Arizona republican., 1898-10-06
'sss ssssss:zs!51W FIGHT IN THE "DUDE. ;
The Then Assistant Secretary of the Navy Saw Also To It That the Com
 modore Was Not Handicapped by
 Foolish So-Called instructions.

Washington, Oct 5.-Charles Dewey was perfectly right when he told Colo Tel Roosevelt that Admiral Dewey owes his assignment to the command Of the Asiatic squadron to Mr. Roose- welt more than to any one else Every body here knows the story. For the Admiral himself has told it several times; he fcresaw before he went to his post in the Pacific that his chance had come, and said so just before he left Washington. One account of it is given by naval officer, Q captain, who ! gave Dewey farewell dinner.
 T had Dewey at dinner with me on board my ship. Over the cigars he got to talking reminiscenly; then he look ed ahead and he frightened up
 My chance has come he said, and owe it largely to Theodore Roose- welt. Why he took such an interest in my application 1 don't know, for though he was friend Of mine we never were very intimate, and he seems to be the friend Of the whole navy. There were three applicants, you know, and my claim wasn't the best. Sone opposition arose, but tlle assistant sec retary of the navy overcame it, and I go.'
 Then Dewey leaned back and said:
 You know Farragut didnfs get his chance till he was over sixty, but he took it and -
 Dewey stopped and broke cut in laugh as if to say, But what nonsense thls is we are talking about me and Tarragut.' '
 Commodore Howell and Captain Mat theWs were the two other applicants for the Asiatic squadron, and they both ranked Dewey. The matter was talked over in November some time Mr. Roosevelt believed then that war was coming. and no one else did He said he wanted the hardest fighter he could get for the Pacific, for there, he pre- dicted, hard fighting would have to be done. So he urged Dewey. That dude" they said. "No matter" said Roosevelt. q know he will fight. l want man there who will take Ma nila.'
 A friend Of Mr. Roosevelt asked him once how he knew Dewey, whom many other people took for mere dude, gentle. refined. easy-going, how he rec oSnized in him the fighter he sought The Rough Riders answer was charac- terlstic. He leaned forward screwed his eyebrows down and showed his teeth as he said:
 You can always tell a fighter by looking into his eyes''
 But Mir. Roosevelt performed another service for Dewey. This is not so we'll known. Having got Dewey his chance, he saw to 1t that it was not lost to him. When it became necessary to order the Asiatic squadron away from Hcng Kong on account Of the neutrality laws, which would close England's hospital ity to US, it was proposed to direct Dewey to proceed to Manila, recon noitre for the Spanish fleet and blccIa- ade the port. It was part of the original war policy to blockade Cuba Porto Rico and the Philippines. That made MT. Roosevelt angry, and he ana the fighters in the administration ep- posed 1t with all their might. They were oyerreached on the Atlantic for awhile and they didn't seem to gain much on the Pacific. Mir. Roosevelt wanted the cable to Dewey to read: Go to Manila and smash the Spanish feet" lie said it was necessary to take Manila to get coal. But, Of course, the order did not pass. Then the fighters get their heads together and suggested as a compromise that Dewey be directed to sail to Manila and proceed according to military rules,'' or some such vague phrase as that IL was about the time there was so much talk about hampering commanders, and MT. Roosevelt said that wouldn't ham per Dewey. To his fighting friends he said
 T know Dewey, and you can be, l Dewey will know what that phrase Eeans.' .;ss
 When the news cagae fFcnl Manila it is said that Roosevelt and Senatcr. Proctor. who. by the Eay, Mas another of the original Dewey men" and lot o1 their kind, met somewhere in a pri- vate place and jumped up and down ard yelled and treated the whole thing as a '.bully good joke but that may i ba only a bit Of Washington scandal No one can prove that. There are no proofs, either, Of the rest of the story, but Charley Dewey could probably