Date: September 25, 1925
Location: Washington D.C.
(Original document available here)
I haven’t enough technical information so that I should want to pass judgment on the proposal for making artificial pools for swimming here in the city. That may be entirely practical. One of the things I should want to be certain about was the sanitary arrangements. If the pools are to be used for bathing purposes by large numbers of course it is necessary to see that the sanitary arrangements are perfect, or else ill health results, as sometimes happens in small swimming pools, and I should judge it would be much more likely to from anything of that sort which is reported in the press yesterday afternoon, as something large enough to accommodate 10,000 or 12,000 people. The suggestion is that it be filled with city water. The difficulty of using the Potomac water of course is that it is not always healthful, and then its appearance most of the time isn’t one that is attractive to those that want to use it for bathing purposes. I don’t know but it would be cheaper to transport bathers over to the seaside, which is only about 35 miles, I believe. I suppose the time element would come in so that that wouldn’t be practical. There are a great many difficulties in establishing bathing pools here, because we don’t have water that is near suitable for that purpose.
I was very much pleased to meet Minister of Finance, Mr. Caillaux, last evening. I was much impressed with his earnestness and the breadth of his information about government and economic problems.
I have had several conferences with different members of the Shipping Board to see what plan can be worked out for the best administration of the $350,000,000 worth of property and I haven’t yet come to any conclusion. I haven’t in mind at present any particular action. I am not certain just what powers reside in the Presidency to deal with the situation. It may be that this is an entirely independent board not under the jurisdiction of any one, that can act according to its own pleasure in the administration of this very large amount of government property without any supervision by the President, or any jurisdiction by any member of the President’s cabinet. That is a matter of no great consequence. The real question is whether they are conducting themselves so as to promote the best interests of the shipping concerns of the United States. That I am trying to inquire into for the purpose of making any suggestions that might be helpful. I haven’t proceeded very far as yet.
I shall undoubtedly try to attend the opening game of the World’s Series. Whether I can go to the others or not I am not certain. I don’t know that I could add anything to what I said last year about all being very glad to have the Washington team win the American League Pennant. It is a credit to the management of the team, and I think also it has resulted to a considerable extent from the fine spirit that has been manifested by the citizens of Washington in their constant support of our home team.
The French debt was not discussed at the Cabinet meeting. I haven’t any information to give out about it. I think any information that is given out at the present time ought to come from the Commission itself.
Lawrence Whiting, I think his residence is, I know his place of business is in Chicago, came to Washington to talk with the Department of Agriculture relative to the erection of an agricultural mart at Chicago that has a floor area of about 75 acres. That is analogous to the furniture mart with which some of you are probably familiar, that ministers to the furniture business of the country, providing show rooms and so on for a great many different furniture concerns, so that buyers can come in and instead of having to go from place to place, or to sellers of different concerns having travelled about the country, all meet at this one place to see the season’s display of many different concerns without difficulty. Now, he is working on the same plan for agriculture that would include agricultural machinery and perhaps representatives of the agricultural press and the sale of agricultural products of all kinds. I have not had an opportunity to talk with Secretary Jardine about it, but I judged it was a project that promised to be very helpful to those who are interested in making sales of products for use on the farms, and to the farmers themselves for the purpose of marketing their own products.
Citation: Calvin Coolidge: Remarks by the President to Newspaper CorrespondentsÂ
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