He came in, moving slowly, stood close behind his desk, and said,
"Well, gentlemen, what is there that I can tell you?" He spoke very
quietly and deliberately. The Cabinet he said had discussed problems
relating to the "hang-over" (as he put it) of the War, in particular the
trade situation of the world. He mentioned that he did not desire to be
quoted directly. He had not been "annoyed" but he had been "distressed,"
he said, by having been so quoted not long ago. The top button of his
coat was buttoned. His cuffs were stiffly starched. He inclined his head
a good part of the time to one side. Sometimes half closed his eyelids.
Then would open them very wide, and make an outward gesture with his
hands, accompanied by something like a shrug of the shoulders. Close up
I was struck by the bushiness of his eyebrows. He wore a single ring,
mounting a rather large light stone. No pin to his tie. He swung
backward and forward on his feet. Put on shell-rimmed nose glasses to
read. Sometimes pursed his lips slowly. As he talked absently rolled a
small piece of paper he had picked up from his desk into the shape of a
cigarette. His talk had a slightly oratorical roll. He was exceedingly
patient and exceedingly courteous. His general atmosphere was one of
deep kindness. In conclusion he said, "Glad to see you again."
"That's pretty nice," was the comment of one of the newspaper men as we
emerged from his presence.
As we moved away through the grounds my friend dilated on a somewhat
whimsical idea of his. This was to this effect. In motion picture plays
(my friend insisted) kings were always much more kingly in appearance
and manner than any modern king would be likely to be. But (he declared)
it would be very difficult for a motion picture concern to get hold of
any actor to play the part who would look so much like an American
President as President Harding.
We stopped in to look at the east room, now again open. A character who
had evidently not been born in any of the capitols of Europe was
admiring the place vastly. He looked with especial approval at the
enormous chandeliers, those great showers, or regular storms, of glass.
"Pretty hard to beat," was his patriotic comment.
III
It's a big old building, dark inside, the Washington Post Office. He
looked like some sort of a guard about the premises who was too tired
to stand up and so did his guarding sitting in a chair. My friend had
got so accustomed to inquiring our way to the office of Secretary
Hughes, and of Secretary Weeks, and so on, that he asked where we would
find Secretary Hays.
The man looked at us very contemptuously. "The Postmaster General?" at
length he boomed. Well, he was on the fifth floor. As we stepped from
the car my friend remarked on the practice universal in Washington of
men removing their hats when in the presence of women in elevators.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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