The Hoover Week

In ten minutes an able U. S. President can accomplish much. Last week President Hoover used that amount of time advantageously when he presented empty-handed newsgatherers with three front-page stories all at once. They were: 1) a comment on possible tax-reduction ("wait and see"); 2) Alexander H. Legge's acceptance of the Federal Farm Board Chairmanship; 3) receipt of a $500,000 donation with which to call the first National Conference on Child Health and Protection in 20 Years. "That's all I have on my mind," said the President.

P:For 29 years the telephone number at the White House has been Main 6. Last week it was changed to National 1414. First White House telephone: May 10, 1878, when the number was 1.

P:Until a month ago the Hoover ancestry had been definitely traced back five generations to Andreas Huber, the President's great-great-great-grandfather who came from Germany to the U. S. circa 1740. Last week Mrs. Hoover's secretary, Ruth Fessler, revealed with official permission that recent research had established that: Andreas Huber was begotten by Jonas Huber, resident of Ellerstadt in the Palatinate, who was begotten by Johann Heinrich Huber, linen weaver of the Canton of Berne, Switzerland.

P:To the White House lately went a letter which said: "Mr. President: We will send you a short writing again. We wish you to come to the Pacific coast in this summer and at that time we will take your life with shot because for the sake of world peace to kill reason. Not show this note, you guess, please. We have the honor to be, sir, your obedient servant. . . ." Last week in Seattle M. Uchimiyama, 70, Japanese chemist, was arrested for writing this and many another letter. Similar letters had gone to the Emperor of Japan. There a death penalty awaits those who threaten The Mikado.

P:At the White House last week called Monsignor Pietro Fumasoni-Biondi, Apostolic delegate for the U. S.,* bearing a handsomely bound and engraved copy of the Lateran Treaty re-establishing the Papal State. This he presented to President Hoover with greetings from Pius XI. Reports spread quickly about that the President had been asked to recognize Vatican City, to exchange diplomatic representatives with the Pope. Troubled, the State Department issued denial, explained that the Apostolic delegate's visit to the White House was a pure "courtesy call."

*Personal representative of the Pope, the Apostolic delegate has only unofficial diplomatic standing in the U. S.