Salt Lake Telegram | 1937-08-19 | Page 7 | Cannes Tiff 'News to Him' Youngest Roosevelt Says

Cannes Tiff 'News to Him,9 Youngest Roosevelt Says PARIS, Aug. 19 (INS) Parii newspaper reader today were confronted with two diametrically opposed versions of L' Affaire Roosevelt, the now historic incident which occurred at Cannes during the annual "Battle of the Flowers." Mayor Pierre Nouveau of the Riviera resort stood pat on his assertion John Roosevelt, youngest son of the president, had squirted champagne at him when he tried to present a bouquet of flowers. Young Roosevelt insisted it was all a mistake and that he had never even seen M. Nouveau. Here are the two stories: AS TOLD BY JOHN BOOSE VELT The whole thing is over and settled set-tled now as far as I am concerned. I cannot imagine how the story started. "The first I knew of It was when a London newspaper telephoned me two nights ago. It was all news to me. I have never seen Mayor Nouveau in my life. I understand now he bellevee it was a case of mistaken Identity. "It is true I took pert In the flower festival parade at Cannes, but I never threw chsmpsgne at the mayor or anyone else. I was riding in a horse-drawn csrriage with John Drsyton of Harvard and Mr. and Mrs. William Simpson ol Chicago and Long Island, but we certainly did not insult anybody. "Nor did wa figure In any untoward un-toward incidents with anyone whatever. what-ever. "I have read various versions of the story and each had the incident occurring In a different place. i couldn't have been in all places at tha same time, could I?" Ta TOIJ BYMAYOR NOUVEAU "Of course, it was Mr. Roosevelt, but I hope tha matter la now allowed al-lowed to drop, because his father is a very fine man. "I have asked the American embassy em-bassy to convey my regrets to the president about the whole matter. "I am sure the whole thing occurred oc-curred In pure fun. It Is absolutely abso-lutely ridiculous to make sueh a fuss of the sffair. "It la perfectly true Mr. Roosevelt Roose-velt threw flowers dipped in ice water at my face, but why all the protest T The incident concerns two 1 1 people myself and Mr. Roosevelt. "Personally, I regarded it all as part of the fun of tha carnival And , I waa not the least annoyed. We wera all having a good time. "Everyone seems so agitated because be-cause a bunch of flowers was thrown in the face of the mayor of Cannes) few why we it 4s a beard to talk of 'diplomatic Incidents.' I appeal to everyone to understand I am not angry with Mr. Roosevelt. Roose-velt. "To ssy so Is absolutely untrue. If such talk is not stopped my many American friends in Cannes will be angry with me. J do not wish to offend them."