The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-10-29
RECONSTRUCTED INDEPENDENTS.
How Young Mr.. Roosevelt Conducted Him.
self at a Critical Moment.


How Young Mr.. Roosevelt Conducted Him.
self at Critical Moment.
Leander Richardson, in Detroit Times.
There seems, since the Ohio stampede the
other day, to be a remarkable revulsion of feel
ing in favor of Mr.. Blaine, and most Of the indie
pendent Republicans, who began by abusing
him and by saying that they would never, never
support the ticket, are rapidly coming in albeit
in somewhat skulking manner, One of the
most striking pictures of the way these things
go is offered by young Mr.. Theodore Roosevelt
Mr.. Roosevelt acted last winter in the New
York State Legislature, and he succeeded in
making a good deal of a shindy by undertake
ing to reform certain alleged abuses in the mu-
nicipal government of New York. He turned
the sheriffs Office upside down, and came very
near getting a number of laws passed sweeping
away many of the old customs, and it is said
destroying good many of the old corporations
Mr.. Roosevelt is young man, very energetic
man. and, withal, a very hot headed man. 1t
was thought by the very lively start he took in
politics that he would eventually be quite re
former He sent to Chicago a delegate
to the Republican convention. and he rather
took upon himself the task OF reforming that
organization. He was assisted in this noble
pursuit by Mr.. George w. Curtis. Mr.. Henry
Cabot Lodge and few more gentlemen
supplied with abnormal virtue and
heads. They wanted to nominate Edmunds or
some other lively iccle in more or less human
form, but the clever Blaine cohorts were too
much for them. and they soon found themselves
sprawed out upon their backs thoroughly beaten
all along the line ! shall never forget the
that afternoon in the convention when it began
to be clear that beyond every possibility of doub5
Mr. Blaine was going to sweep the convention
from end to the other. Young Roosevelt
with his lace so full of blood that it bore the
complexion of well-develOped egg plant stood
chair hOurliDp al the .f oi,.
waving his hands wildly in the air, ana almost
bursting in his attempt to gain the of the
speaker with proposition to adjourn. He might
as well have tried to make proposition in bed
lam The air was rent with shouts from 4 thou
sand threats. and the was full of the
widest confusion in every direction MIR. Curtis,
haggered ana white with wrath, stood upon an
other chair near Mr.. Roosevelt and tested his
lungs to their utmost capacity without attract
ing the slightest attention. Finally the turbu-
lent opposers of Mr. Blane's movement
were finally forced back to their seats, and the
Blaine tide rose and swelled and rolled clear over
the convention hall. | next saw Mr. Roosevelt
about fifteen minutes after the convention ad-
journed upon the nomination of the man whom
he had done his utmost to destroy. l think he
was about the hottest young man | had seen for
a long time. Mr. Blaine did not appeal to him
as a reformer and he said to me, Il am broken
hearted by the action of the convention The
election of Mr. Blaine means four years OF the
widest corruption in Washington His noiuina-
| am sorry for it. | don't know what shall do
yet | have taken pretty strong grounds
against Mr. Blaine, and it is not quite clear to
me how | can reconcile the position thus taken
with any subsequent support of the candidate.
However. | am not going to explode permaturely.
| shall think tie matter over"
He did think it He has acted with wis
dom beyond his years, Instead of going about
the country bowling his disapprobaton. or giving
snveling indications of desire to crawl back
into the fold he almost directly went out to mis-
ranch in the northwest and remained there COM
muning with himself for two or three months.
Now he comes to the front supporting the party,
but saying very little about the candidate. He
seems to be a Young man of quite unusual dis
elimination. and he knows better than to bolt
such a nomination as that made at Chicago. He
says very buntly that it is obviously the wish of
by all odds the greater portion of the Republic
ans of the country that Mr. Blaine should be
elected and with becoming modesty he adds
that he is not going to set his private opinions
against those of the country at large. 1t would
of course be ruination for young man like Mr..
Roosevelt to begiu his career by boiling tho
party nomination, unless he cared to figure
through all time a chronic kicker and snarler
like Schurz and Curtis and two or three more
of that uncanny and uncomfortable kind