Sunday Washington globe., 1902-01-12
A Caustic Criticism by the Boer
Champion
OF PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT
EpigrammaticaI Selections From an
Address Delivered by Mar. Webster
Davis i'm Kansas City Recently
Covers Pretty Nearly the Presidents
Whole Public Career in Short Para.
graphs.

Roosevelt will be renominated for the
Presidency and defeated for Office, said
Webster Davis, former assistant Secretary
of the Interior in President McKinley's
first term. He knows the President well,
and, discussing the man rather than the
situation, continued;
President Roosevelt is not halter-broken.
No, he has not shed his milk teeth. He
signed round robin for which he ought
to have been court martialed inasmuch as
he was in the face of the enemy, and last
week he degraded the general commanding
the army and the admiral commanding the
FIRST line of defense for a little break
While Mr. Roosevelt himself was inditinq
letters criticising his superior officers and
challenging the national administration for
leaving the army in Cuba, the millions,
from President Mckinley down to myself
and the other humble citizens on the side
were weeping for love at the sound of the
names of Dewey and Schley.
In sheer good nature, if not broadmind.
edness, President Mckinley let 90 uncen-
sured the round robin to which the sigma.
ture Of Mr.. Roosevelt was attached. and in
the breadth of his common sense which
marked his administration he even needed
it.
Now comes the signer of that olfense
against the articles of war, Colonel Roose-
welt of the round robin, and refuses to
pass a newspaper interview uncensured,
and so far from needing it, disciplines the
author of a minority report President
Roosevelt delivers a disgraceful scoring
upon the head of Admiral Dewey and
through the press humiliates General
Miles.
But this does not surprise me While in
Washington l was on even footing with
Mr. Roosevelt He was, like myself an
assistant secretary in the cabinet He was
distinguished then among the rest of the
assistant secretaries as an Ishmaelite. At
functions his neighborly qualities were con-
hned to shutting his eyes and gnashing his
teeth, but in official circles he was more
communicative. His chief, Secretary Long,
was constantly prodded by him.
One Of the most genial of men, much
like the late President, Secretary Long was
sadly disturbed by his turbulent assistant
secretary, and the outbreak Of the Spanish
war afforded him positive Teliet when it
invited him to go into the field. The tail
had shaken the dog if il did not succeed in
wagging it,
President Roosevelt is sincere, patriotic,
enthusiastic and unbroken. He is not
bridlewise and his follies are his own. He
would not listen to the advice of anyone
when he was an assistant secretary and
that propensity seems to have been much
enlarged since he has been called to the
executive chair.
No one will charge him with neglecting
to further the interests Of the republic or
arraign his patriotism, but no one in official
circles will accept his judgment
The audience in the parquet the or
chestra circle and the two first balconies
will pay no attention to him, He is taking
his lines and will not stick to the text.
He came in on gust of wind, and when
the storm has exhausted itself he will find
his level 1t will be his felicity to escort
Democrat to the White House, where the
Chief Justice is standing to administer the
oath TO the next President
The Republican party will surely go
down by Roosevelt's weight. Republicans
will defeat him In the convention he will
prevail, because almost any President save
some magnificent fellow like Chester A.
Arthur can control a convention through
the medium of his Federal Officeholders
Nominated by himself, Mr. Roosevelt
will not be able to elect himself. Those
who RENE mber that brief dispatch from
Manila one May day will not forget last
weeks censure when again they come to
vote. They once thanked Cod when they
read on the bulletin boards; Il is believed
Dewey has cut the cables He was his
own master then, 5000 miles away with an
enemy to negotiate with. The country be.
lieved in him. We thanked God twice
when the interregnum was told: I have de-
stroyed the Spanish feet
The nation has stood on its chairs to
cheer the name of Dewey and on the tables
to grow frantic at the race Of Schley Cap
tains Cook and Phillip and Evans and
Clark, of the Oregon, and the nation has
not forgotten these things and will not for
get them.
Roosevelt is President by a catastrophe
He may not be a catastrophe President It
augurs not we'll that his FIRST undertaking is
an insult to-how many millions of people
shall I estimate?
He will be nominated by the machine
he will build and ANONYMOUSLY defeated
by the machine the people will build"