The Washington times., 1925-04-20

his speech in Pueblo almost IN
a flood, showed upon what thin
texture OF resistance he was walk
ing. The night after the Pueblo
speech he could not sleep. In the
evening, east Of Pueblo, they stop
: ped the train, and the President
and Mrs. Wilson walked for a
time upon dusty, white country
road. His temperature rose. AS
he slept under a narcotic, his
mouth drooled. His body testi'
fled in many ways to an I'M
pending crash.
His next engagement was at
Wichita, Kan. Admiral GraysOn,
his doctor, and Mrs. Wilson or
dered him to cancel it. The train
stopped on a. siding near Wichita,
and then rode around the town.
The reporters learned the truth;
that the President was unable to
rise to- the daily struggle with
his engagements. The tram
turned eastward, and swiftly
with drawn blinds, hardly STOP !
ping except to change engines,
hurried across the continent. In
two days the train came into
Washington.
Probably he had had some pre-
monitory warning that an apo
pletic stroke was pending. But
courageously he stepped out OF
the car, courageously walked
down the long platform into the
station, and braveIy took his car
rage for the White House, greet
ing the people who gathered along
the way in his old manner.
Stroke Came In October.
A stroke, affecting his left side,
fell upon him one morning In
October. and another messenger
of evil came to woodrow wilson.
They had been crowding thick
and fast, these messengers OF evil
tidings, since the first one came
when Ellen Arson died. And now
they left him stripped naked to
his enemies. Gone was his glory,
his power, his very strength. And
he sat among the pOtsherds even
as Job. Pain racked him, and he
cried out against 1t because his
nerves were aflame.
A dozen years before, while the
Roosevelt children were playing
on the south White House lawn,
their balls began breaking win
dows in its lower levels. Doctor
Rixey and young Doctor Grayson
put bars there to save the glass.
For the first time men noticed
these bars, and then, possibly be-
cause the President was In pain
and 1t could not be concealed and
because Of the natural predilec-
ton of the human mind to imag-
Inc vain things, and the human
tongue to translate imaginings
into lies, men said that these bars
held a mad President, and the
Senate began to buzz.
The pain fell away from him,
but left him weak. The treaty
still was pending The broken
man in the White House had to
see it slipping further and further
away.
Colonel Houses Plan.
1t may be Of some passing in
terest to set down plan which
Colonel House had in view, but
which he did not disclose in some
OF his letters. The plan provided
for q. message to the Senate de-
s claring in effect that the Presi-
dent was under obligations to his
fellow counselors in Paris to pre-
sent the treaty as it was without
amendment; that he could accept
no amendment, but calling atten-
ton to the fact that the Senate
OF its own motion could do what
it would with the treaty and the
covenant, accept 1t, reject 1t, or
amend it; and that the Senate's
conclusions would be returned to
the constituted European authort-
ties for their action.
Then Colonel House felt that
1t would be wise for the President
to resign in order to remove any
vague suggestion or remote con-
tentiont that his own personal
fortunes were tied with the
treaty; using his illness as an ex-
cuse for resigning, leaving the
whole matter to Vice President
that this attitude would entirely
end the quarrel and restore the
cause.
He felt that at the same time,
by its self-effacement, the resig-
nation would endear the Presi-
dent in his illness to the United
States and ennoble him before the
world. The plan was never sub
mitted to the President. And
neither by message nor by any
indirection of word or deed did
he ever hear from his friend
again. House had certainly reach
ed the scrap-heapi
A Special Committee.
1t was the Woodrow who lay
on that sick bed during that long
autumn, refusing hint or compro--
mise. Once two Senators, Sena-
tor Fall and Senator Hitchcock.
called upon an official mission.
The mission was to inquire into
the sanity. Of the President. What
ever else might have been wrong
with Woodrow Wilson. his mind
was clear. Senator Fall was Of
the Republican persuasion, and
later made a sad exit from poll
tics. He was convinced that the
President was crazy. Hitchcock
was a Democrat and a friend,
and knew the truth. When they
called first, Mrs. Wilson and
Admiral Grayson hesitated about
letting them into the sick room.
But Senator Fall made 1t very
clear, and Senator Hitchcock cor
roborated him, that many mem
bers of the Senate believed the
Presidents mind mad failed, and
they were expected to come back
with the truth.
When this situation was pre-
sented to the President, for a
moment he was furious, and then
the humor of it got him, and he
asked Admiral Grayson to bring
them in. For half an hour they
tho had rKyffh kfa Rona
twisted and-his left side limp, a
s.ikalz l.