Perth Amboy evening news., 1923-08-09
OLD PRINTER
TELLS Of ". c.
Man Who Helped Harding
Print and Finance First
Paper Tells His Story

MARION, o., Aug. s.-(By The
Associated Press)-As the funeral
cortege of the late President Hard
ing today passed the office of the
Marion Star, where the chief execu-
tive spent the best years of his life
building a newspaper on kindlincss
and consideration of folks and
where he was known only as wv. G."
there was man above all others
who had a heavy heart.
This mar had been with Mr..
Harding for thirty-seven years en-
tering his employ shortly after he
purchased the Pebble, a tiny news
paper and the first newspaper enter
prise of the late chief executive. This
man-Lewis Miller-Rad helped Mr..
Harding set type, wash the rollers
of the presses, sometimes collect a
bad debtor there were man in
the early days of the Pebble.
Mr.. Miller related how many
times wv. g." had called him into
the dingy Office on the second floor
of a small building still standing at
the corner of Center and State streets
and say:
Lew, I haven't enough money to
get the paper for this weeks issue
out of the Office lit always came
c. o. d. in those days., can you loan
me your weeks salary?"
Mr. Miller always was ready to
forego his weeks pay check in or
der to help out the boss"
After the Pebble was merged into
the Star, Mr.. Miller continued in Mr..
Harding's employ and today is still
working or the Star, although now
more than seventy years of age.
1t was Mr.. Miller who, the night
of November 2, 1920, headed a small
delegation of Star employees which
called on the President-elect to con-
graduate him and presented him
with a gold makeup rule.
Mr.. Harding, visibly affected by
the presentation, started to express
his thanks, but halted and only
finished with the assistance of a
pocket handkerchief.
Fellow members of the Star" he
began, and choked and as tears roll
ed down his cheeks, he began again:
You and L have been associated
together for many years. l know
you and you know me, and you know
that L wouldn't cheat you. l am
about to be called to a position of
great responsibility. / have been on
the square with all the world"
Turning to Mr.. Miller, he contin-
ued:
There is my old friend Miller, the
oldest employe On the Star. Thirty
six years we have been together and
sometimes those years have been
thorny. Sometimes Miller has drawn
his pay that l had to borrow from
my own mother. Sometimes the next
morning 1 have had to borrow back
from Miller the pay he drew the day
before.
THANK you for your CALL" Mr..
Harding said, and choked once more.
Il appreciate our coming more than
I can tell you. Tomorrow or Thurs
day 1 hope to find time to come
down to the Star once more and
, greet you all once again"
And the next day Mr.. Harding did
. come to the Star office.
There was one desk in the office
of the Marion Star today where
there was no typewriter clicking and
where there was no copy paper. il
az ~ q Sc AaN IOPRCu Odh hGSh
in Mr.. Harding's office where he had
sat for so many years writing editor
ials and reading proofs. 1t was
draped in black and white as wal
his editorial chair.
Six car loads of flowers, tributes
to the late President, are coming tc
Marion from Washington. Two OF
the cars are attached to the funeral
train and four others are coming by
express.
All telephones in the Columbus
region of the Ohio Bell telephone
company will be silent for two min
utes tomorrow afternoon at 3:3t
Central Standard time, the hour the
late President Harding,s body is en-