Evening star., 1937-06-16
To Hold Three-Day Series of
Conferences With Over
400 Congressman.
MEMBERS OF CABINET
ALSO TO BE PRESENT
Better Understanding Between
White House and Capitol
Hill to Be Sought.
BY J. RUSSELL YOUNG.

President Roosevelt is going to Sc
cluded Jefferson Island in Chesapeake
Bay on June "a to hold a three-day
series of conferences with more than
400 Democratic Congressman.
During his stay on the island as
guest Of the Democratic Fish and Gun
Club, the President will talk separately
and in groups with every Democratic
member of the House and the Senate,
taking the opportunity to discuss the
administration program and to at
tempt to bring about a better under
standing between the White House and
Capitol Hill.
The conferences were made possible
by the Democratic Senators who are
officers Of the Jefferson Island Club.
OF which Senator Robinson OF
Arkansas, majority leader of the Sem
ate, is president. Robinson. with Sen
ators Pittman of Nevada, Tydings of
Maryland, Duffy Of Wisconsin and
Speaker Bankhead Of Alabama, called
at the White House today to invite the
President to visit the island. The
White House announced Immediately
afterward that Mr.. Roosevelt had ac-
cepted with pleasure"
Cabinet Members to Attend.
All members of the cabinet except
Secretary of Labor Perkins also have
been invited to the parley Miss
Perkins was barred because the party
will be strictly stag" Guests like
wise, will include members of the
Presidents secretariat and heads of
several Of the major independent
agencies.
The President will leave Washington
Thursday afternoon, June "a, for An
napolis. There he will board the
presidential yacht Potomac to make
the l3-mile journey down the bay to
the island, which is situated about a
nile from the Eastern Shore. The
water Immediately around the island
is not deep enough to permit the
Potomac to come Immediately up to
the club house dock, which will neces-
state the yacht anchoring about 2
miles off the shore of the island. The
President will proceed to the island
in small launch.
The facilities of the club house are
not sufficient to care for all those in
vited to take part in the conferences.
Therefore, it has been arranged to
divide the Democratic congressional
group, which numbers 4O7 Senators
and Representatives. into three parts
and have each unit visit the island
for a day. The conferences will start
Friday morning, June 25.
Individual Conferences Arranged.
The Presidents schedule will be SO
arranged as to afford An opportunity
to reach each person in the first group
to have an individual conference with
him. Buffet luncheon will be served
and there will be fishing, boating,
skeet shooting, horseshoe pitching and
other forms of outdoor sports
The second group will be taken to
the island the following day and the
remaining group on Sunday, the last
day Of the conference The President
plans to leave late Sunday afternoon,
arriving back at the White House
some time after dark
The President was q guest of the
club two Summers ago, when he spent
week end on the island. On that oc-
casisn the trip was to afford the Presi-
dent rest and recreation in the COM
pany Of large group of party asso-
ciateS
The coming conference series was
engineered by Robinson and Pittman,
the latter chairman of the Board of
Governors of the club. For some time
there have been complaints on the
part Of Democratic members of the
Senate and House that they have been
unable to confer with the President
on matters of personal interest, and
this, along with the realization on the
part of congressional leaders that
there is some belligerency on the part
of Democratic Senators and Repre-
sentatives, particularly the former, is
supposed to have prompted the par
leys.