The Banner-herald. (Athens, Ga.) 1923-1933, December 23, 1923, Image 4
PAGE FOUR ’’WILL TELL (By Associated Press) PARIS.—French mil!tt"y circles are somewhat anxious as to what General'Peishlng will i?ny to hi« book telling the story of tls ex periences in France during the war. The general’s purpose in com- ..»Jng to France on his present tr’n is understood to have been to get completo information on certain details necessary for the accuracy of his work, which will portray the activities of the American Expedi tionary Forces in Europe. The higher political world of Pads '.*• wondering whether tOie American , commander will go Vito the dis cussion he had with Premier flem- enceau, Marshal Foch, Oonpral re tain and others for some months during the middle part of his ca reer in France ju»t as the Ameri can army was preparing to go I- action, before July, 1918. General Pershing has taken an apartment In the fatfldopable Passy THB BANNERHEnALP, ATHENS. GEORGIA, BL'jg SUNDAY, DECEMRER j Friendship Between President Coolidge and.\ Shoemaker Lucey Promises to Become an American Legend. pass’on practical knowledge, and waa the same unquestioning adher- enee t0 (go g ea t an( j nio-,t thorough- going rules o( conduct’that have made, so It la laid, Calvin Cool- ldge’s reputation In Uaesachusetta. P ”"“^ER80NS who auhscrlha to I the doctrine that "even -a sbb| cat mar look at a king" a little while ago ascribed importance to an old ahoe- maker of Northampton, Mass., cause President Coolidge took the trouble to anther a letter the old man aent him after Mr. Coolldie entered the White House, i Others, and perhaps wiser ones, on the principle that a man "It ' known hr the companr he keeps,' ■ are Inclined to count’the friendship ' that was revealed as much to the ! favor ot the President aa to that i ot tho shoemaker, j Endorses Coolidge | A visit to the basement ahoemak- l In* shop of James Lucer on Oothls Street, Just off Main, In Northamp- ' ton and a talk with the upstanding, * grer-halred, bine-eyed craftsman ' 11,,!. eitiovs *11! mak# clear to anyone the raa- quarter of Parle whore he enjoys , Mendahln for . more peace and quiet than at the hotel In the Place de Concorde in the busy center of the. city,\ and Is there putting the finishing touche* to the book. This arrangement ii quite temporary but the general han not yet fixed nny date for his return to the United States. The discussions referred to grew ■, out of the insistence of the French general staff that the American units ehoulu be distributed and in corporated into tho French and British aimles and should not be organized into an army ai such w>th an Independent general staft and upon equality with the oi'^er allied armies operating ““ * ' western bronV the Queen Mary Has Hard Time With Xmas Shopping IA/X DON—Christmas holds the same worries for Queen Mary that It does for any moth er, and she har> been spending the last few weeks In hurried trips to the London stores making purchases of gifts which* It Is whispered. Include several expensive pieces of jewelry destined for members of the royal family. Her only grandchild, the son of Princess Mary, will probably be the re cipient of an elaborate aet of tralna and blocks which the queen is raid to have bought at a West End store* The shopping >xpeditions have not been limited to. Her Majesty for King George and ^ . other members of the royal lihtt 1 family have been touring the west and mercantile establish- | " • 1 * ments lately muhlng up their • ' "* extensive gift lifts. However the personal gifts of the king and queen form only the small* or part of their Christmas phllo * nnthropy for there aro hun dreds of employss’nt their bev- eral residences, and court of* , flclals as well whom tradition says most be remembered at Tuletide. The ancient ceremony of be stowing gifts on household em- • ployes is carried out In the pnl- 1 * • ‘ ace as In the home of nny Eng lish squire. The servants are admitted to the drawing room in a bddy and line up along the wall. When the king or the — squire, whichever the benefac tor may be enters the saloon throe Is n chorus qf “Merry . Christmas, sir” nfter which the p’l master walks down the lino and r ‘* nrr**nta rennh n r-lff •on Mr. Lacey', Arm friendship far ; Calvin Coolid*. 