4
Governors and their stats, who
have generally had conspicuous
places in the parade seem to have
come for the inaugural even il they
had no particular part in il, and to
have been pretty generally enter
tained by members Of their own
Congressional delegations, IL by no
one else. All the hotels are full.
though there is nothing like the
inaugural crush of previous years.
And official society-even the diplo-
mats-have very generally been en-
tertaining anywhere from one or
two guests to large house parties.
This year outsiders haven't had
much of a look-in unless they hap
pened to be taken in out of the
cold by some of the outsiders
house guests or perhaps personl
friends, whom established Wash
ingtonians. official or otherwise.
were glad to include in their par
ties. There has been plenty going
on every minute. in fact dozens Of
things, but in the main it has been
private parties, invitation affairs to
which one could neither buy nor
beg ones way. Except of course for
the Child Welfare Ball and the
many semi-public parties of several
sorts for the Navy League and the
Southern Commercial Congress,
both of which were in session dur
ing the week-the van guard Of the
conventions always held here in the
spring-and whose delegates were
entertained individually and collec-
lively at functions that would in
ordinary tines have attracted con-
siderable attention. ! think they
both timed their conventions for
this week so as to have an excuse
to be here for the inauguration-I
suspect them.
Friday-inauguratio day itself
during the daylight hours was a
day to be on the streets. hoping for
glimpse of the new President or
some of the celebrities of the hour.
or to jostle ones way through the
hotel lobbies to see who and what
one could see. There was little at
tempt TO entertain until evening.
Then the town was fairly humming.
There were three big parties and
innumerable small ones.
There was the Edward Beale Nc
Lean big dinner and dance and the
Child Welfare Ball, and there was
the dinner which Mrs. James Carroll
Frazer and her parents, Mr.. and
Mrs. Eugene Van Rensselaer,, gave,
when their guests included Secre-
tary and Mrs. Hughes, Secretary and
Mrs. Weeks, Secretary and Mrs. Den
by, the French Ambassador and
Nine. Jusserand and a number OF
other diplomats, ofiicials and dele
gates to the Navy League conven-
tion. 1t was probably the McLesns'
intention to entertain in honor OF
the incoming President and his i'm
mediate administration, but with ev-
erybody guessing about the Cabinet
until the last minute, IL was Diff
cult to get them all invited. Sc
that while the Coolidges and the
Secretary Of the Treasury, the At
torney General and the new Post.
, master General accepted the Nc
Leans invitation, the Secretaries OF
State, War and Navy had a previous
engagement-the Van Rensselaer,
! Frazer dinner. The rest Of the Cab
met attended the dinner, however
BRIDGE CABINET
GOES INTO SESSION.
! The Hardings-well, as far as
know, the Hardings didn't go any
. where. but spent the evening quietly
, getting shaken down into their new
home, surrounded by the many rela-
tives OF the President in town. He
. lunched and dined quietly just with
relatives. Somebody said the bridge
Cabinet" was in session, however
You see they say this administra-
tion is to have a bridge Cabinet
instead of q tennis Cabinet like the
. Roosevelt administration. an
|, told by one who ought to
know-so many people ask the
origin Of the Mclean Harding
friendshfp-that the Hardings and
McLeans first became close friends
through their mutual fondness for
bridge. Mrs. Mclean and Mrs. Hard
ing were first attracted to each 9TH
er, and finally the foursome got into
the pleasant custom of playing
bridge together several times a
week at the McLeans' whenever
both couples were in town.
T. 4 4
Having called OF the inaugural
ball. they told the managers Of the
Child Welfare ball they felt they
could not consistently appear at
another ball-which presumably .ap-
piled with even greater force to the
McLeans. For ii has not been GUS
tomary for the President-he' was
President by the time the Mclean
party came off-to accept invita-
tons to private functions. II they
did they would soon be swamped-
and make more enemies in a month
than they could pacify in a year.
N.sA 81 L.