Evening star., 1947-07-06
Jack Garner Destroys His Memoirs
Turns Down Lucrative
Proposals From
Publishers

Publishers
Washington. He recalled that when
he went to Washington in 1903 the
country had a population Of 1885,
IT'S and that the cost of National
Government in that year, 1903, was
$486, ,439,3 ,307. The public debt was
81, ,159, ,405,913. He has seen the pop
ulation increase to 135 ,0O0, 600, the
expenditure of the last fiscal year
to around $4,000, ,0OO, 900 and the
public debt to quarter of a trillion
dollars.
Quiet About Himself
He also recalls that the year he
went to Washington the Wright
brothers made the first successful
airplane flight at Kitty Hawk. His
chief reccllections are of the House
Of Representatives. Joseph G. Can.
non was its Speaker and liege lord
MIR. Cannon held the House in vas.
salage. Mr.. Garner joined in the
move to shear Cannon of his power
but calls Uncle Joe" the greatest
of Speakers.
The House gave Garner a great
scope for his own talents. Hs
learned how to cross over the divid.
ing aisle in quest of Republican
votes, how to pivot a debate to gel
the greatest benefit for his party
and various ways and means OF
catching the Republicans of bal
ance. He liked the jousting and in.
fighting there, but will not talk Of
his own activities.
He will reminisce briefly on the
diverse company of Representatives
Senators, executive officials and
Presidents with whom he served
but, apparently lest you think him
a hostage to the past, he will change
the subject and tell you he is liv-
ing N the present and not the
past.
Even in private life Garner re-
CARDS that omnium gatherum, the
Congressional Record, as indispens-
able to him. He reads it carefully
during a congressional session. He
also reads two or three out-of- State
Zone of them the Wash
ington Star. c. K. Bergman is
his favorite cartoonisD and sew
eral Texas newspapers. He reads
rapidly. usually sitting on the
glassed-in porch of his home in a
chair presented to him by President
Truman.
Makes No Predictions
He sticks to his statement that he
to live to be SO and tells
you the reason he fixes that age is
that he served in public life for As
years and would have to live to SO
to attain his goal of spending more
than half of his life in the highest
estate of any American, that of
private citizen. .
Recently, he said that he could
never understand why any one en-
tered public life, but hastily added
that he hoped there would always
be an increasing number Of patri-
otic men willing to fill public Of
flee because there would always be
dire need for able public servants.
Once about the most astute po-
litical prognosticator in Washing
ton, he will not even make an Off
the-record prediction on the 194s
presidential election, but is known
to feel that in normal times the
have larger base than
his party and are likely to get a lit
tie better of it with the independent
voters.
just before leaving Washington in
1941 he predicted to friends that
the Democrats would win the con-
gressional election in 1912 and the
election in 1914 and
that the Republicans would take
Congress in 1916 and make a
-take-all sweep in 1948. The
up to now have been
fulfilled, but he declines to talk
about the 1948 portion of it.
All elections are to the bushy-
eyebrowed, silver-crested former
Vice President what spring train
ing trips are to baseball enthusiasts.
Any election may bring forth a
political Wagner, Cobb or Ruth-a
man who may 60 on to great pub
ic career ending in the White
He watches elections in all
the States.
High Regard for Hoover
Mr.. Garner is in excellent health
md buoyant spirits. His only worry
S the health of Mrs. Garner, who
las been i'll for two years. He
axes lively interest in his ranches
md other property, but his prin-
;iple concern is in his home place
here in Uvalde. 1 found him wear
ng pair of loose khaki trousers
and an open-collar shirt, engrossed
with the problems of his chickens
and turkeys. His pecan and honey
yield will be large this year.
He rises at daybreak, performs
,0nne chores hoe hreokfost u,o1kc