San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1926-04-11

were men who had few angles and who
seldom INDUCED in bclliserent att.
tudes or stubborn opposition.
NOT SOCIABLE.
I may be permitted to say that be
seemed to have confidence in me, but
if 1 were TO judge by the times he
sought to see me socially or outside
official contacts / should say that he
was either highly indifferent TO me or
that he disliked me. But understood
the situation thoroughly and was en-
tirely willing and content to have
matters as they were. In fact, I
strongly sympathized with him.
The only time l came into such So
cial personal relation with him, up to
the close of the administration, was
when he invited me to play game Of
golf with him. He took me out in
his car. 1 beat him easily, which he
did not in the least mind. He was
courteous and considerable to the last
degree but We did not have very
easy time of it, possibly because both
of us, being Scotch, were a trifle re-
served and somewhat shy. The only
time he ever showed trace of person
al feeling for me, as l have stated,
was when lunchcd with him just be-
fore he went from the White House.
PLAYED NO FAVORITES.
The difficulty Wilson had in freely
meeting people, aside from his TEN.
permanent, was reinforced by a certain
philosophy he entertained. by the stress
under which he worked, and by his
physical state. He would not seek out
men to consult with, but within the
limits of his time and strength he did
see people who sought him on BUSH
ness. He would play no favorites, and
I think the fact that lie could not
see certain individuals whom he might
have liked to confer with more fire.
quently without seeming to play fav-
orites and creating i'll feeling caused
him to limit his contacts, and on ac-
= count of the fact that he was never
very robust and that the demands on
him were terrific, he felt it imperative
to limit his social contacts TO the
minimum.
Wilson was a man Of strong emo
tons, but he suppressed them. He
had them thoroughly disciplined and
rigidly kept them down. His inherit
ance and his philosophy combined to
this end. His was the philosophy of
self-mastery. His injunction to young
men was to cultivate self-control.
This philosophy he elaborated admir-
ably in his lecture to students on
: when Man Comes to Himself" IL
was painful to him to let himself go
and to show his feelings; and th5
only time / ever saw him lose his
| grip on himself was at the final cabi-
1 net meeting, to which reference has
: been made.
: If what has been said is substsn-
TALLY a correct analysis of Wilson's
character and temperament, it will
cause certain special cases of person.
al relation to fall into their proper
perspective. 1t will not explain every
+ thing. but it will explain much.
: There are those who will see moth
ing in the picture 1 have given. They
t will continue to prefer to adopt a
simpler theory and to picture him
: merely as an unfeeling, ungrateful,
: ruthless person.
: 1t is not infrequently said that he
= was an migrate; that he used men
s and then dropped them; that men
i might act for him but not with him.
and that most of those who have
been his friends had been repudiated
by him or had voluntarily renowned
d him. OF course, do not accept this
e verdict. Many men continued TO work
3. for him and many men did work with
i him. both worked for him and with
: him for eight years with increasing
$ affection, respect and admiration.
( My criticism, looking at the whole
T matter and the entire period broadly,
c was that he erred rather on the side
: of patience, loyalty and generosity.
# The cases pointed to and played up
}. largely from partisan motives are the
II exceptions and prove the rule.
Copyright. 1926, Doubleday, Page
& Company