OCTOBER, 1915
The Commoner
President Wilson Will Wed
Following: is iin Associated Press
dispatch:
Washington, Oct. 6. Woodrow
Wilson, the president of the United
States, announced tonight his engage
ment to Mrs. Norman R. Gait of
Washington. The date of the wed
ding has not been fixed, but it prob
ably will take place in December, at
the home of the bride-elect.
The brief announcement from the
white house made by Secretary Tum
ulty came as a surprise to official
Washington, but to a number of in
timate friends it has long been ex
pected. From this circle came to
night the story of a friendship whose
culmination was viewed as a happy
turn In the troubled and lonely life
of the nation's chief executive.
Daughter Figured In Matchmaldng
It was Miss Margaret Wilson and
her cousin, Miss Bones, who drew
Mrs. Gait into the white house circle.
They met her first in the early au
tumn of last year, and were so much
attracted by her that they sought her
out more and more frequently and
the friendship between them rapidly
ripened into an affectionate intimacy.
Mrs. Gait spent a month this sum
mer at Cornish as the house guest of
the president's eldest daughter. It
was through this intimacy of his
daughter and cousin that the presi
dent had an opportunity to meet and
know Mrs. Gait. One of the most in
teresting facts about the engagement
indeed, as told by friends, is that the
president's daughters should have
chosen Mrs. Gait for their admiration
and friendship before their father
did.
Widow of Business Man
Mrs. Gait is the widow of a widely
known business man of Washington,
who died eight years ago, leaving a
jewelry business that still bears his
name. She has lived in Washington
since her marriage in 1896. She is
about thirty-eight years of age and
was Miss Edith Boiling, born in
Wytheville, Va., where her girlhood
was spent, and where her father, Wil
liam H. Boiling, was a prominent
lawyer. ,
In the circle of people who have
known Mrs. Gait for many years she
has been regarded as an unusual
beauty, gifted with natural charm.
Friends speak of her as being con
stantly sought out as a delightful
companion, remarking especially on
her thoughtfulness and quick capacity
for anything she chose to undertake.
For many weeks Mrs. Gait and her
relatives have been frequent dinner
guests at the white house. Often she
has accompanied the president on
motor rides. She is not quite as tall
as Mr. Wilson, has dark hair and
dark eyes, and always is in stylish
attire. Her tastes are said to be
strikingly similar to those of the pres
ident, with a deep interest in liter
ature and charity work.
Friends of President Pleased
Friends of the president expressed
their pleasure over the announcement
tonight, not only because of Mr. Wil
son's personal happiness, but because
they felt this new companionship
would give him support and comfort
in his home life a vital need during
the hours of strain over the nation's
problems.
With the marriage of his two
daughters and the death of Mrs. Wil
son more than a year ago, the presi
dent's life had become oue of soli
tude. His absorption in official la
bors began to tell on him physically
and when a few months ago he began
to take a renewei interest in personal
affairs, his friends and members qf
Ms family welcomed the distinct
change which it brought about In his
health and spirits.
Mrs. Gait White House Guest
Tonight, at the end of a busy day
for the presid it, during which he
announced that ho would vote for
woman suffrage, took a firm position
in favor of national defense and re
ceived a nunibe- of callers, Mrs. Gait
was a dinner guest at the white
house. At the Eflpment when Secre
tary Tumulty stood in the executive
offices announcing the engagement to
a largo number of Washington cor
respondents who had been summoned
Tor the occasion the president and
Mrs. Gait were spending the evening
with Dr. Cary T. Grayson and MisB
Bones in the white house parlors.
Tho news was given out In a brief
statement which read: "The an
nouncement was made today of tho
engagement of Mrs. Norman Gait, of
this city and President Woodrow Wil
son." ,
Grover Cleveland was the last
president to be married in the white
House. Should Mr. Wilson eventual
ly decide to be married there, it will
be the third wedding in the mansion
under his administration, the first
being Jessie Woodrow Wilson and
Francis B. Sayre, being held in the
east room and the second between
Secretary McAdoo and Miss Eleanor
Wilson being solemnized in the blue
room.
