Vol 116 May 1928 No 1 GENERAL DAWES The Vice-President as He Looks to One of His Friends HE quality in General Dawes which his friends consider his finest is the quality of human sympathy. It has always seemed to me that he owes the possession of this to the fact that he has lived in a small town, a fairly large town, a great city and two national capitals. He has learned to know the people of these different communities. He can understand what the "home-folks" in the small towns of the Middle West are talking about, for he has been one of them. His early days in Nebraska gave him a first-hand understanding of the problems and hopes of the West. He knows the heart of the great city, for he has spent most of his business life in Chicago. I do not mean the financial heart alone, but the heart of the lowly as well. dispensed hot coffee and sandwiches to the long line of shivering men that shuffled before them. There were easier ways, involving no discomfort to himself, of relieving this suffering, but he chose the way that brought him into direct contact with these men and thus learned something which most men know only from reading. This early experiment in practical philanthropy led to another in later years, but on a larger and more regulated scale. After the tragic death by drowning in September, 1912, of his only son, he established the Rufus Fearing Dawes Memorial Hotel in Chicago. It was erected at a cost of $100,000, and during its first two years, furnished 294,222 lodgings with bath, at a cost of five cents each; 62,377 baths with lodgings in separate rooms at ten cents each; 118,515 wholesome meals at an average of six cents; and work for 3400 was found by the free employment agency of the hotel. One of my earliest personal recollections of General Dawes was in the hard times twenty or more years ago when there was much unemployment and distress. He had established a coffee-wagon over on the West Side, and night after night, in the bitter The success of this hotel led to the cold, he and Malcolm MacDowell organization of the Rufus F. Dawes Copyright, 1928, by THE CENTURY Co. All rights reserved. I Hotel Association "to own and operate hotels, restaurants and lodging-houses whereat the needy, the unemployed and men of impaired means may procure food and lodging at prices within their ability to pay; and if as a result of its operation any profits shall ever accrue to said corporation, the same shall never be distributed among the members of the corporation, but shall be forever dedicated and shall be devoted to aiding the poor and needy in such manner as the trustees shall from time to time determine." Another Rufus F. Dawes Hotel for men was built in Boston at a cost of $130,000 to accommodate 600 guests; and the Mary Dawes Memorial Hotel for women, in memory of the general's mother, was established in Chicago. In the Rufus Dawes's hotels safetyrazors are provided free. The menus and prices, as originally established, are of interest. Meat hash and beans.... 3 cents can testify to the appetizing wholesomeness and cleanliness of the food. This is intelligent welfare work of the highest order. 22 In General Dawes I find much that is reminiscent of the late Colonel Roosevelt. Not since the colonel dominated our national stage has there been an American in public life who combines so many of the colonel's picturesque qualities as does General Dawes, and this despite their many divergences of character and outlook. They were too much alike to be close friends. The general, like the colonel, loves out of door diversions. He is a good shot, if breaking seventeen out of twenty-five clay pigeons is good shooting. This he did at Waite Phillip's ranch near Cimarron, New Mexico, last July. As a fisherman, he would rate higher. In golf, he drives a long ball but lacks "form." His golfing idea is simple and direct. "Keep your eye on the ball and hit it hard." There are no fancy pre Coffee with milk and sugar 2 cents liminary wiggles, but it is amazing to Roll.... Macaroni and bread. I cent 3 cents see how far and straight he drives a ball. "Give me my slapstick," he says as he hands his pipe to the caddy and mid-iron. A "high stick," in the the caddy grinningly gives him the general's golfing terminology, is a lofter or mashie. This indifference to form prevents him from becoming a good golfer-but such, as nearly as I can gather, is not his ambition. He generally plays in the hundreds, but has been known to get into the nineties. As a horseman he lacks much of Colonel Roosevelt's skill; but then the colonel didn't have to keep a pipe lighted, which detracts considerably from spectacular feats of horsemanship. Like the colonel, his wide range of devoted friends includes both exalted and humble. Among his intimates are scholars, musicians, aviators, writers, financial giants, heads of nations and thousands of less conspicuous people who might be grouped generally under the head of "home-folks." One of his most valued friends is General Payot, high in the French service during the war. This general speaks no English and General Dawes speaks no French beyond a few mutilated words. Yet in spite of this, they were much together in France and by some mysterious means had established a perfectly satisfactory communication. Since the war, General Payot has paid a visit