Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1900-10-08
ROOSEVELT AS A SOLDIER.

a moment. He was nominated for Gov
ernor of New York in 1898, solely upon
his war record. He has been nominated
for the vice presidency this year by
the same token. He is held up to pub
lie admiration as a military genius,
the hero of San Juan hill. He poses
as the central figure OF the Santiago
campaign-the indomitable, the ire
pressible, the blazing, foaming incarna-
ton OF battle. He has been represented
as an exacting force, a heaven-born
leader. 1t is claimed for him-indeed in
his book, THE Rough Riders" he
claims 1t for himself-that he was al
ways the master of every crisis: that
he invariably appraised the situation
with unerring accuracy; that his pres
nee dispelled the clouds of timidity
or hesitation and filled all beholders
with a rage for deadly combat; that
his mere example made the army ire
sistible. There is a general impression
which Roosevelt has at least done moth
ing to discourage, that he saved the
day at Guasimas; that he led the charge
on San Juan hill and blockhouse, and
that, generally, he furnished the brains,
the valor and the inspiration of the
whole affair.
Upon the strength of this hypothesis,
carefully built up and industriously dis
seminated, Roosevelt Is now a candi-
date for the vice presidency, the idol
of the hero-worshipers and the pride
and glory of the. multitude. He repre-
sents to the rural districts the direct
ing spirit of the wal with Spain, and
his rumpled old cowboy suit and
weather-beaten sombrero are the SYM
bols of martial pomp and devastating
onslaught.
Certainly it Is fair to examine the
basis of pretensions so vast as these,
and surely we may be acquitted of all
hostile prejudice when we confine our
inquiries to Roosevelt's own statements
as they are carefully and deliberately
conveyed to an eager world through
the medium of his copyright book, The
Rough Riders" We have made a rea-
sonably sincere study of this great work
and find that it furnishes all needed IL
Illustrations of R~oosevelt's military spirit
and intelligence. Roosevelt, like all
other men who have risen to dizzy alti-
tudes of fame, has his envious detrac-
tors. We scorn them. We accept
Roosevelt's personal testimony to his
! genius for leadership. He is high
enough authority for us. We begin,
therefore, with the battle of Las Guas-
imas. This battle has been regarded,
very enormously, as a blunder. Cap
tious persons have declared that Roose-
welt foundered into an ambush, and
fhof b,tf fnr fha nO1orai ~o.,,Ior. ~
would have been injurlously trimmed.
The fact is that the movement was
carefully planned by General Young,
Wien the knowledge and perhaps the
advice of Colonel Wood. One attack
vas made by two bodies simultaneous
ly, which had advanced by different
paths upon the Spanish works. 1t was
a thoroughly organized reconnaissance
In force, and the only officer concerned
in 1t who seemed to have been at all
bewidered was Roosevelt. On page 80
of his book, after describing the Skin
mish in the most spirited manner and
bringing himself to some buildings"
OF which he speaks quite frequently, he
adds:
"The firing had now died out, but I
was still entirely uncertain as to ex-
actly what had happened. l did not
know whether the enemy had been
driven back or whether 1t was merely
a lull In the fight and we might be at
tackled again; nor did | know what had
happened in any otner part OF the line,
while, as | occupied the extreme left,
| was not sure whether or not my flank
was in danger"
OF course, it Is quite evident that
Roosevelt won this fight. His language
is moi altogether coherent, but the
greatest OF men are sometimes dazed
by the magnitude Of their own achieve
ments. Rooseyelt's trance did not last
long, however, for on the very next
page-100-he says: Their | started
over toward the main body, but to my
delight encountered Wood himself, who
told me the fight was over and the
S~paniards had retreated."
Roosevelt's part in the assault on
San Juan Hill, as related by himself,
contributes with still greater force 10
the establishment of his pre-eminencc
in the Santiago campaign and especial
~ TO the claim that he led the charge
in that glorious and brilliant action.
In his book will be found two stirring
pictures. one entitled, Charge of the
Rough Riders at San Juan Hill.' and
the other, "Col. Roosevelt and the
Rough Riders at the point where they
charged over the hill at san juan
And mighty fine pictures they are, es-
pecially the first mentioned, which
shows Roosevelt %galloping furiously in
the lead with o~utstretched sword and
flaming at each nostril. Nevertheless.
we prefer the text as being more com
~prehensive while quite as brilliant. De-
scribing his own movements on the
tragic occasion, July i, 1893. he thus
begins-page 128: The Ninth regi-
ment was Immediately In front of me,
and the First on my left, and these
went up Kettle Hill with my regiment
Observe the with" If you please. At
first reading we told ourselves that the
intelligent compositor had been playing
tricks with Roosevelt, sending him Of
to an obscure engagement and cruelty
eliminating him from the great AFFAIR
az the campaign-San Juan HIN. But