The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1902-04-16
A GREAT BANQUET
Given in Honor Of the President Of
the United States
IN TIE CITY OF CHARLESTON.
President Roosevelt Speaks in Glow
ing Terms of the South. Gov
ernor McSweeney's Warm
Speech OF Welcome.

Speech ofWelcome.
The banquet rendered President
Roosevelt Tuesday night of last weel
at the Charleston Hotel in the city Of
Charleston was a fitting close to daJ
full of incidents and served to gather
together men prominent in the affair:
of the State, having solely in mind q
greeting to the president which woulc
prove the sincerity and the warmth
Of feeling existing for him as the chlc1
executive Of the nation. The banquet
hall was a bower. of roses, pinkS anC
smilax, artistically, arranged, while
loosely str&Nn over the tables were
thousands Of violets; whose fragrance
could only but suggest that spring
time had arrived. Over three hundred
specially invited guests were present
and the president was at his best. In
few well chosen remarks Mayor Smyth
welcomed President Roosevelt to
Charleston, whose response was listen
ed to with the closest attention and
which were interrupted by loud and
continuous applause. The presidents
remarks were as follows:
THE PRESIDENTS SPEECH.
"Mr. Mayor, and you, my hosts and
my fellow Americans citizens: (Great
applause.) I should indeed be but a
poor American myself if l were not
deeply touched and gratitied by the
way you have greeted me today, in this
your beautiful city: and Of course | feel
at home here. (ApplauSe.) J. think that
an American who is worth his SAT- has
the right to feel aU home in every part
of the United States. (Applause.
around this table sec many men
who took part in the great war. The
war in which the younger among us
here took part was very little one be-
cause it didn't have to be any bigger.
(Applause.) But it had one thoroughly
good effect: it put the cap ON the Struc-
ture that had been building while We
were almost unconscious Of it, and it
taught us how thoroughly at one we
were. When we got through that war
it did not make bit of difference to
US whether it was an admiral who came
from Vermont or a lieutenant who
came from Alabama (applauSe,) if the
man had done his duty in such shape
as to make US each feel an even more
generous thrill of pride in our common
nationality. The debt that we owed
him had little to do with the section
from which he came. (ApplauSe.)
And now, a special word to you OF
Charleston and OF South Carolina. Just
y years ago when first went to Wash
ington to take part in governmental
work / was Immediately thrown into
singularly close contact and intimacy
with a South Carolinian. It was my
good fortune to work with him for three
years and fer the nine years since and
for as long as | shall continue to be IN
public life, it will be to me ever a spur
to try to do decent duty for the re-
public. because have been thrown in
timately in contact with as fearless and
as highmined public servant as this
country has ever had, my old friend,
your former governor, Hugh Thomp-
son. (Great applause.)
And from what | have known OF you
and Of your representatives it was IN
no sense a surprise, but it was a keen
pleasure to be greeted with the hearty
and generous hospitality, the more
than hearty and generous hospitality
which you have shown me today. zap
plause.)
The welfare of any part of this
country is in a certain sense an index
of the welfare of all, and | think, gen
tlemen, that on the average as we all
tend to go up, itseems to be little bet
ter to 90 uniformly rather than at a
sharper gait, for the time being, and
then down and then up again and then
down. South Carolina seems during
the last two decades to have definitely
entered upon the path Of steady pro-
gress in things material as we'll as in
other things. l was much struck IN
looking over some Of the figures OF the
census quite recently published to see
the astonishing progress that has been
made here in your State. l was pre-
pared to see that the values OF your
farm products had risen as they have,
a little over p per cent. l was pre-
pared to see that your farms them
selves had increased in a still larger
proportion: that the value OF your
lands and buildings had grown up, but
l d;I not realize the way in which your
manufacturing enterprises had IN
creased, both as shown in the fact that
your manufacturing products had gone
up over 130 per cent: that for instance
the number of SpindleS has about quad
rupled. from less than half million to
more than two million in the State:
| did not realize that the wages paid
out had increased IS per cent. Gentle
men. YOU talk Of progress OF the Tar
west. but think South Carolina can
give points to .sCme of the States. ZAP
plause.) l think that with such a re-
cord for the previous decade you were
well warranted upon insisting on hold
ing your exposition here. (Applause.
And gentlemen, l was very glad
that in arranging for your exposition
you not only took in the southern
States but that you specially included
the islands lying south Of the United
States, those islands with which the
events Of the last few years nave maze
it evident that we are bound in the
future to have closer relations. (Great
applause), closer relations for our ad-
vantage and our advantage can only
be secured by making it for their ad,,
vantage also. Loud applause.l AND
about all that l have said applies tc
the greatest and richest OF those
islands, til" islands with which we
have been brought into the most pc
culiar intimacy and relationSh!p-the
Island of Cuba. iApplauSe.) And
ask that in our trade relations witt
Cuba we give her marked and sub
stantial advantage, not merely because
it will rebound to Our interest to do so
although that also is true, especially
because the events have so shapec
themselves that it is our duty as
great and mighty nation to help Cub;
and l hope to see us do our duty
| (Cheers and applause.) | shall not try
| to make you any speech tonight: be
cause for your sins you will have to lis
ten TO me make one tomorrow
(Laughter.j l shall merely thank yol