Evening star., 1933-04-11
BY DOLLY GANNl

III DoLLI oANNd
If had not been q central figure II
the so-called war of precedence"
! could not have imagined 1t possible fol
SO many words to be written on sucf
small foundations Of fact.
/ am not one of those who scoff al
newspaper reports, especially If thu
news fails to coincide with their opin.
ions or Is insufficiently laudatory bui
In the precedence controversy" / was
astonished at publication of rumors
easy to disprove. This is not blanket
accusation. Many newspaper CORE
spondents are careful and accurate and
among them number some Of my best
friends.
The war" was no war at sll; the
controversy" never reached proportions
lustifying the word. 1t was a tempest
in teapot. It was q mirage. One day
l could see it in front of me, next day
1t wasn't there. Then the old story
would get new start, and ! would hear
all over again that I was raising a
merry row as to where / should march
IN the line to state dinner and where
l should sit at the table.
However. even an absurd rumor usu-
ally mas start in a fact. So 1t was in
this. The fact Was that 1 faced in
creased duties when my brother became
vice president That he should have
an omclai hostess was important. The
wee PRESIDENT represents the President
IN social amenities, which are neces-
sary In official life, and the President
neither makes calls nor is entertained
outside the White House except when
ne calls upon visiting dignitaries and
attends the few dinners where his pres
ence Is required by tradition.
MY brother. with daily obligations for
which he had to have q woman's helm
expected me to serve as hostess. as
had been doing for years. He was a
wldoWer. His two daughters were SO
occupied with their families that they
Gould not move to Washington. I was
IiS only neIper on the social side, and
certainty he had been too good to me
ana l too devouted to him for me to
think OF deserting him or for him to
LINK OF allowing me to desert.
Avoidance OF my new duties was i'm
possible. If I had disliked them it
would have been outrageous for me to
retreat; but ! enjoyed my social activi-
ties. and was especially fitted for them
through long experience. The criticism
which might befall me for doing INV
DUTY was OF no consequence, but /
should have been truly distressed if
after falling In that duty, should have
found myself blamed for having shirked
Brother was asked casually by a corre-
spondent Just after the inauguration
whether was to be his hostess and
replied: "Of course" Brother wrote
the State Department I was to repre-
sent him. This required no answer, so
my orotner was astonished when Secre-
tsry keiioeg wrote that might sit at
the head OF our own table-a privilege
l certainty would have granted myself
without his permission!
Curtis Makes Protest.
A few days later the department in
formed the diplomatic corps that At
state social functions should be seated
after the Ambassadors wives. This was
not the result of any query or request
from the Vice President. The depart
ments spokesman acted on initiative
other than ours, and the statement was
accompanied by an explanation that
the ruling on seating arrangements ac-
corded with iternational diplomatic
usage.
In the inaugural procession had
ridden with my brother from Capitol
to White House and, according to Gus
tom, we had opened the inaugural
charity ball; also we had been the first
persons In the line at the reception.
Brother demurred to Secretary Kel.
losg's precedence ruling, writing that
the place Of the head Of his household
was not where the State Department
had indicated, but in the front Of the
line. SO to speak. Before this letter
was answered Mr. Kellogg retired and
was succeeded by Mr.. Stimson
Brother wrote him asking that the
Kellogg ruling be revised. Mr.. Stimson
was in something Of a quandary. 1t
was rare for q predecessors decision to
be upset in the State Department, yet
the Secretary did not wish to offend
the Vice President. The upshot was
that Mr.. Stimson proved himself
jolly good diplomat by referring the
puzzle to the diplomatic corps on the
ground, apparently, that our foreign
guests might properly pass upon So
cial question In which they were pri-
marily interested.
They decided the Vice Presidents
sister was entitled to the ranking place