have wondered why the alterations were not made a long time ago.

On December 1, Congress assembled for a new session, and on the day
following the President's message was read. It was a masterly state
paper, dealing with the trust question, our relations with the new
government of Cuba (for the island was now free, just as we had meant it
to be when the war with Spain started), the creation of a new department
of Commerce and Labor, needs of the army and navy, and the all-important
matter of how the Philippines should be governed. It may be added here
that not long after this a Department of Commerce and Labor was created
by Congress, and Mr. George B. Cortelyou, the secretary to the
President, became its first official head. When Mr. Cortelyou left his
post as secretary, Mr. William Loeb, Jr., who had been the President's
private secretary for some time, became the regular first secretary to
the Chief Magistrate, a place he occupies to-day.

Just about this time there was considerable trouble in Indianola,
Mississippi. A colored young lady had been appointed postmistress, and
the people in that vicinity refused to recognize her. The Post-Office
Department did what it could in the matter, and then referred the case
to the President.

[Illustration: THE WHITE HOUSE, SHOWING NEW OFFICES.]

"As she has been regularly appointed, the people will have to accept
her," said Mr. Roosevelt. And when there was more trouble, he sent
forward an order that the post-office be shut up entirely. This was
done, and for a long time the people of that vicinity had to get their
mail elsewhere, a great inconvenience to them.

On January 1, 1903, the new cable to the Hawaiian Islands was completed,
and President Roosevelt received a message from Governor Dole, and sent
a reply to the same. About two weeks later the President sent a
wireless, or rather cableless, message to King Edward of England. This
helped to mark the beginning of a new era in message-sending which may
cause great changes in the transmission of messages in the future.

For some time past there had been a small-sized war going on in
Venezuela, South America, between that nation on one hand and England,
Germany, and Italy on the other. This war had caused much disturbance to
American trade. Pressure was brought to bear upon the several nations
through President Roosevelt, and at last it was agreed to leave matters
to be settled by arbitration at The Hague. The agreemen