Arizona republican., 1921-04-04
BY FREDERIC ]. HASkIN


 WASHINGTON, April Most del icate of all the tasks confronting President Harding and his secretary of state at Washington today is that of selecting wisely the ambassadors and ministers who will represent the country and new administration abroad
 In the selections of these various envoys, and of their secretaries and attaches, President Harding and Secretary Hughes must not only take into consideration the fitness of these men for their jobs, but the qualifica- tions of their wives also.
 '.The wife is the most important of all the elements of an embassy" said Napoleon once in an explanation of his selection of the unknown hus- band of an attractive and accom- plished woman for the pose of an ann bassador at an important court.
 Nor is the wife of the diplomatic chief alone important. The wife of the most unimportant secretary is capable of wrecking the success of diplomatic mission. A tactlesS slip of the tongue on her part may give rise to a coolness between the home government and foreign government that only years will eradicate. The ambassador or attache himself Is more easily forgiven for a break than his wife.
 Madame must possess all the social graces, with wisdom and guile to boot. But she must not be too Circe- like A ''vamp" would not be tole- rated in diplomatic circles. She must | not be too extrayagant, she must noI talk too much and above all else she must not be given to the habit of writing indiscreet letters.
 Illustrating the last must not Washington still remembers the case of the beautiful Lady Susan Town l ley, who husband, Sir Walter Beaupre l Townley was for a brief space charge | d 'affaires of the British embassy in | Washington. The briefness of his sojourn here, after distinguished diplomatic career elsewhere, was at l tributed to Lady Susan's fondness fol letter. writing. Social Washington is still sore, though the case of Lady Susan is now more than Is years old | over some of the things the witty young Englishwoman said about the l elect of the capital in her letter: 1 home Lady Susan was too witty ant l her friends at home enjoyed he clever satire so much that they le some of the letters slip into the hand | of publisher.
 1 The charge d'affaires was recalled 1 after few warm remarks had beer l passed between the two governments Afterwards his government relentet to the extent of sending him to | less important post.
 I Most Blunders Flushed
 The affair of Lady Susan wa given wide publicity but the diplo
 matic custom in such eases is t hush matters up, quietly to recall tn offending envoy and never to let tn general public into the secret of So and Sos abrupt return home. Hoy many promising careers have beel
 wrecked by tactless wives, therefore
 will never be publicly recorded. Equally numerous are instances il
 which the ambassador has bee helped by a clever wife in his rise i
 the graces of the government t : which he has been accredited. Per haps one of the most striking incl dents of that kind in Washington a l present is the minister of the Croats | Serbs and Slovenes. to give him hi l full title, pr. Slavko Y. Grouitch. Dl l Grouitch frankly admits that he owe much of his diplomatic success to hi charming and attractive wife.
 She has. it may be added, kept