Evening star., 1927-05-02

MacVeagh brought to Washington
much of the first-hand knowledge in
possession of the Toxic government.
When the Kellogg resignation rumor
sprouted at the end of the Winter
Ambassador MacVeagh was among the
numerous company Of men mentioned
as the next Secretary of State, and
his impending departure from Japan
was adduced as corroborative detail.
AS a matter of fact, the Ambassador,
who left Mrs. MacVeagh behind in
Toxic, has come home chiefly on ac-
count of private affairs. He has now
gone to New York to attend to them,
will return to Washington for another
visit about the middle of the month,
and then sail for Japan in time to re-
sumo his duties there ira June.
An after.dinner speaker at Wash.
ington function the other night aired
the view that more firSt.class men
do not enter Federal service because
of the "obscurity" to which 1t con-
demns them and their achievements
in 1t. Presidents of the United States,
including the present incumbent, sell
dom observe any organized reluctance
to join Uncle Sans pay roll. The
assertion in question happened to be
made in the presence of a member
of the new Federal Radio Commission.
Before the ink on the Executive sigma
ture to the Dill-White bill creating
the commission was dry, the White
House was in receipt OF no fewer than
900 applications for the five jobs at
its disposal. When it became neces-
sary for the President to appoint an
other Secretary of Agriculture in 1925,
it was revealed that there were at
least 40 or so aspirants, including
dirt farmers, for the place DIR. "Bill'
Jardtne eventually inherited. The
authority who claims that fear of
obscurity deters 50,o00.a.year men
from seeking Federal service would
be nearer the truth il he said that
big men, once in high national office,
usually VOW never again to take 1t
because of the character-assassin
practiced by professional political
gunmen in and out of Congress.
% " X
Washington newsgatherers deplore
the departure from the State Depart
ment of former Assistant Secretary
of State j. Butler Wright, who is
about to enter upon his new post
as American Minister to Hungary.
Wright proved to be ore of the rare
birds in our diplomatic service, who
are not afraid of their own shadows
when 1t comes to imparting public
information to reporters and CORE
spondents. There is no case on rec
ord of Wright's ever divulging a state
secret, but there were few occasions
on which he did not go out of his
way to supply the press with its
legitimate needs. That type of Off
cIal is not often encountered among
men who seem to be trained to re-
gard everything State Department
knows as deep and terrible mystery
from which the veil must under no
circumstances be lifted. Wright is
particularly popular with the camera
men" of the Washington news fra
ternity. AS the official chaperon of
visiting kings, queens, princes and
all newly arrived foreign envoys,
Wright was in position to do many
favors for the insistent knights of
the rotogravure section, and they
were always freely granted.
Mrs. Maud Wood Park, former
president of the National League of
Women Voters, introduced an limo.
walton at the recent convention
banquet or that orSanlZatN9n IN WASH
ington. She addressed the assembled
company as Gentlemen and Ladies"
The subtle compliment to the hitherto
dominant sex shared the humor
honors of the evening with a quip
by Merlin II. Aylesworth. president
of the National Broadcasting Co.
During the discussion following his
speech, Aylesworth was asked If tele-
vision is likely seriously to affect
radio hroadcasting as the air audience
now knows it. "Only in one respect"
retorted Aylesworth. "Itll undoubt-
edly cost a lot of broAdcasters their
jobs" L