1. on. ot th. flneit i .ndoriemenfa that Haw England ! President eonld ban., ! Such a trip will leave the visitor ' Arm In the conviction that hero je a friendship founded on tno mutual Integrity, honesty, thorous'uu^s [snil pride ot work ot both shoe- ■ maker and President Tho conclu- j alon will ho that It Mr. Coolidge !s ■ as good a president as Mr. Lucey •Is a ahoemaker; It he has the en thusiasm for his job, ths careful ness In choosing the best materials i to work with and tbs patience In ■ shaping them to their most effec- 'live and reliable uses that James Lucey has, he will ba a very good' .President Indeed. Reportorlal Assault* ’ At ths time the writer talked ■with Mr. Lucey the shoemaker had .been the objective ot reporters ifrom half a dosen cities for halt ■a dosen days. Some ot them had 'come flaunting ton dollar bills In Ihls face lo persuade him to talk I about his friend. These he had .waved aside with contempt. Others , I bad come tactfully and epoken aa lone gentleman to another. To these (the shoemaker made laconic rarela- :tlons about hts connection with I President Coolidge or had occa sionally flooded over with seem- ‘lngly Irrelevant anecdotei bear ing on the various characters In ^Northampton. They bad been only apparently Irrelevant, however, for In the telling of each one the Hardy .Independence and the keen judg- 'tnent of character possessed by the [Old shoemaker were mad* evident , Ths Legand > The occasion for reportorlal as saults may ha told again hare, for quite likely It wtll b. Included In ■the traditions and histories 'of tM Ipersoual characteristics ot thh ntSf to. American people hive called to he their presidents^ Coolldge’s ‘ “ r tho M 1 r each with a Rift usually a bank. note. In the . palace the and only eontabloirlth Lucey the shoemak er; Lincoln's swapping of stories around the cracker barrel; Roose velt’s thousand and one character istic contacts with tho ordinary folk who kapt him in touch with the beating heart of America— there Is nothing Incongruous in the relating ot these and other human aspects of American presidents. The occasion then was this; James Lucey had written * latter of prid* and congratulation to Mr. Coolidge when tha latter suc ceeded to the , presidency. Mr. CopUdge immediately-addressed an answer toV "Jim Lucey, who would sather he called a good shoemaker than the president's cobbler, friend and philosopher." The letter read: ’-N6t of lea do I lea you or writ* to ypb, (mt If >t w.ro not for yon nljlnot he here, and I want to t*|l you how much I lava yon. Do not work too hard. Try to enjoy yourself In your well deserved leisure ot sge. Yours sincerely, Calvin CooHdge.” President-Maker Ths meaning of Mr. Coolldge’s saying that If It were not tor Jim Lucey he would not hare boen president was soon explained/ As polttlcst Influence among the Irish Republican voters early la the PresIdsnt'B political carwr Lncsy had bfdnfcht In enough extra votes to insure Coolldge’s election to the legislature. ~ —" * "What' Was behind the friendship and the "love" took more careful •tody to reveal. It cam* out eventually as Mr. Lucey stood stolidly before bis last on day In August working any at repairs on a woman's "turned" shoo. He refused to Interrupt his work merely to talk. It glinted the lucid blue eyes ot tbs sir ty-slx years old man as hs occa sionally turned from the Job to em phasize a remark. Even the small- tensed, steel-rimmed spectacles, tho rigorously lanndared bins shirt, tha bristling grey-and-brown nous- taohe and the Armly aet Jtw which occasionally opened to afford exit tor a good steel nail that was ham- mored vigorously In to the pises of hemlock tanned leather, that Mr. B waa molding Into a heel that "outwear three pair* ot theso new-fangled sort," seemed to give fugitive glimpses of the spirit that sustained the friendship between president and shoemaker. They told of value given for vain* re ceived. "Vain*" and "quality" were word* Mr. Lncsy proved fond ot using In speaking of either work or personalities. Personal Histories • It davaloped that th* common sympathies that draw th* Presided and tha ahoemaker together were revealed not only In their common attUnd* toward their different Jobs bnt even In thalr personal histories. Cal' Coolidge comas from a lint of they found a 1 common ground in their proud Insistence on ethics. Success Comes Success came to Coolidge *jld ho climbed from one office to another, but though his visits to Lucey's shop became of necessity less fre quent they continued to be aa loy ally made. Tho last .hue was In April of this year, and Mr. Lucey has a fondly cherished memento ot tt In tho copy ot a letter Mr. Coolidge put tho time necessary Into Ing shoemaking as a hand!