The Lamar register., 1902-07-02
PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT HIGHLY
PRAISES WOOD, TAFT AND ROOT

should be akin To our own: to teach
the people, after -four centuries of mis-
rule, that there We're such things as
governmental righteousness and hon
esty and fair play for all men on their
merits as men. lie did all that.
He has come back here, and has
been attacked forsooth. by people who
are not merely unworthy of having
their names coupled with his, but who
are incapable of understanding the mo
tives that have spurred him Oh 10
bring honor to this Republic.
And, Taft. Judge Taft, Governor
Taft, who has been the head of the
Philippine Commission, and who has
gone back there. Taft, the most bril-
liant graduate of his year ut Yale. the
youngest Yale man upon whom that
institution ever conferred the degree
of Ill. D.; man who, having won
high positions at the bar and then
served as solicitor general, with all his
tastes impelling him TO n judicial ca
rcer, and who was appointed 10 the
United States bench and was asked
to give up the position to 90 to the 9TH
er side of the world 10 take up an in
iinitely difficult and infinitely danger
Gus problem, and 10 do his best to
solve it. He has done his best. He
came back here the other day. The
man has always had the honorable am
| bition TO get ON the Supreme Court.
and he knew that | had always hoped
! lie would be put upon the Supreme
| Court. and when there was n question
of Il vacancy arising, said to him:
Governor. l think | ought to tell you
that If II vacancy comes in the Supreme
Court. while 1t would give you an OPP
portunity to be- put in the position you
| Il al.
tell you that If such a vacancy should
occur l do not see how | could possi-
bly, give it to you. for | need you where
| you are.
"He said to me: Mr.. President. it has
always been my dream to be in the
Supreme Court but If you should offer
me justiccship now. and at the same
time Congress should take OF entirely
my salary ns governor, | should go
| straight back to the Philippines, new
| ertheless, for those people need me. and
expect me back. and believe won't de
sert them
I'VE are to be congratulated. we
American, that we have fellow Amer
lean like Taft.
| and now, Elihu Root. who. unlike
1 myself, Mr.. President Eliot, but like
| most of you present. comes of the old New
| England stock. whose great grindfatlI-
cr stood beside Leonard Woods great
grandfather ON the Concord bridge.
l1lihu Root, who had worked his way
up from being n poor and unknown
country boy in New York to a position
| where in n year or two he had the
leadership of the bar of the great city
! within his grasp, gave it up and made
| the very great pccuniary sacrifice i'm
| piled in giving II up. and accepted the
| position under President MKinley of
secretary of war. a position which for
the last three years and Mt present
| amounts To being not only secretary of
| war but the secretary for the islands,
the secretary for the colonies mt the
same time; he has done the most ex'
haustlvc and important work of any
man in the administration, more sc
than the work of the President. bc.
| cause circumstances have been such
that with n man of Roots wonderful
ability, industry and conscientiousncss
the President could not help but de.
volve upon him work that made his
task one under which almost any other
man know would have staggered. lie
has done that and done ii absolutely Y
disiiitcrcstcdly.
ale has done all that with the GER
tain,y of attack, with the certainty OF
misunderstanding. with the certainty
of being hampered by ignorance and
worse than ignorance: that he could
not do the best that was in him. only
the best that conditions would allow
OF. II was all Abraham Lincoln could
do. incidentally he has done all. Taft
has done it. Wood has done it. These
three men have rendered that service
l can do nothing for them. can show
my appreciation of them in no way
save the wholly insufficient one of
standing up for them and for their
works, and that l will do