The intimate papers of Colonel House arranged as a narrative by Charles Seymour.

INTIMATE RELATIONS WITH THE CABINET 139

'December 22, 1913: McAdoo's carriage met me [upon
arrival in Washington] and I drove to his home for breakfast.
He came to my room in his pajamas, half asleep. He had
been up practically all night so as to be in touch by telephone
with the House and Senate Conference Committee, which
did not reach a conclusion until five o'clock this morning.
'During the morning I remained in McAdoo's private
office, telephoning some of the Cabinet members and making
some memoranda of things I desired to discuss with the
President....
'December 23, 1913: I walked with McAdoo to the Cabinet
meeting and saw the others as they assembled. Redfield was
particularly anxious to show me some statistics regarding our
exports, which he considered interesting....
'January 16, 1914: I spoke to each member of the Cabinet
as they came in, and talked to Lane about the conservation
of our radium deposits, strongly urging it....
'April 28, 1914: McAdoo and I went back to the White
House, as there was to be a Cabinet meeting. There I met
all the Cabinet, but had no conversation with any of them
excepting Houston. I advised him that the President felt he
could not spare him from the Department of Agriculture for
the present, but later would probably place him on the
Federal Reserve Board....
'May 8, 1914: From the Treasury I went to the White
House Offices in order to see members of the Cabinet before
they convened. McReynolds, Burleson, Lane, Garrison, and
others each held me for a moment. Lane was anxious to
know whether I thought it advisable for him to go to California at this time to take the LL.D. degree which the University of California has offered him. I advised taking it up
with the President and being governed by his wishes... '
No more striking example of the cordial feeling of Cabinet
members towards Colonel House can be found than the offer