- Tho handicraftsman, concluded Lucoy, la dying out The have done-for him. No “Cobbler” Jim Lucey scorns the name ot cobbler because to him it means someone who putters at a job. "There were years when I did no repairing at all,” he said. M X made ‘Not that machines are not all right there's a man with brains to them to ateer them right," hi, ceded honestly. "Even an ails bile would be no good If yos t. to steer it through a awamp," This brought him to the mu of materials. ' “Pm a leather man,” he „ sniffing contemptuously at vert other shoe materials that had offered him for nse. "Toe ca .'. a good Job ot shoemaklag with er stuff. It won’t autch right, can’t cut it right And none o! will wear Ilka real good lotthet. '“I Want Leather" “Remember tha war?" he aih "Did they send anything bat | w er over for the soldiers? ot con they didn't. They wanted leathi I want leather.” His mind returned to ths. tlon between ahoemaklng and ih repairing. "Sometimes I think," | said, "repairing takes no skill than making sh« Of course yon can do had Joh either. Lncsy quality both, and charges •for his work.' , He looked at nail hs h*d drawn from his month. He dlif smile, though on* could see he pleased. In this reapect he shorn throughout the talk the same passivity that Is generally ascrll# to President CooHdge. thrifty New England pioneers who came over In the eighteenth cen tury and ho la like unto them. Jim Lncoy was himself a pioneer who came oyer In the nineteenth cen tury. In 1SS0 to hs exact. Both had sought with Indefatigable energy and uncompromising integrity to make their respective niches in the world. Lacey said his family was origi nally French. Tha Irish of It - "The De Looeys cam* tooths County Kerry among the klllarnoy Lakes six hundred years ago. Pretty soon they dropped the De and now they are more Irish than tha Irish 8H0P WHERE FRIENDSHIP STARTED Jim was apprenticed as a shoe maker about tho tlm* ot the Franco- Prusslan war, there In County Ker- He became a good craftaman. In 1880 h* came to America, Arst working In Boston and Cambridge, then down In Connoctlcnt, but set tling.- upon Northampton before 1885, chledy heesuse It was a col lege town. Smith College la at. Northampton, and Amherst is a short distance away. To, Amherst, early In the 80‘a came Cal’ Coolidge. Before long he cam* to Jim Lnoey to get' his shoes repaired. The two often sat long In philosophical conversation on the chanees of life. Aftqy Cal' left Amherst and begnn law’prac tice In Northampton he continued to go to Jim Lacey's shop—the same shop In which the latter 00% piles his trade. When politics called the young Coolidge, Lucoy proved *1 an Invaluable counsellor. IIo'could proved the correspondence. It was slgnldcant ot the effects ot the vis its of akeptlcal metropolitan re porters that Mr. Lacey thought without It* being requested of fir ing proof for his word. Imagine, if yon please, anyone's doubting Jim Lucay'a word In Northampton! Bnt when one becomes a national AgurC one most be prepared against the charge ot lying. I'From Arst to Mat—hla good shoe- mjker’s last—tho sturdy depend- ab«ty ot Jim Lucey stood out It shoes. I do repairing now because persons are not willing to pay for the time and work that go Into a. head-made shoe. I made two pairs for a man last winter onq he thought twenty dollars a pair was high for them. A man can't make a living now making shoes by hand unless he chargee thirty dollars a pair. Ha can’t make more than Ave or alx pairs a week and do a right Job, while the factories maka hundreds ot thousands a day." Auld Lang 8yr.e The old shoemaker paused In re gret over th* days that were be ginning to go thirty-two years ago when h* moved hla shop to It* pres ent location. "I bad to rata* the house and move it hack six yard* to get my shop built under It," he ex plained. "I didn't have much mon-. ey, bnt they trusted me for what I didn't have. I paid off every penny, and I own the house now." No on* now, he said. Is willing to Foreign Trade "People send their shoes to i to be Axed even after they leav Northampton," he said present,'' "From Philadelphia and Pittsburg and other placer.