The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1922-06-20
WHERE IRONY KILLS THE
AMERICAN SPREAD-EAGLE
Cridiorn Club Banter Is Always
Music to the Statesmen's
Ears

y
senator, famous as ''boy orator
and noted for long speeches, attend
ing his first banquet in Washington
The toastmaster in presenting him as
a speaker reminds him that long ad-
dresses are wearisome and should De
avoided.
$50 that we might be Of help TO
you," the POSTMASTER concludes, we
have decided to present you with TINS
alarm clock. Before making a speech
in the senate, wind up the alarm, set
the clock on your desk and when the
alarm goes off, stop
The senator, primed for display OF
his eloouence, responds. Just as he
rises to lofty fights, the clock sitting
before him breaks into loud, jangling
sound, which continues for several
moments. Amid the roar of laugh
ter which goes up, the senator, rec
oenizing the satire, sits down and
makes no further attempt to "wax
eloquent"
In ways like that the Gridiron club
of Washington frequently reminds
public men that they can take them
selves too seriously, and it incidental
ly reminds the public that many mat
tiers of seemingly ponderous import
may not be so serious as they seem.
Twice year and occasionally three
times a year the most famous dining
club in America, if not the world,
turns its fonts of humor and satire
on men prominent in national life
and on current national questions.
Whole Country Can Smile
All the country shares in part the
fun produced at the famous dinners
of the Gridiron club, for no Sunday
morning newspaper ever omits the de-
scription of its stunts, which alone IS
all that is ever permitted to be pub
lished regarding its dinners. The club
has only one fixed rule, which is that
'ladies are always present and re-
borters are never present" Each is
'"constructive" fact, for the club is
composed essentially of reporters and
only once has a woman been invited
to and attended one of its regular
dinners. The woman thus honored
was Miss jeanette Rankin, who, when
serving as the first woman member
of congress, was among the guests
at Gridiron affair.
While the Gridiron CLUB serves a
good national purpose by way of sat
izing men who often take them
selves too seriously and current ques-
tions which the public frequently
takes too seriously, it is really an or
ganization without purpose. It has
no high-sounding code of principles
and has never attempted to speak for
any group, not. even for the corps
of Washington correspondents, from
which its members came and come.
Though only men who are doing
newspaper work in Washington are
admitted to active membership, to
leave newspaper work or move from
Washington does not disqualify a
member for further participation in
club affairs. In fact, many of the
active members are no longer news
paper men, and there is a substantial
list of associate members, or former
active members, who no longer re-
side at the national capital. Then
there are 10 limited members who
have no journalistic claim, but each
of whom has. some special entertain
ing talent, usually, as in the case, say,
of John Philip Sousa, in the musical
line.
The club is now in it's thirty-sev-
enth year, having been formed in
1885. Of its charter members only
four survive and no one of them is
at present Washington correspand,
ent.
Club Product of Friction
The famous dining club, whose din
ner invitations are more highly priced
even by men of the greatest promi-
nence than perhaps those of any oth-
er organization in America, was the
product of friction between newspa-
per correspondents and some of the
public men Of the time in Washing
ton. Back in the days when the sta
tus of the Washington correspondent
was vague and undecided, a puolic
man resenting criticism or the publ
cation of matter he didn't like to see
in print sometimes would try to pun
ish" individual correspondents or the
oorns &C Oroun In tho earlv eioh-