The San Francisco call., 1903-01-18
SECRETARY HAY
GUEST Of HONOR
Ohio Society Of New
York Gives It's An
nual Banquet.
Assemblage Most Brilliant
Seen in Metropolis in
Many Years.

NEW YORK. Jan. 17.-Secretary of
State John. Hay was the guest of honor
tonight at the seventeenth annual din
ner of the Ohio Society, given In the
grand ballroom of the Waldorf. The ban
quet, to which the title of diplomatic"
was given, in recognition of the presence
Of the representatives of all the great
powers, was the most brilliant that has
occurred in New York in several years.
Additional interest was given by the pres
eDce of the ladies of the several embas-
sizes and the wives of numerous distin-
suished officials of the national and State
Government, who filled the boxes of the
ballroom. Colgate Hoyt, president of the
Ohio Society, presided, with Secretary
Hay at his right and Count Cassini, the
Russian ambassador and acting dean of
the diplomatic corps. at his left.
Others at the guest table were Edmondo
Mayor de Planches, the Italian Embas
sador Ladistus Hengelmuller Won Hen
gerver, the Austro- Hungarian Embassa-
der; Count Won Quadt, assistant secretary
of the German embassy; Pierre de Mar
gerie, counsellor of the French embassy;
Sir Michael Herbert, the British Embas-
sador; Senor Aspiroz, the Mexican En-
bassador; DR.. David J. HILL Assistant
Secretary of State; Bishop William A
Leonard, chaplain of the Ohio Society;
Senator Marcus A. Hanna, j. P. Morgan,
Senator Chauncey NJ. Depew, Mayor Low,
Whitelaw Reid, General William H. Sew
ard and James H. Hoyt of Chicago.
In his opening address President Colgate
Hoyt referred to each ambassador and
Minister by name, when each arose and
bowed his acknowledgements.
PRAISE FOR ROOSEVELT.
After the toast to the President Of the
United States had been drunk with the
customary honor, the whole assemblage
rising and the orchestra playing the ma
tional anthem, Mr. Hoyt introduced the
guest of the evening, who responded TO
the toast. The Secretary of State
hailed with prolonged applause, in which
the ladies in the boxes joined Mr. Hay
said in part
l imagine your toast referred more es-
pecially to our actual President-our
young gallant, able, brilliant President
Roosevelt. i am glad to be called on to
say in his absence what few men would
be hardy enough to say to his face-for,
like all men of high courage and manli-
ness, he is inhospitable to flattery. In
the great roll of our Presidents-all Of
them men of mark, of lofty character
and ideals-not one name among them
smirched by the slightest stain of per-
sonal corruption or wrongdoing, all of
them showing to the world clean hands
and high aims-he holds now, he will hold
forever, a distinguished place A great
German has said, "a talent is formed in
the solitudes, a character in the torrent
of the world Our President has had
the advantage of both these environments.
FROM the clostered life of American col
lege boys, sheltered from the ruder cur
rents of the world by the ramparts of
health and gentle nature, he passed, still
very young, to the wild and free exist
ence of the plains and the hills. In the
silence of those vast solitudes men grow
to full stature when the original stuff is
good. He came back to the East bring
ing with him, as Tennyson sang, "the
wrestling thews that throw the world
His career since then has been singularly
varied He has gone rapidly forward and
upward because that was the law of his
being. He does not disdain the garlands
of fame, but he finds his highest enjoy