- A good deal < my work goes outside the town si they send me some awfully nice Ii ter*. I wish Pd kept them." A good ds«l of Coolldge’s wot has gone “outside the town* t nod for tho same reason. It 1 honest and thorough. That Is ( reason James Lucey-will'give js and which other Northampton rts dents Wltj gtve you. And Just os James Lacey d« not expect others to go hick 1 their support of His work, beciu ho knows It Is "quality" work. ■ he baa not a doubt that Coolldgs will succeed himself as President Tha Next President "Yon don’t head him off," he ssld confidently. "He's alright, and body’s going to bare that Job unlfl my friend la through with It* Having said that Mr. Lncsy tool a piece of leather off his bench tm Intimated that h* waa too buy talk any more. ■• Old Time Spirit Of Christmas in France A gain abanjca la that someone elso K& maker (he distribution while fcwr '» Th fir Majwtfe* look on. In the - (case of King George this cfrS* tnony la the cause of a large tts- , flcit in the royal purse. The monarch also sends an* nually thousands 9! handsome-^ . Thriftmas cards on which Is • engraved a picture deplcltliig aome Incident in the history of • his rofsl ancestors- These cards lerally sent to the royal ties at d peerage of other coun tries to foreign statesmen and diplom kta to^tnembenf of the Knells: 1 peerage and to person al frle ids. Royal gift giving Is mostly.a one-sided affair, for although a mouse may look at a king he mUst n6t send him a gift of ■ - greater value than a Christmas .card because the king and queen have always made It a le that they will not receive any presents from personages of Inferior rank onless they are members of the family or close personal friends. PICTURE GAME” OPERATOR8 FACE GAMBLING CHARGE SAVANNAH* Ga.—Agents "picture games- approached of this city recent (By As;oolated Press) PARIS—Christmas in the real old time spirit has come back to France. After a long eclipse by New Tears as the annual occasion for the exchange of gifts, \he children’s Influence for a Christmas gtft-glvliig time has gained the upper hand and Santa Claus has come Into his own again. Pearl necklaces and diamonds frill be given as usual on New Year’s though on a aomewhat re duced scale, but the greatest busi ness In 'years is being done In jumping jacks, dolls, toy railroad trains and airplanes for the young sters* wooden shoes on Christmas mornln*;. The fathers of large femlliea who the season as Ih New York. Department store managers saf that rtrade this season promises to surpasa'all records In the toy section, though falling short of pre vious years frf the sale of girts for grown ups. ignorant of his animosity (and his of his 1 exist- contempt for me)—or of ty cnce. To the best of my recollection this assault in the General As sembly, by a representative, upon a native born Georgia woman (soon to become a nonagenarian) is with out precedent. I may be mistak en in my opinion, hut I am im pressed ho could be held reat>on- siblo for the attack in * plain court of justice. Hts right to hail mo into that legislative^ meeting for condemnation was uncalled for, unprovoked and Medicative of coarse manners to say the least of ita' character or Its assumacy—by legislative authority. ent. I methods of aspiring cam 1924. The member from Ben Hill fairly erupted ‘because of my temerity. He had to explode—as ty. He i a legislator—to relieve his aystem of his dislike for me, Now. Mr. Editor, I can only tell my side of this episode—through Georgia newspapers. If the Btn Hill man enjoys the right to halo women into the General Assembly and condeipif them before the leg islature, a good many masculines will greet that fact with cheer. If Georgia women have the right to Jon, to hold office, to vote, to petiti pay taxes and claim all as their negal privileges, they will enjoy had no opportunity to bep™-. having them confirmed by public dependent. Ju.t at the hour , I would not have asked to( ODlni “ Mr Grinc . i „ n , in . realization, death laid It. cold hand r,ito „ 'S in h LTlhm oplnIon. Mr. Grincr, I an, in- Wo him if I ! formed, is a member of Governot Athenians May Be Heirs to A $250,000 Estate ANDERSON, 8. C.—Fate dealt unkindly with O. W. Brown, well kpown hotel-keeper of Athens, Ga.. and at the same time has dumped the contents of the horn of plenty Into the lap of J. A. Brown of Ivs, 8. C., n^ir this city. These two Browns .brothera have been waiting for years fo«* the di vision of n Virginia estate, whose proceeds would make them both upon the brother at Athens. The other brother leaves Anderson Un Cdlpej torn i*ys to other brother 1 day or two for Cdlpepper Court- boure, Va., summoned there 'by these 1 vord from attorneys to participate things to express hi* dislike, his , la the dlvlalon of a 8250,000 estate, invitation, while Governor Walker endeavored to explain his call for LETTERS FROM THE PEOPLE waaTntolzrabK)' P ] flouted with tha