Evening star., 1924-03-22
The True Story of
Woodrow Wilson
ByDAVID LAWRENCE.

1t is perfectly evident to every one
that what Col. House is attempting
to do neither brings peace nearer nor
sets it further off, and it is my stern
and serious judgment that the whole
matter ought to be let alone"
Conduct of War Criticized.
In that same autumn there began
an undercurrent jof criticism about
the conduct of the war. Early in
january. 1918, the author brought to
MIR. Wilson's attention the necessity
OF explaining to the public in a gen.
eral way just what had been done
so that the morale of the country
would be improved and the impress
sion of chaos erased. Mr. Wilson
said:
We are working under the stern
est conditions that men ever worked
under since civilization began. The
duty of every man in the United
states just now is to look at the
facts and not at the color which any
body puts upon them, and look at the
Facts with view not TO criticism
but to cooperation, to putting every
tang before the public in n way
Whlcf will help the public to helm
the administration by straight think
ing on the actual facts
The plan you have in view seems
TO me an excellent one of setting
forth just how European conditions,
wien nave again and again under
sone kaieldoscopic change, neces-
sarlly react upon our work and con
dlt1on 1T on every side.
since our entrance into the war
we nave had to change our plans half
dozen times upon earnest represen-
tanoh upon the other side as to radi-
ally altered conditions. Unfortu-
nately, not all of this can be put into
the public prints, because to do so
would reveal many difficulties and
oiSappolntments on the part of the
allles which 1t is not necessary or de-
slrable that our enemies should know
but the work of Interpretation should
rest IL seems to me, upon such state
mentS as the Secretary Of War made.
AS matter of fact, all the data given
IN tnat report was carefully gone over
oy the House committee on military
affairs when considering the Army
appropriation, but the whole scene
needed to be described in a single
statement, and the Secretary of War
Sio "cu ms domlrdDle insight, ability
and candor, in the way in which he
did il.
Progress OF Mobilization.
The statement to which Mr.. Wilson
refers was made by Newton d. Baker,
Secretary of War. and revealed the
fact that the United States had pro-
ceeded farther along with its war
ihooiilzation than the public had been
led to believe by the attacks of the
critics. The discussion of a war ca BIZ
net, indeed, the efforts of certain sem
ators TO choose a cabinet for Mr..
wilson, seemed thereafter to lose
momentum, and the administration
went forward without embarrassment
in those early months of 1918.
The attacks from the outside. how
ever, did not cease. The author was
preparing at the time an article for
the saturday Evening Post showing
now woodrow Wilson was managing
ms job, but it is an interesting fact |
that in the preparation of that article
Mr.. Wilson was of little use-aIl the |
information about his activities had
to be obtained from members of the |
cabinet and others who conferred |
with him: In this connection Mr.. |
Il have been thinking a great deal
ABOUT your proposal of an article |
about my executive work. and 1 find |
that 1 can't. for the life of me, think |
1t out in any way that would be |
striking and effective. That is my |
trouble. The day seldom seems i'm,
pressive when summed up because
most of the questions which l have !
decided come to me in the form of |
memoranda to which l reply in writ |
ing. Interviews and consultations |,
are chiefly with people who need not |
have taken my time, and lead to |
nothing except the qualification on !
the part of those who see me that |
they have had their say
"U,eless'' for Publicity Purposes.
81 am hopelessly useless for pub |
licity purposes. I have long been |
convinced of that. 1t is true that |
am constantly playing a part in the |
formation of all important decisions |
which are formed in every branch of |
the governments war activities. and
its peace activities, too, for that
matter, but after the work is done |
1 necessarily forget it's details. IF |
you were to sit down with me and j
pump me l could not recall the par
ticulars or the conferences, or the
II do not think that the articles |
of attack to which you refer do any i
harm. I think the people |
of me country are satisfied that 1 |
am keeping hold Of as much Of the |
job as is humanity possible"
The foregoing quotations are typi- I
cal of many others. Mr.. Wilson was
not capable of Reimbursement or |
self-expression though he was a mas
ter Of impersonal advocacy of broad |
policies. He was no publicity eX-
pert like Col. Roosevelt, Woodrow
Wilson never failed to hold national |
on major questions, but in |
the technique of iteration he was a !
victim of elf-consciousness and
copyright. 1924. by the George H. Doran |
Company in the United States, Canada, South |
World publication rights reserved by
Current News Features, Inc.)
(Tomorrow's chapter tells what in |
f1uenced Mr.. Wilson to issue his |
appeal in 1918 for democratic |
Congress.)