Iowa
Old Press
Sioux City Journal, Thursday, Feb. 7, 1907
LOTHROP SAW ROOSEVELT
AND HE FOUND HIM FRANK AND OPEN.
AN ADMIRER OF VETERANS.
President Says the Spanish-American Was a Skirmish in Comparison with the Civil War—Lothrop Saw Former Sioux Cityans.
Capt. J. S. Lothrop, who has just returned from a business trip to Washington, D.C., called upon President Roosevelt at the White House and found him frank and open, as a man who has nothing to conceal. Capt. Lothrop said the greeting which he received from the President was even effusive.
Capt. Lothrop went to the White House armed with a letter of introduction from Hon. Leslie M. Shaw, Secretary of the Treasury. In the letter Secretary Shaw mentioned the fact that Capt. Lothrop was a member of the Iowa senate when the secretary was governor of Iowa.
“The President read the letter and warmly shook hands with me,” Capt. Lothrop said. “He remarked, ‘So you were in the Iowa senate when Shaw was governor? Well, I’m very glad to see you.’ ” We then had a very pleasant little conversation, during the course of which he observed the Loyal Legion button on my lapel. He pointed to that and I told him I went all the way through with Gen. Sherman. The President said that meant business, in comparison with which the Spanish-American war, in which he fought, was a skirmish.”
Statter Remains Until July.
In the office of the Secretary of the Treasury, Capt. Lothrop ran across Arthur F. Statter, who is one of the three assistant secretaries. Mr. Statter, according to the prevailing opinion in the department, Capt. Lothrop said, probably will remain in office until July, although Postmaster General Cortelyou will succeed Secretary Shaw March 4.
Congressmen Hubbard, Haugen and Birdsall are living with Senator Dolliver at his house on Massachusetts avenue, where Capt. Lothrop called upon Mr. Hubbard.
The captain had a nice visit with his old friend, Speaker Cannon. He lived for many years in Mr. Cannon’s district in Illinois and used to campaign with him.
Cannon Tells a Story.
“Joe asked me particularly about Perkins,” Capt. Lothrop said, “and told me a little story about how the appropriation for the Floyd Monument was saved. The $5,000 which was being asked for by Mr. Perkins to be added to the $5,000 from the state of Iowa, was in the general appropriations bill. It had got to be along in the early hours of the morning approaching March 4. Cannon was addressing the House from a position in the main aisle. The report of the conference committee, of which Cannon was a member from the House, came in and it showed that the $5,000 asked for by Mr. Perkins has been stricken out. In a minute or two Perkins learned that Cannon had dealt his item the knockout blow and he pushed his way down the aisle to where Cannon was standing and began to upbraid him. Telling me his story Joe said he ejaculated, “Why, Perkins, was that yours?” When Perkins told him that of course it was his, Joe said, ‘Well, why in hell didn’t you tell me?’ Perkins replied that he did not suppose the conference committee would strike out a little item for that amount for an object so worthy when there were many large items of less merit being allowed to stand.
“Cannon could not get away and he told Perkins to go over to the Senate and see Allison and Hale and tell them that if they would place the item in the general deficiency bill that there would be no objection from him when it came to the conference agreement. Perkins lost no time in seeing Allison and Hale, who at first were reluctant to place the item on the list after it had been killed, but it finally was placed there and the appropriation was secured.”
Called on Capt. Belden.
Capt. Lothrop called upon Capt. W. S. Belden, who is the chief of a division in the postoffice department, and found him looking well generally, but his hands are badly crippled from an attack of rheumatism, which he suffered a year or more ago.
The principal business which took Capt. Lothrop to Washington was to look up some old records in the War Department. While there he also looked after the pensions of a number of old soldier friends and spoke to Speaker Cannon regarding the claim of a soldier’s widow. These latter acts were purely gratuitous on Capt. Lathrop’s part.
[transcribed by L.Z. Oct 2020]