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Show THE CITIZEN 33 I AMONG THE NEW BOOK He was warranted in thinking that they would accept his entry into politics with enthusiasm. On the contrary, they gave him the cold shoulder at the outset and took other oc- THEODORE R008EVELT. By Lawrence F. Abbott New York: Doubleday, Page IMPRES8ION8 OF T MPRBSSIONS of great men to us by those who have ed known them never grow stale. This is particularly true when the great as was Theomen are as many-sidedore Roosevelt. Recently the letters of Roosevelt to his children have revealed to us a side of his character which would not have been suspected by one familiar with only his public life. They manifest a tenderness, a domesticity and a loving kindness which add to our admiration for one who, in his public career, followed his maxim of Speak softly and carry a big stick, and who was not always at pains to speak softly. Mr. Abbotts book is filled with illuminating disclosures as to the personal characteristics of Roosevelt and. some of them It is difficult, for example, to believe that one who was so constantly regarded as ambitious beyond most d and men of his time, as egoistic, had little of that faith in his own destiny so common amongst the dominating characters of history, and yet Mr. Abbott assures us that Roosevelt never imagined himself as a favorite of Fate or as one marked out by Providence to scale the lofti-est- s heights of human glory and power. Brander Mathews relates an incident bearing on this point. Dining with Roosevelt in 1893, he made some pleasant remark about his hosts future in public life. Roosevelt, looking at him gravely and almost sadly, d are-surprising- . . said: that as civil ser- vice commissioner I have made an enemy of every professional politician in the United States. I cant have any political prospects. Years later he said much the same thing to Mr. Abbott at Khartoum: My political career is ended. No man in American life has ever reached the crest of the wave as I appear to have done without the waves breaking and engulfing me. Remember Dewey. The treatment of Admiral Dewey by the American people is a phenomenon in national psychology. He had every right to aspire to the presidency after his victory at Manila Bay, when his squadron made a record almost unequalled in history. Defying the mines at Corregidor, he sailed into Manila harbor and destroyed Monte-jo'- s fleet without losing a ship or ar man. When he returned to the United States he was duly acclaimed and was fatally allured into aspiring for the presidency. He had no reason to believe that the American people had changed since the days when they elected their war heroes to the presi . Atlas Bldg. Phone Was. casions to rebuff him. Roosevelt had been profoundly impressed by Deweys fate and regarded it almost as a forecast of his own future. He realized the American distrust of genius, resentment of superiority and affection for the commonplace leader. And Mr. Abbott assures us that this exceptional leader, philosophizing on these things, expressed little faith in his own power to compel and dominate. On the ship that brought Roosevelt back to America at that time was Homer Davenport, the cartoonist, who related a story about Dewey which confirmed Roosevelt in his views. The Davenport story has been told before, but bears repeating for the light It sheds on the mental attitude of a great leader toward his own future. Mr. Davenports narrative was as follows: 3469 We know It first intermountain Press Clipping Bureau D. S. Lochrie, Mgr. Compilers of the WESTERN CONSTRUCTION BULLETIN, WESTERN BUILDING BULLETIN, WESTERN BOND BULLETIN. COMMERCIAL BULLETIN, GARAGE & EQUIPMENT BULLETIN. . self-centere- Do you not know 437 dency. & Co. com-municat- Suite At the time when Admiral Dewey was being bitterly attacked in the newspapers, and criticized throughout the country because of the disposition which he made, of the house presented to him in honor of his victory at Manila, I published in one of the newspapers a cartoon in his defense. I thought the admiral was most outrageously treated, and I rather laid myself out to make the cartoon a striking and effective one. A few days after it was published a friend of mine who knew Dewey met me on the street in New Tork and said: Dewey has seen your cartoon and wants to see you. Will you go over to Washington?" "Sure, I replied. We went over, and my friend took me to the admirals house. We entered the drawing room; I was presented to Mrs. Dewey; and just as the admiral came forward to give me his hand, he burst into tears and threw himself upon a sofa in a paroxysm of weeping. Airs. Dewey apologized and said: Vou must excuse the admiral, Mr. Davenport. He has been wrought almost to a pitch of nervous prostration by the un-u- st attacks made upon him. We had decided to go to Europe, never