Norwich bulletin., 1921-05-03
WASHINGTON AFFAIRS
Especial to The Bulletin. ]

afternoon watching the crowd of vis- itors who besieged the secretaries for admission to the executive office; where those who came by appointment fanked | the walls of the big reception hall; | where delegations of women futtered
 round; where men of high degree and | colored delegations from the south pac- ed the marble corridor. side by side 1 All waiting to "see the president" And | by the grace of membership in the Press | Gallery supplented by the courtesy of i an additional appointment, I was able to see President Harding receive many of the unbidden guests.
 It is this sort of reception that has 1 entirely changed the atmosphere of the White House from the secusion which l marked the Wilson regime. MT. Hard | ing follows the custom of MT. Roosevelt and Mir. Wilson 1 bi-Weekly conferences | with the press gallery. otherwise his 1 method is entirely different. This does | not mean that any one can run up the | White House steps. drop in and shake | hands with the president. No, indeed. i President Harding is as closely guarded l as were any of his predecessors, but | persons with proper credentials can meet | him, if they wait his bidding. When ] President Harding receives the members l Of the press, on one else is permitted | to be present, as the talks are often con- l l although the correspondent may tell | the story along general lines At such l times MT Harding stands at the side of 1 big mahogany table on which are 1 vases of magnificent roses. By his side | are his secretaries, NIT. Christian and MT. 1 Forster. Ranged in a semi-circle are 1 the correspondents, usually about one
 hundred of them. Then the questions | begin to pop, always prefaced by the l title Mfr. President" The president | always answers them frankly, whether l or not he gives the desired information. | You see, six years in the senate has | brought President Harding and the press gallery men into far more intimate and friendly touch than has been the case with other incoming presidents. As a 1 result he Rusts the newspaper men
 and they trust him. At the end of 1 twenty minutes the conference ends and l the correspondents withdraw.
 On the day referred to there followed
 the other sort of a reception. By this
 time the waiting room was filled. There
 were delegations of women with big pe-
 titions for one thing or another in which
 they were specially interested. One was
 for immediate disarmament. no matter what other countries do; next came a l delegation of sturdy men composing the 7 "Quoits Club" carrying a purple case in : |
 for the president, who excells in pitch ing quoits; waiting side-by-side with
 those men was Mrs. Wadsworth. wife of the senator from New York, who carried a big basket of daffodils and in her = train were one hundred small boys of
 the city who want swimming pool of
 their own. They had written the pres
 ident their plans and he had replied if
 they would come to the White House he I uyfI hIINy Of- fIn 1i I1J frr
 their benefit soon to be given with Mrs
 Wadsworth as head patroness. The
 tickets were fifty cents Perhaps hel . take two, one for himself and one fol ! Mrs. Harding, and maybe two to givt
 away"-excitedly whispered one of thu
 little chaps as the line waited it's turr D to be called. Pretty soon they wen 3 in. Then came tumult coupled witt t shrill cheers. That "Ole Swimming Hole . scheme struck a responsive chord in tn s presidents heart. He told the boys F of the days when he went swimming witt | his chums, then gave them $50 for the
 pool It fairly took away their breath but the little chap who had thought &
 almost too much to hope for, got bacl f his wind in time to yell, Gee, bu r ain't you great
 n Then followed several officers who's decorations showed them to be gener = als with over sea service party o .. school girls in gay spring sport suits senators and congressman, singly and i T. groups went in for a few minutes tall IS on patrona ge. Then came a long lin IS of persons who had been properl l. vouched for, as every precaution mus ,e be taken to keep out persons of vi ,e cious purpose.
 Id President Harding still stood besid
 the table with it's roses, with the brigh re sunlight streaming throe gh le low f windows banked with palms and fern + just as he stood two hours earlier whe eecs talked with the press. IIl tht visitors now had time to note was tn P strong, kindly face of the president an d his cordial greeting to each unknow ie and unbidden guest, for the little lin le was kept moving by the dexterous br if quiet management of his secretaries an re aids The visitors passed out of th room through an opposite door. peelxin ;- into the famous cabinet room as the III went along. Don't the president fin r. 1t a tiresome Interruption and q bo1 C. to meet all these unknown people rigr
 in the midst of his most pressing dr ny tles?' l asked. Not a bit of it." sal ar his secretary. He finds it a reIaxatio ot You know he is firm believer in 1T people. He likes to meet the differel Ill types. Being president has not chan, At ed him one bit" And so it seems to tho O. of us who have followed him close D. through the six years in the senate ar e. the campaign It is a ten to one gue i'd that the daffodil boys will see hil ., down at their swimming pool when it <. completed, even though some man
 high political degree, is kept waiting '' CT see the president.
 The confirmation by the senate
 GlG n he 1pl- of
 general is the cause of much gra1
 flcation to the members of the New En a land delegation, for they worked o ce and hard to have him properly reco
 nized by the Wilson regime And he
 is peculiar happenstance connects ,se with the promotion. It was Secreta .n- of War John W. Weeks of Massa ch
 settsN then senator from that state a
 ranking member on the military a
 fairs committee, who tried in vain Ire get from the war department detail hs information as to the ground on whi dy General Edwards had been deposed
 commander of the 18th Division, or
 obtain access to the official records. in information was obtained and Senat ,a- Weeks and others seeking it got sea .. courtesy from either Secretary of W Baker or Chief of Staff March So {
 matter went by default, although sha
 protests were registered by men especi run ly interested in the 18th Division.
 N Now Secretary John W. Weeks, wh '4o- courteous requests for information r
 only court refusal from the chief of st
 is at the head of the war departme 7s At the touch of an electric button pile the secretary desk that same chief staff now answers the summons a HI comes to Mir WeeLSs' of7ine ta rece