of some days to General Dawes in his home in Evanston, and they appeared to exchange their many ideas without any awkward lapses of silence. Another of General Dawes's wartime friends was Mr. Lloyd George, although their acquaintance had an unpropitious beginning. An important document had to be signed at a time when the most serious problem confronting the Allies was that of supplies. A dangerous state of confusion and inefficiency prevailed. All of the Allies except Great Britain had signed the document, which called for coördination of effort, and Dawes was sent to London to secure, if possible, the signature of Lloyd George. Arriving in London at the earliest moment, he called 10 Downing Street and got one of Lloyd George's secretaries on the telephone. When he made known his desire to see the premier at once on a matter of the greatest urgence, the secretary said it was quite impossible and most irregular. Dawes's response fairly blistered the wires. He slammed down the telephone, rushed to Whitehall and brushing astonished secretaries aside, crashed his way into the premier's presence. Before General Dawes left, Lloyd George's name was on the document. This was the beginning of a cordial friendship between the two. Later the premier recommended the general for the highest British decoration he received and made a trip to the United States especially to attend a banquet in the general's honor. 219 The surviving child of General and Mrs. Dawes is a daughter, the wife of Captain Melvin Ericson. But soon after the death of Rufus Fearing, the Dawes adopted two children, a boy and a girl. Dana is now at Lawrenceville preparing for Princeton and Virginia is nearly ready for boardingschool. Very early in the life of his adopted children, the general wrote a book commemorative of the scenic changes that had taken place in the household since the two infants were installed. It was copiously illustrated and only one copy of the book, hand-written and hand-illuminated, ever appeared. Whether it is still in existence is a matter of grave doubt. Later, to enliven a children's party, he wrote a play called "The Monkey Face Child" which was given with a large cast of children on several occasions. It involved a child, the son of re spected parents, who was abducted by a cruel circus man. This scoundrel dressed the boy up as a sort of "wild boy" and kept him in a cage. Virtue finally triumphed, the boy was restored to his family and the villain was given merited punishment. But such writings were mere recreations. With a more serious intent the general has written books on war supply and finance as well as a collection of articles on economic matters. Dawes has a youthfully eager and inquiring mind and a memory that enables him to retain the essentials of a very wide range of reading, both light and serious. "Merton of the Movies" and "Ruggles of Red Gap" were favorites. He liked Tarkington's "Plutocrat" and Ade's fables. He quotes "Nize Baby" and "Snowshoe Al." The short stories of Wodehouse have enriched a vocabulary already expansive. He is at home in Greek and Roman history, and has made an exhaustive study of the literature, from Plato down, bearing upon the Lost Atlantis. The early history of the Mayas in Yucatan is at his fingertips, and he has discovered things in the lore and native art of this vanished civilization which links up with Atlantis and the Cro-Magnons. In this connection he has announced to his friends that he will finance and head an expedition to explore this fascinating buried continent when he retires from office. He would do it intelligently if he ever carries out this plan. Yet with all the variedness of his intellectual and public life, Dawes has a less complex side. He lives simply, takes a nap in the afternoon one of his naps is historic—and now, nearing sixty-three, he has hardly a gray hair, only a suggestion of thinness on his scalp and an overwhelming zest in life. He has none of the showy indulgences which he could easily afford if his tastes were so inclined. His commodious house in Evanston with its splendid library is his only place of residence aside from the one he is obliged to maintain in Washington during his term of office. He has no country place, no yacht, no fast horses, no fancystock farm and he lives a clean and wholesome life devoid of swank and pretension. He balances his time intelligently between work and play. When he plays, he relaxes wholly. When he works, he focuses all his driving energy and forcefulness toward obtaining the desired result― which he does. To see him in his hours of relaxation one would appraise him as a man of great charm and magnetism and of invariable kindliness, buoyant with a keen and mellow humor and gifted as a raconteur. At such times the catholicity of his tastes and interests covers a striking range of subjects. One would not suspect the aggressive force that makes him a dynamo of action when occasion. requires. He entertains extensively but very informally, except when official formality is demanded. In fact, his general lack of formality is the despair of those who are sticklers for smartness and form. He loves the movies. At his home in Evanston, he has scores of friends in of an evening to see the early runs of popular films. After one of his Washington dinners to the President |