Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1922-01-17
CHAPTER XIV
(Continuedl

1
A N unusual incident occurred
| n about $50 o'clock in the eve
ming election night, 1915.
shortly after my talk with the
president. I was called to the tele-
phone and told that some one in
New York, who refused to give his
name, wished to speak to me on a
| highly important matter. l went
to the phone. At the other end IL
New York was an individual who,
! refusing to give his name, describ-
ed himself as q friend Of our cause.
thought he was one Of the varie-
ties crank, with whom 1 had been
accustomed to deal at the White
House on frequent occasions during
my life there; but there was some
thing about his talk that convinced
me that he was in close touch with
some one in authority at Republican
| headquarters. In his first talk
with me, and in subsequent talks
during the night of the election and
on the following day, there was a
warning to us, in no way, or by
| the slightest sign, to give up the
| fight, or to concede Hughes cleo
| llOIls lie SC1o lILClI col ~ ACIU1 las
will naturally run against Wilson
in the east, particularly in Illinois
and Iowa." and intimated to me
that the plan at Republican head.
quarters would be to eXaggerate
these reports and to overwhelm us
with news of Republican victories
| throughout the country. Continu'
| ing his talk he said: 1.-The Wilson
fight will be won in the west. I
shall keep you advised of what is
happening in Republican headquar-
ters. 1 can only tell you that !
will know what is happening and
you may rely upon the information
I shall give you"
All night long the loyal newspa.
per men and kept vigil at the ex-
ecutive offices. AS I read over the
bulletins that same to me, particu-
larly those from Republican head.
quarters in New York, l was quick
to notice that, although the Repub.
lican managers were blatantly pro-
claiming to the country that the
fight was over, for some reason or
other the Republican candidate. Mr..
Hughes, who was at his headquar-
tiers at the Hotel Astor. was silent.
| Just about this time there was
another message from the mysteri.
Gus stranger in New York. The
message, as ! recall it, was as fol-
lows: 'They (meaning the Republi.
can managers are trying to induce
Hughes to claim the election, but
he is unwilling to make an an.
nouncement and is asking for fur.
Their returns. You boys stand pat.
Returns that are now coming in are
worrying them. Don't be swept off
your feet by claims from Republi
can headquarters. ! know what is
| happening there"
When Hughes Seemed Winner
Shortly after this telephone mes.
sage came a bulletin from Republi.
can headquarters, stating that the
Republican managers were then in
conference with Mr.. Hughes and
that statement from Mr.. Hughes
would soon be forthcoming. This un.
| usual coincidence convinced me that
| the man who was telephoning rae
either was on the inside of affairs
at Republican headquarters, or had
| an uncanny way Of knowing just
what the managers were doing.
Up to II o'clock every bit Of news
ran against u.s. Finally, the Brook
| lyn Eagle. a supporter of the Presi.
dent, and then the New York Times
our last line of defense, gave way
and conceded Hughes election, but
the unterrified Democrats at the
| executive offices stood out against
any admission of defeat. -'
| The mysterious stranger was again
on the wire. saying that there was
CONSERVATION in the Republican
ranks; that George. Perkins had just
conferred with National Chairman
Wilcox and had left Wiley's room
shaking his head and saying to one
of the attaches Of headquarters that
things were not looking we'll" A
few minutes later a bulletin came
from Republican headquarters con
firming the story the mysterious
stranger had just mentioned over the
| phone.
All the while / was keeping in
touch with our headquarters in New
York city, and about 1890 o'clock.
Bob Wooley, the publicity man of
the Democratic National committee
| phoned me and advised me not to
! concede anything and assured me
! that the returns from the west, now
coming in greater drifts indicated
Wilson's reelection.
When l left the telephone booth
David Lawrence, the Washington
| correspondent of The New York
Evening Post, who a few weeks be.
fore had predicted, in a remarkable
article, the election of Wilson, and
who was my friend and co-laborer
during that night lin conjunction
| with Mr.. Ames Brown, a noted news
| paper man of Washington, connected
with the Democratic National com
mittee), conferred with me. and
from a table he had prepared, show
ed me how the small states Of the
west, which the returns indicated
were now coming into the Wilson
| column, would elect the Democratic
| candidate, and that under no cir
| cumstances must we, by any chance
| in any statement concede the cleo
ton of Hughes.
All night long distance telephone
messages, very brief, would cone
| from the mysterious stranger in New
York and quickly there would fol
low bulletins from Republican head
quarters confirming everything that
| he said. These messages came Sc
rapidly that I was soon convinced
that this individual. whoever he was
had the real inside of the Repuoll.
can situation. So convinced was
| that 1 followed up my statement OF
the early evening with others and
| additional ones. claiming the cleo
ton for Mr.. Wilson.
Late Drift to Wilson
| Just about the break of day on
| Wednesday morning, as David Law
| renee, -Ames Brown and my son, Joe
were seated in my office, a room
which overlooked wide expanse OF
the Atlantaic ocean, we were mott.
fled by Democratic headquarters OF
the first big drift toward Wilson
Ohio, which in the early evening
had been claimed by the Repuoh
cans, had turned to Wilson by an
| ,o,o ioritu of 90 400. Kan