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Show l4)06vdt ffemorial a Osier Bay m ' Y- s A i H t v J Y " " k n i ' fcv,v i vV A t A . "C " ,mMMtt v tv sj s rf h"fi rJlWn wy?y 4f-Vu . . . . - f . , kv 1 1 7 DIGNIFIED open-air the-ater, the-ater, to be known as the Roosevelt Forum, built ( I along the lines of a Greek )r 1 araohitheater and utilized VLa I as a nonpartisan meeting raC A place by patriotic Ameri-cans Ameri-cans for the discussion of ' grave problems affecting the future of this country, is one of the features of the proposed park at Oyster Oys-ter Bay. The plans already have been approved by the Roosevelt Memorial association. Electus D. Litchfield, architect, who designed the monument to President McKinley at Columbus, Ohio, and who has executed other important commissions, com-missions, has been engaged by the Roosevelt Memorial committee at Oyster Oys-ter Bay to carry out these plans for the memorial park. Mr. Litchfield lives at Oyster Bay and was a neighbor of Colonel Roosevelt. Therefore he is familiar fa-miliar with the park site. Mr. Litchfield thinks a forum such as has been suggested for the park would have met with the approbation of the colonel himself, says the New York Sun. Members of the Roosevelt Memorial association also feel that such a forum could be made most useful use-ful in our national life in carrying out In a useful and vital way the ideals and teachings of Theodore Roosevelt. Mr. Litchfield's Vision. "At the head of the auditorium," says Mr. Litchfield in describing his plans for the park, "there would be a rostrum, having its west front built somewhat in the form of a Greek theater the-ater and providing a stage upon which may be seated the performers at open-air open-air concerts for the people. Within Its walls I had hoped there might be a reception room and a small hall, somewhat In the nature of a supreme court room in the capitol at Washington, Washing-ton, where would be gathered from time to time once every two or three years, or two or three times a year, as in the opinion of the trustees of the Roosevelt forum the occasion may require, re-quire, a few of the great men of the country, who shall there discuss before be-fore the whole nation the grave questions ques-tions that will affect conditions in this country as a result of the war's aftermath." after-math." This beautiful park to the memory of a great American will embrace about forty acres and titles to the property have been examined and surveys sur-veys made. When completed this park will have an athletic field, tennis courts, bathing beach and pavilion, the theater, a great flagpole 150 feet high and a beautiful promenade, arched by elm trees in the center of which will be a lagoon. The idea of William Loeb, Jr., chairman chair-man of the Roosevelt Memorial committee com-mittee at Oyster Bay, and other members mem-bers of the committee, is to have a park that will provide in the best and most healthful way amusement facili ties for the country at large; a park that will have an Individuality and atmosphere suggestive of the life and spirit of Roosevelt. The colonel was a practical man who combined artistic ideas with common sense execution, jd the Roosevelt Memorial association associa-tion does not want a park that would not have met with the approval of the colonel himself. As a matter of fact Colonel Roosevelt himself very much desired such a park at Oyster Bay and publicly expressed his views on the subject. How the Park Wili Look. The general appearance of the Roosevelt Memorial park as It will 3 s ij s (jy s. - Y , r i? - . i I YY V Y Y iv , 'VNYY''V i v " , - -Y - w,. v- vv s ; n- finally look is described thus by Mr. Litchfield : "On the axis of the main approach, standing out in firm silhouette against the background of the bay and the distant dis-tant hills of Center Island, should be a great flagpole with a monumental base, which will be forever reminiscent of the colonel's intense love for the American flag. At the end of the lagoon la-goon there should be a fountain, and beyond it a long approach from the west between thickly planted native American shrubs and low-growing trees ; laurel, wild honeysuckle, dogwood, dog-wood, beech and ash forming a dense dark foliage In contrast to the gravel walks, the reflection of the sky in the lagoon and the bright deep blue of the bay itself." IS has also been suggested to the Roosevelt Memorial association that as elms are the most beautiful trees for the park it would be an excellent idea to call upon the farmers of Long Island and Connecticut to donate specimen spec-imen elm trees to the association. The site of the proposed park is of great natural beauty. The ensemble effect would be somewhat, similar to the beautiful park at Versailles, where the peace conference was held, but it will be typically American in spirit and conception. There will be no attempt on the part of the architect to imitate the Versailles scheme. The proposed lagoon will look like a diamond set in green jade, and, through a fringe of elm trees the spectator will get a glimpse of the Roosevelt forum. Over all will wave the Stars ami Stripes that the colonel loved so well. In every ev-ery way the aim will be to suggest the virile personality of the man who was first, last and all the time an American. Referring to the flagpole with monumental monu-mental base which forms, in a way, the center of the formal scheme. Mr. Litchfield Litch-field suggested that some day the base might be the final resting place of the great man's mortal part. May Cost $1,500,000. The cost of the memorial has been variously estimated, beginning with sums less than $1,000,000. But those who have studied the plan feel that $1,500,000 should he raised to assure its complete realization. Although the memorial is in some extent local, in a larger view it concerns the whole nation. na-tion. The sum given Is very small, if it be distributed over the population. School children alone could and would give an appreciable part of it. Indeed, since Oyster Bay stands for the Roosevelt Roose-velt home life, it is peculiarly nppro-' nppro-' priate that the nation's children should take a special interest In such a memorial, me-morial, as they did In the restoration of Washington's home at Mount Ver-1 Ver-1 non. It is interesting, In view of the present pres-ent movement, to recall the fight that was made several years ago by some of the citizens of Oyster Bay for a park a fight that resulted in failure, but which aroused the interest of Colonel Col-onel Roosevelt, who did what he could at that time to arouse the enthusiasm of his fellow townsmen over the project. "For years the townspeople declined to take any action to secure the just rights which a few of them had infrequently in-frequently enjoyed," wrote Colonel Roosevelt during the winter of 1018 in describing this unsuccessful battle for the park: "Then the selfish misconduct miscon-duct of one or two property owners who sought to deny all proper access to their beaches roused a feeling which manifested itself in a foolish and vicious vic-ious effort at one time a mob effort to destroy the docks and thereby prevent pre-vent the property owners of access to their sailboats. The motive seemed to be less to secure their own rights than to interfere with those of whom they were jealous. Recourse to the law nnauy seim-ii property owners to their docks and their duty to keep openings in the docks so that the elammers and the rare wayfarers along the beach would not be interfered with. "But this did not help those farmers farm-ers or villagers who occasionally wished wish-ed to come to the beach for bathing or boating. A few public-spirited persons per-sons therefore started a movement for a park, with a long stretch of bench, on which public and private boathous-es boathous-es and bath houses could be erected. Various well-to-do persons, none of whom would ever have used the park, agreed to furnish half the money if the town would furnish the other half. It was voted on at the next election. "I rode down to the polls with a friend, a hired man a good, upright, limd-workinc citizen, who lives some miles away from the water, who owns a small property and Is therefore a small taxpayer. After voting I found that our two votes had neutralized each other; he voted against the park; and the park proposition was beaten by the votes of the smaller taxpayers who lived inland and from among whom the chief beneficiaries of the park would have come. (The boldface is Colonel Roosevelt's.) These men had felt vaguely jealous of tin; richer property owners near the water and had sympathized with the movement to interfere with (hem; hut they were not willing to incur Hie small expense necessary nec-essary in order to establish such collective collec-tive Ownership of a portion of the waterfront wa-terfront as would enable them to en-' en-' joy their rights along It." |