Evening star., 1947-10-16
Pen Women Told
of Noted DwelIers
M White House
Bv Ruth Dean
By Ruth Dean

Famous personalities who have
occupied the White House figured in
talks yesterday at the first postwar
celebrity luncheon" given by the
District Branch of the National
League of American Pen Women at
Hotel 24O0.
net Whitney, English born
author OF Abigail Adams" biogra-
ply OF the wife Of the second presi-
dent and Merriman Smith, author
OF THANK You, Mr.. President"
were featured speakers.
Mrs. Whitney, who until her mar
rage to an American during the
World War was a British citizen.
explained that it was her curiosity
about the American Revolution and
= poem on the Adams family writ
ten by Stephen Vincent Benet.
which led her into a study of Abb
gail Adams.
After completing my research I
became an ardent enthusiast for
the American Revolution" declared
Mrs. Whitney. She explained that it
was after much effort that she was
able to secure permission to see the
original correspondence of the
Adams family. This enabled her to
gain an insight into her heroine S
character which she would not have
gotten merely through historical
works, she pointed out.
Mr.. Smith, whose first book COW
ers his years as a White House cor
respondent during the Roosevelt
administration, explained that his
next book, The President is Many
Men," will be more detailed study
of the job of President, tracing its
growing complexity from early ad-
ministrations to the present.
"As recently as Teddy Roosevelt's
administration" he cited for ex-
ample, "the White House personnel
only numbered 40. Now.it takes 800
persons to keep the President in
operation"
The White House announcement
that all state dinners will be called
off in compliance with the Presi-
dents food-saving program, came
q few minutes before MIR. Smith
attended the luncheon.
There's one good thing about not
having state dinners, 1t saves the
silver" he observed, and recalled an
incident during the Wilson era when
400 pieces of silver were found miss
ing after q large reception.
Its amazing what the people do
to their Presidents" Mr.. Smith de-
clared. referring to the New Years
reception which left President
Hoover with hand so bruised and
injured that the famous White
House custom was abolished. with
little things like missing silver and
handshaking," the speaker con-
cluded, "it's no wonder that Presi-
dent Harding once remarked to a
friend, 7 wonder why any one would
ever want to be President"
Other speakers on the program
included Miss Muna Lee, poet and
translator of the works of several
Latin American bards, and Ruel P.
Tolman, director of the National
Collection of Fine Arts.
Mrs. Trudie Lyon, president of the
District Branch, introduced the
special guests, who included Mrs.
Thor Thors, wife of the Icelandic
Minister; Mrs. Benjamin F. Buckley,
national president of the Daughters
Of Colonial Wars; Mrs. Arthur
Houghton, president of the District
Dow; Mrs. John Donaldson, presi-
dent of the Puerto Rican American
Women's League, and the following
presidents of local branches of the
Pen Women; Miss Elizabeth Smart.
of the Chevy Chase Branch: Mrs.
Helen Sutton Booth, of the Alexan-
dria Branch. and Mrs. Nellie Warner
Hallock, of the Baltimore Branch.
Of1cers of the league honored at
the head table were Mrs. Blanche
Smith Ferguson, and Mrs. Victoria
Faber Stevenson, past national pres
idents; Mrs. j. Emmett Sebree, first
national vice president, and Mrs.
Theodore Tiller, past president and
founder of the District Branch.