Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-13
Continued From First Page.)

in Omaha. and they found within a
| few minutes after the first introduction
| that they had many interests in COM
mon, in addition to their Western
origins. It's nobody's business just
when George made up his mind he
would marry Miss Blake, and nobody'S
business when Miss Blake made up hel
mind that it wouldn't be such a bao
idea. It Is SUFFICIENT for the record thai
they we're married almost as soon as
Miss Blake had her Wellesley degree.
Ask Mrs. Akerson, now the mother OF
| three sturdy sons, about their romance,
| and she smilingly answers.
well, we both loved the mountains
George had worked a couple of Summers
at Yellowstone. We had both been In
the Rockies. We talked about them for
hours at a time"
Which only goes to prove that the
world does move. 1t is doubtful, in this
year of grace. if Harvard juniors and
Wellesley freshmen are able to discuss
anything as important as mountains.
In college, the youthful Akerson had
decided that in journalism he could fol-
low his bent for politics most prof1tably.
In this Summer vacation, therefore, he
formed a connection with 1.-The Minne-
apolis Tribune. That led directly to a
very fortunate "break." Upon gradual
ton In 1912 he was to join the staff Of
the Tribune. His early writings had
proved satisfactory.
But Just before commencement he was
flabbergasted to receive orders to proceed
at once to Baltimore to cover the Demo-
cratic national convention. He was
thrilled when he climbed aboard the
Federal Express in the South Station at
Boston and the thrill never left him all
during those hot, sticky days when the
friends of Woodrow Wilson were beating
down the strength of old Champ Clark.
Even now, 16 years after the event,
George can paint a vivid word picture
of the scene in the grim old armory, in
the pink Of gray dawn Of a June norm
ing, when Wilson finally reached the
necessary two-thirds.
Well grounded in the profession he
had chosen, remarkably well-informed
on politics and history, George Akerson
assembled the journalistic ladder by
rapid strides. In the Tribune office
he had come under the watchful eye of
w. H. Harry Hunter. the managing
editor. Mr.. Hunter liked this long
legged youngsters winning personality,
and he liked his ability to turn out a
fine bit of reporting. And to Hunter
young George gave the same sort of
loyal service he was later to render to
Herbert Hoover.
The Tribune sent Akerson to WASH
ington as a correspondent in the Fall of
1921, and his first big job of reporting
was the Conference on the Limitation Of
Armaments. During that Winter he
made his first important national con-
facts, although his first close associa-
ton with Secretary Hoover was still
some time in the future.
X X X y
lust after the war he had spent
a many months in the Northwestern
States, studying and reporting on the
remarkable growth of the Non-Partisian
League under the leadership of A. C..
Townley. Writing for n of the con-
sentative newspapers of the region,
young Akerson had a free hand to
criticize Townley in his more e~xtrava-
CANT undertakings, and he did so with
vigor. His training in politics on
vfnced Akerson that the farmers were
following false gods, and he did his
best to tell them SO.
When the farm bloc came into being
IN Congress. taking Its inspiration from