charge of go ini before the Ways and Means Com mittee of the House, to ask that - u*r be not hasty in plunging the -j 'stats Into turmoil, uncertainty and ask the privilege of defending my a'gdd self from charges that I feel snre the "presi gang" will under stand and sympathise with the co- woriter and aged member—neatly The Banner-Herald: On December 3, 1923-while the , I Legislature was discussing tax ...I— during the special sea- ly. for permlMlon to Install the de- lfon _ thB „« m ber from Ben Hill vices In several local bu.lneu^l—... _ capacity—I had experience after the civil war, and . , „ ''county rose In his place, to assail I proffered wily experience in I but were re hired. However me> c |,|ming aa be said, his “right my limited capecity, in regard to ihe tames were Installed anwayj,, comment on the political aa- taxes and the danger of piling on contrary to ordere and the bust- poet, Mrs. Rebecca L. Felton, two Income taxes, federal and state ness house, operating them are now t for he Had Bo respect for a woman, —with ad valorem tax, tale, tax, facing gambling charges The after she entered politic*.” classification tax, and other prop- 5,. games are operated by putting n There were twe women, sitting oaitiona needless te mention her*, coin In a slot and pulling *i cord. V, members from Fulton and Bibb A* a cltlxeB of Georgia, a tax- picture coming out of the box counties, at that time. As l am payer, a voter, and_with liberty to r a'number whlrh If lucky only a private citizen and they bad accept political office, if I could prize. Chief Hendry .entered polities sucessfully, and get it, I think I had the privilege machines -straight ’were bona fide legislators them- to tell the committee that the pco- devices In violation of -.elves, he was either afraid to ns- pie, the voters, the taxpayers, had and State lira-. In giving his -ail them by name, or he decided Idcman&ttj certain legislative :ic- refusal to allow them to operate fn to make me a target for insult jtion In regard to ,tl j, in dealing on tax revis ion—in a hurry. (He raved J An invitation had been extended by the governor himself for any- body and everybody to express 1 decided to accent the invitation. their likes etc. I did net offer any so-called erudi tion on teaching Moat respectfully, MRS. REBECCA L. FELTON, Carteraville, Ga. December 17, 1923. GOVERNMENT ACCEPTS SENATOR HARRIS' PLAN WASHINGTON—Senator Harris, of Georgia/ was Informed by department of agriculture Frlday thnt, a this suggestion, opening, and closings of the cotton market* at New Tork.'New Orleans and Liverpool would lie broadenet n 11.15 a. m. and 4 p. m. from Arling ton. In addition to the regular daily and weekly summer!** rent qut at 5:Se p. m. The reports In turn will be hroodci-t by the depart- ment's stations at Atlanta, Char lotte, N. C-; Auburn. A!« ; AsaUs Port Worth andt Dallas, Trx„s and Memphis. The arrangement has been made, Fenntor Harris explained, so that the cotton producer*, especially in th»* t m.tll towns may h; left J>y a Rrandfathsr, Strawder Gaines, sines whose doath twenty years ago the estate, consisting of realty and bonds, has been In slow proceaa of settlement, O. \V. Brown had been for ten year* or morcthe proprietor of the Athens hotel, and was widely known for his hospitality. He died Sun day, and the funeral wa» held Tuesday. *T rat at the funeral with mixed emotions,” said J. A. Brown, of lea, Just returned from Athens. "My brother and I have waited long for . this estate settlement and It grieved j me to know that he was denied the realisation of his (lopes. There are only four legatees left. The dlVt slon of the estate will occur next week, and I will be ther?.” J. A. Brown, well alon? in years said It was, of course a nice Christ mas present and his pleasurs was only marred by the deata of brother. Attorneys f4r L. C. Brown, eldest •on of the late Mr. G. W. Brown here nre working on the matter ’of the above estate, it waa loaned yesterday. White Man Held On Liquor Charge John Murrey, white, was arrest- cil Saturday with t gallons and 2 Pints of whisker, according to C. fteagravea, and polleetn Weatherford, Moore YOU can FIND them in the WANT COLUMNS Our classified columns will save you unlimited trouble—if you are seeking a maid, a cook, a chauffeur, a bookkeeper, or any other experienced help. Into many homes will your advertisement go—and when you pUe . see the number and high character of the replies—you will real ize the advantages of advertising in BANNER-HERALD Phone 75