Social Season Forthcoming
The announcement of the engage
ment was generally regarded as a
forerunner of an interesting social
season for Washington with the new
first lady of the land at the head of
the receiving line at official recep
tions. The wedding, it Is understood,
will take place before tho first of the
series of state receptions and dinners
i3 held.
Mrs. Gait was present at the first
social affair, participated In by the
president and Miss Margaret Wilson
in more than a year. It was a tea
given by Miss Wilson to neighbors in
the artist colony at Cornish, N. H,
Since the return of the president
to Washington he and Mrs. Gait have
spent manv evenings together, some
times at tho white house and often
at her home. Last week she occupied
a prominent seat in the president's
reviewing stand at the G. A. R. pa
rade. She was with her mother in
the midst of a circle of the president's
friends and wives of cabinet mem
bers. She was modlshly attired in a
flannel suit of pearl gray and wore
a large bouquet of flowers. Some of
the president's friends who may have
had an inkling of today's announce
ment were gathered about Mrs. Gait
in animated conversation. ,
The president was in a happy mood
tonight. The satisfactory settlement
of the Arabic case and the disposi
tion of many other important ques
tions pending, with the announcement
of his engagement, had buoyed his
spirits.
21
PILING IT UP
1 ' ' ' I i I i n
Now York World.
WHAT OUR WAR WASTE MIGHT
DO
In two years wo have spent nearly
a billion dollars for war" purposes.
How much is a billion dollars? . .
We all know what a dollar bill Is
a billion of them would make a pack
fiftv-flve miles high. In the last two
and a half years we have spent for
war a dollar for every minute which
has passed since tho birth of Christ.
Now, it is interesting to notice
what could be accomplished with our
war money if it were turned into con
structive channels. Let us apply it
to education. Estimating the cost of
the average university at two and
one-half millions, our annual war ex
penses would build and equip four
universities in every state of tho
union. The very best two-room mod
ern rural school can be built for
$4,000. Our annual war bill applied
to this purpose would build 2,000
such schools in every state of the
union. If applied every year it would
give every high-school student In tho
United States a high-school education
and tho necessary books. It would
also give a free college education to
six times tho number of people en
rolled In our colleges. The price of
ono battleship would more than pay
for all the school books used in tho
United States In a year.
From the standpoint or the philan
thropist, our yearly war budget
would provide the following institu
tions for the betterment of human
ity: ten hospitals at $200,000 each,
two insane asylums at $500,000 each,
four orphan asylums at $250,000
each, four blind schools at $250,000
each, four old people's homes at
$250,000 each, tw reform schools at
$250,000 each, two schools for de
fectives at $250,000 each, four Indus
trial training schools at $250,000
each, twenty agricultural high schools
at $50,000 each, a model farm In ev
ery county of tho United States at
$2,000, ono thousand visiting nurses
at $100 per month for tho prevention
of diseases, $250,000 for the relief of
the poor, and another million dollars
left for any other purpose. Christian
Herald.
A LIBERAL ADVANCE IN RUSSIA
Tho confusion of war and a plan
to increase the Russian cabinet by 10
members gave the Duma its chance.
It seized it by insisting that the 10
should bo responsible to tho Duma
and chosen by a majority voto of that
body. The pressure of events io so
great that tho government has con
sented to the election of five of the
new ministers by tho representatives
of tho people, tho remaining five to
be chosen by tho council of tho em
pire. The Duma was formed on the
m.w'lsil nt t-Vtn flafman fnfnorfa1 not1fo
Ut "" " 1'" J
ment, with tho ministers responsible
to tho executive alone, but through
this advance will make a closer ap
proach, in form at least, to a genuine
popular government than hag been
made so far by Germany herself, in
which tho representative system baa .
been much longer in effect.
This concession of five ministers
out of a rather numerous cabinet
may bo greater than now appears.
For, with part of tho cabinet respon
siblo to the court and a part to th
Duma, will not difficulties develop?
And will not the logical solution for
probablo complications bo found in
tho progress that will vest the choice
of all ministers in tho national legis
lature? St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
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WOULD YOU
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Vn VOi
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DESK , COMMONER OFFICE
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