The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-10-18
HAS A FINE MEMORY.

Washington Star.

Washington Star.
''They used To comment with amaZement
upon what a memory James q. Blaine had
for faces and names and minor Incidents"
remarked a New York newspaper corre-
spondent who has been covering" Oyster
Bay during the Presidents stay there this
for Mr.. Theodore Roosevelt when il comes
to the memory question, too L don't think
that Blaine ever had anything on him in
the strength of his memory.
Before this past summer L had only met
Mr.. Roosevelt a few times and before /
was sent to Oyster Bay to help keep watch
summer capital L hadn't clapped an eye
on him since 1896. Mr.. Roosevelt was a
police commissioner OF New York then and
L was attached TO the Sunday staff OF one
of the big papers OF New York, writing
hasheesh stuff to fit with the spray Wing,
idiotic pictures OK pipelooney artists.
This saffron sheet had a tremendous
leaning toward those things called 'sympo-
siumS'-you know those punches of express
siOnS Of opinion from all sorts of notables
on all conceivable topics. was the sympo-
SUM victim of the paper-that is to say,
was always chased out TO get the sympo-
Sums.
lone day the Sunday editor got into a very
Lombrosoish frame of mind, and he called
me in and told me TO go out and snag a
big symposium on the subject of a certain
noted female criminal-a murderess-who
was at that time awaiting trial in the
Tombs. i was TO find out from the bunch of
notables what they thought of this woman
and her crimes. My list included slathers
Of noted New York men and nomenclature
cey Depew of course-Robert CT. IngersoIl
Horace Porter, Frederic Coudert, Bishop
Potter, Archbishop Corrigan, Commissioner
Roosevelt and whole lot of other celebrated
folks that L can't think OF now.
Il bothered the lives out of these unfortu-
mates for a couple of weeks, and finally was
able to slap some sort OF a symposium to-
gether by main force. They were all get
ting pretty tired OF digging up that kind of
sush for the bug paper, but all but used
a piece of gaspipe on them, and by such
means / contrived to get most of them to
come to the front with some sort of an ex-
preston of opinion TO the idiotic subject
that l presented for their consideration.
Not so as to Mr. Commissioner Roose-
welt, of the police department, however. Mr..
Commissioner Roosevelt famed me In great
shape.
ii found him at his office in the Mulberry
street building, and he received me very
cordially. When L started to state my mis-
sion, using a lot of Lombroso- Nordau terms.
SOS to impress him and make a hit with
him and cause him to see how familiar i
was with the subject, he showed his teeth
with the greatest geniality imaginable. SIC
got up and leaned against the door jarrb
and stuck his hands into his trousers pock-
cts. He kept right on smiling at me when
/ had finished.
Wen. go ahead. Mr.. Commissioner.
said I.
".Go ahead and what? he asked. still
Dig said l. Cough. A hull lot of IL
I'll take 1T in shorthand. I need the space.
F" No, son., said the commissioner ami.
ably but firmly. No symposiums for me
i don't sympose.' and he laughed joyously
He said 'sympose, too, all right Il dom
want to appear in such swell company. Ans
l don't know anything about the subject
anyhow. Nevertheless, i am vastly obiieel
to you for asking me to join the symposium
-delighted-er-goodd day, son-call again
when you really want TO find out some
thing. you know-~but no symposiums. an,
then l found myself gracefully edge
| toward the door. and out of 1t. That wa,
all. 1 didn't get Mr. Commissioner Roose
Welt into my little symposium.
"As say. that was tie last time / saw
/ Mr.. Roosevelt until my paper-not a bu,
paper this tlme-sent me to reside at Oyste
ton there In June I got to Oyster IA,
| after most Of the other correspondents Ia,
arrived and saw Mr.. Loeb and presente,