Evening star., 1928-12-16
BY WILLIAM HARD.

ON BOARD THE HOUSEBOAT
AMITIE OFF PALO ALTO KEY, Fla.
(by hydroplane to MiamD, December
15.-It seems to be the duty Of all pa
triotic American millionaires at this
week end to offer their Florida man
sions and palm trees and lighthouses
and boats and motor cars and airplanes
to the President-elect for the holding
of his Florida court here in the months
of January and February. Or, rather,
the offering has been done, and the
choosing of the successful candidates or
victims has been accomplished. This
has been the task of Lawrence Richey,
Mr.. Hoover's right-hand man. conf1den-
tial agent, bosom friend, fishing COM
panion, first lieutenant and lord high
admiral.
AS admiral, Mr.. Richey has accumu-
lated two houSeboats, a speedboat and
a fishing boat wherein the President
elect may escape from the voracity OF
office seekers on shore to the more
pleasing and gratifying appetites of the
barracudas and tarpons and sailf1sh now
cruising up and down the Florida coast
between Miami and Key West.
It seems to be calculated that thus
Mr. Hoover will be almost as we'll Sc
llOllI tllC WiSNlO1Al VA OAhAANAe~1a
and undesired advisers as If he were
still in South America His proximity
to the United States will be from GER
tain standpoint mere illusion.
Mr.. Richey has even thoughtfully ar
ranged for an airplane which will pro-
ceed from Miami to the Hoover fishing
fleet, wherever it may be, and rapidly
convey to the PreSident-elect all his i'm
portant mail without any accompanying
help from any boats left behind In the
Miami Harbor. Aspirants to office will
arrive at the Hoover fishing grounds
hanging to the airplane or not at all.
The land base for this aquatic pre-
presidential pursuit of political freedom
will be the Belle Isle residence of Mr..
j. C. Penney. owner of dry goods chain
stores, promoter of cooperative owner
ship and cooperative management in
industry and patron of agricultural
scientific development and relief.
Belle Isle is a small island lying in
Biscayne Bay between the Miami main
land and the big long coral reef now
known as Miami Beach and now COW
cred plentifully with rich homes and
equally rich hotels
Secret Service Men on Guard.
A causeway runs straight across Belle
Isle from Miami to Miami Beach.
This road furnishes the only access to
Belle Isle by motor car or by foot. On
the Penney side of this road low
wall is now being constructed. There
will be only two gateways in this wall.
Each will be guarded by local uni
formed policeman. Backing these po-
licemen, within the grounds, will be
four secret service men from the Treas
ury Department. Their operations and
maneuverS have been precalculated and
prearranged by Mr.. Joseph Murphy,
assistant chief of the secret service, now
here for that purpose.
The land side defenses, therefore, OF
the Hoover Florida fortress will be i'm
pregnable. They will lie along Just a
few yards of single road. All the
remaining boundaries and barriers OF
the place are salt water. Persons en-
deavoring to swim to Office through
this water will be met by barracuda, to
whom it is nothing to tear of a limb
at one bite. ,.-
Mr.. Richey's whole notion regarding
the tastes of his chief seems to have
been based on ideals OF privacy and
transformations retirement. Numerous
gigantic estates-baronial castles, grand
modernized agricultural plantations and
wonder Iands-were dutifully and hos
pitably offered. They were with graft
tude declined. The Penney house
which has six bedrooms-was thought
sufficient for the Hoover family. The
Penney grounds, which are modest In
extent but which are beautiful, with
palms and semi-tropical Towering
plants. were thought quite ample fol-
Hoover's strolling needs and altogether
potentially satisfactory to his Cali
fornian semi-tropical eye. Above all
the Penney property could be and will
be readily and perfectly guarded against
undue curiosity and unwelcome in
trusion. And it is next door 10 the
house of Mr.. Joseph Adams OF New
York, who owns the twin-screW house
boat Amitie, which will be the flagship
of the Hoover angling navy.
Equally Cut OFF.
The Adams property is on the same
side of the Belle Isle causeWay with the
Penney property. It will be equally cut
off from the world by the new low wall
The Amitie will lie at Mr.. Adams dock,
Capt. Otwell commanding, awaiting Mr.
Hoover's reception of an inward call TO
the briny and fishy deep.
It is not thought however, That the
Amitie will lie there much. She Is more
likely to be stationed pretty continuous
ly some 40 or SO miles southwark along
the slender coral reefs or keys which
stretch like the elongated vertebrae OF
green sea monster toward Key West
and Havana. Preferably she will nestle
close to Palo Alto Key reminiscent OF
HooVers California home. She will
tarry amid islands Of dark-gresn man