to set foot on American soil again, and had actually packed our trunks when we saw your cartoon. It was the first ray of light, and made us change our minds, and we have decided to remain in America, although some of our trunks are still upstairs ust as we packed them for our departure. Roosevelt inquired whether the incident was precisely as he related it and Davenport answered in the Roosevelt then remarked that he was going down like Dewey, and added sotto voce, Lawrence, they may treat me like Dewey, but I'll tell you one thing, I shall neither weep nor shall I go to Europe. The high spirits and often overflowing gayety of Roosevelt is the theme of another story. The writer tells of a visit paid by Senator Carter of Montana to Roosevelt and describes the senators round face as shining with pleasure. To my Intense amazement Mr. Roosevelt leaped out of his chair, seized the NEWSPAPER CUPPINGS are always of value, both for the information they contain, and as a matter of record. We furnish NEW8PAPER CLIPPINGS on any subject, including personal mention, political, club, social, fraternal, commercial, corporation, mining, oil, in fact our service covers everything. START THE NEW YEAR RIGHT Let us compile your clippings in a permanent scrap book. The cost will be nominal, and the record can be preserved for all time. We are furnishing clippings to hundreds of satisfied clients. Add your name to our notable list, and you will find our service senator by the hands and they began dancing back and forth across the room, chanting the following doggeral in unison: Oh, the Irish and the Dutch They dont amount to much, But huroo for the Scandlnoo-vian- ! After Senator Carter had left, Mr. amused at the look of surprised interrogation on my face, volunTom teered the following explanation: Carter is a good friend of mine, although we have often disagreed radically on principles and Issues. He is somea standpatter and I am afraid of thing he sometimes thinks I am something of a visionary crank. Some years ago, during a political campaign, he and I were scheduled to Bpeak on the same occasion in a town of the Northwest. When we came out of the hall and were walking along the boardwalk of the little village to our hotel we met a huge Sweae or Norwegian who was somewhat exhilarated from pouring too many libations in honor of the Republican party. As he zigzagged his way along the narrow sidewalk we had to step aside to avoid a collision. He was singing at the top of hs lungs that song about the Irish and the Dutch. Now Senator Carter is Irish and I am Dutch and we thought it was a very good joke on us. So every time we have met since, unless there are too many people about, we are apt to greet each 'other as we did Just now. It has become a kind of ritual. Roosevelt, po-plti- cal . As a literary man of ability he had a perfect right to utter a sweeping condemnation of Tolstoi's one literary cardinal sin, but he should have modified his comment by alluding to the high tone and moral loftiness of most of the Russian authors other work. From the wild heart of Africa he sent this view of the Kreutzer Sonata: First as to Tolstois immorality. Have Kreutzer Sonata" (if you ever read-hithats the way to spell it)? I read xr, or rather as much of it as was necessary to a pathological diagnosis. The man who wrote that was a sexual and a moral pervert. It is as unhealthy a book, as vicious in its teaching to the young, as Elinor Glyns Three Weeks or any other piece of pornographic literature for l need hardly say that the worst pornographic literature is that which, with conscious or only hyposome other name; crisy, calls itself by some of the very vilest of such books are often written under the pretense of being in the interests of social or hygienic reform. s half-conscio- us New light is shed by Mr. Abbott on President Roosevelts triumph in bringing about peace between Russia, and Japan. The president displayeu a finesse and deftness in the negotiations which surprised even those who were familiar with Lis many-sidednes- s. In talking with me rftcnvurtl, Roosevelt said: As a matter of fact, in spite of their great naval anl military victor- ies, the Japanese statesmen not the people were sagacious and Japanese enough to uow that they were approaching: the ontl of their resources of both r :en and material, While Russias resource were- unlimited. The Japanese came to me privately and, with some reluctance, expressed this point of view and asked me if I could not do I said I would try. I went something. to the Russians aid pointed out the economic and political folly of continuing the war and asked f they would not oin in a peace conference with the Japanese if I arranged it'. They finally said: 'Yes, If the Japanese will consent, but we do not believe they will. We will come, however, if you can persuade them.' I re- far-seei- ng 1 - |