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Show Washington Merry-Go-Round White Ilouise Expense Up $6,000 . . . Frank Knox, Republican, Could Have Had Navy Post in Cabinet. By DREW PEARSON and ROBERT ALLEN WASHINGTON. The new budget budg-et reveals that Roosevelt pruned almost every agency in the government except his own. The White House budget actually has been increased by $6,000 rather than decreased, and now calls for $152,750 to run the Executive Mansion Man-sion and grounds during the next fiscal year. The increase, however, is for a new coat of paint In July and August Au-gust of this year, the White House will be painted to keep it up to its traditional name, and that paint job will cost $6,000. Aside from this, the White House budget has not been pruned a penny, pen-ny, although other government agencies agen-cies were. The amount for "Travel "Trav-el and Entertainment" remains at $30,000, as against $25,000 two years ago. Roosevelt is the most traveled President since Taft, and the cost of going to Hyde Park and back, plus Warm Springs and other trips costs a good bit more than the HOUSEKEEPER AT $3,300 I . . . While House housekeeper, Mrs. Nesbitl, checking the laundry. amount allowed In the budget despite de-spite the fact that the budget was increased by $5,000 two years ago. The Roosevelts also entertain much more than their predecessors, and exceed their budget on this. In both cases travel and entertainment entertain-ment the President and his wife dip into their own pockets to make up the deficit. Wages of the White House staff total about $100,000. The housekeeper housekeep-er gets $3,300, the gardener $2,500, the first cook $1,620, plus a wide assortment of other cooks, butlers, kitchen helpers, housemen and maids. The bill for heat, light, and electric elec-tric power (to drive the elevator, mechanical appliances in the kitchen, kitch-en, etc.) is $11,200. The laundry bill is $4,800. Knox Turns Cabinet Job Down. Here is the inside story of Roosevelt's Roose-velt's secret offer of the navy secretaryship sec-retaryship to Col. Frank Knox: The Chicago publisher and G. O. P. candidate for vice president was asked. to come to Washington for a private talk with the President at 4 p. m. Sunday, December 10. The President lost no time in getting get-ting down to brass tacks. He reminded re-minded Knox of the editorial he had printed in his paper shortly after the start of the European war, urging urg-ing a "coalition" cabinet with several sev-eral Republican members, in order to meet the emergency in a "national" "na-tional" rather than a partisan manner. man-ner. "I think that was good advice then, and I think it is equally sound now," Roosevelt said in effect "As you know, the navy secretaryship is open and I'd like very much to have you take it It's a very im. portant job and I think you're just the man, Frank, to fill the bill." "Thank you, Mr. President," replied re-plied Knox. "I appreciate deeply the honor you pay me. And if there were a real emergency 1 would be entirely at your service. But I don't think emergency conditions condi-tions exist any longer, and under the circumstances I feel I'll have to decline your very kind offer." Merry-Go-Round. Pennsylvania Republicans are reported re-ported to have held a secret conclave con-clave and turned thumbs down on ex-Sen. David Reed as the man to run against Joe Guffey in 1940. Their candidate will be Gilbert Mason Ow-lett Ow-lett Republican national committeeman committee-man from Wellsboro, Pa. . . . Shortly Short-ly after Secretary Ickes issued his blast against Paul McNutt, the two men bumped into each other at a cocktail party given in honor of John and Anna Roosevelt Boettiger. They shook hands cordially. There were no icy glances. Grover Whalen dropped in at the state department the other day to claim his passport. It was lifted by immigration officials when Whalen landed in New York recently, in accordance with neutrality regulations. regula-tions. Having crossed 30 frontiers, Whalen prizes the passport as a memento. One of the few speeches Rep. Joe Martin, astute Republican floor leader, will make this winter will be at the Kansas Day dinner in Tope-ka, Tope-ka, home of Alf Landon, January 29. Martin is definitely a dark-horse presidential possibility. |