The Holly chieftain., 1902-07-04
PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT HIGHLY
i PRAISES WOOD, TAFT AND ROOT

v N
should be akin to our own; to teach
the people, after four centuries of mis-
rule, that there were such things a.
esty and fair play for all men ON their
merits as men. He did all that. i
He hAs come back here, and has
been attacked forsoOth. by people who
are not merely unworthy Of having
their naul1A coupled with his, but who
are incapable of understanding the mo-
lives that have spurred him on 70
bring honor. to this Republic.
And. TaR, 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 at Yale, the
youngest Yale man upon whom that
Institution ever conferred the. degree
Of LII. D.; man who, having won
high positions at the bar and then
served as solicitor general, with all his
tastes ,impelling him to Judicial ca
ttcer; and who was appointed to the
United States bench and was asked
to give up the position to 60 to the 9TH
er side Of the world to take up an in
fnitely difficult and Infinitely danger
fOus problem, and to do bis best to
xplye 1t. 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
he would be put upon the Supreme
Court, and when there was a question
of vacdncy arising, said to hiln'
Governor, l think L ought to tell ytliS
that If a vacancy comes in the Supreme
Court, while 1t would give you an op-i
pOrtunity to be put in the position you
| would like to have, think l ought to
| tell you that If such n vacancy should
occur do not see how ! could posi-
bly, give it to you, for need you where
Lyon are
"He said to me: MIR. President, 1t has
always been my dream to be in the
Supreme Court, but If you should offer
me justiceship now, and at the same
| time Congress should take off entirely
my salary as governor, l should so
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
myself, Mr.. President Eliot, but like
most of you present, comes OF the old New
England stock, whose great grandfath-
er stood beside Leonard Woods great
grandfather ON the Concord bridge.
Elihu Root, who had worked his way
| up from being. q poor and unknown
country boy in New York to a position
where in a year or two he had the
leadership of the bar Of the great city
within his graSpi gave 1t up and made
the very great pecuniary sacrifice i'm
piled in giving 1t up. and accepted the
position under President MKfniey OF
secretary OF war, a position which for
| the last three years and at present
amounts to being not only secretary OF
war but the secretary for the islands,
the secretary, for the colonies at the
same time; he has done the most ex-
hanstive and important work of any
man in the administration, more 20
than the work of the President, be
cause circumstances have been such
that with a man of Roots wonderful
ability, industry and conscientiousness,
I 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. He
has done that and done 1t absolutely
disihterestedly.
He has done all that with the GER
tainty 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 Abrshain Lincoln could
d0l incidentally he has done all. Taft
has done it. Wood has done 1t. These
three men have rendered that service.
I can do nothing TOR 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 ! will do"