The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1903-08-17
TALK ON DECENCY
President Roosevelt Addresses
Quarterly Meeting
Of the Society of the Holy
Name, of Brooklyn.

Name, of Brooklyn.
Oyster Bay, N Y, Aug 17.-President
Roosevelt delivered the principal ad
dress at the quarterly meeting of the
Society of the Holy Name, of Brooklyn
Aand Long Island, held here Sunday.
'Decency of Speech and Conduct con-
stituted the theme of his address, which
was enthusiastically applauded by an
audience of more than 1000 persons,
chiefly men.
During the afternoon special trains
brought hundreds of members of the So
ciety to Oyster Bay from Brooklyn and
Western Long Island. Threatening
weather kept many away, but, although
light rain fell during the exercises, the
crowd remained banked about the flag
decked stand on beautiful hill opposite
st. Dominics Catholic church
AS President Roosevelt drove up to
the stand in a closed carriage, accom-
panied by Captain w. H. Brownson,
superintendent of the naval academy.
Secretary Barnes and a representative
of the society, he was accorded an en-
thusiastic reception, a band the while
playing Hail to the Chief
After the audience had sung "Ameri
ca" Father Power rector of st. Domin-
les, introduced the president in a fe-
licitous speech, in which he spoke of
the esteem in which Mr.. Roosevelt is
held by the Catholics of this country.
When President Roosevelt rose to
speak he was greeted with cheers, and
it was quite a minute before he was
able to proceed. His address follows:
VERY Reverend Dean, Reverend Clergy
and You, of the Holy Name Society:-I
count myself fortunate in having the
chance to say a word to you today, and
at the outset let me, Father Power. on
behalf of my neighbors, your congrega-
ton, welcome you here to Oyster Bay.
have a partial right to join in that
welcome myself for it was my good
fortune in the days of Father Powers
predecessor, Father Bedford, to be the
| first man to put down a small cOntribu-
ton for the erection of the church here.
1 am particularly glad to see such a
society as this f1ourishing, as your SOci-
ETY. has f1OuriShed, because the future
welfare of our nation depends upon the
way in which we can combine on our
men-in our young men-deceney and
strength Just this morning when at
tending service on the great battleship
Kearsarge, l listened to a sermon ad-
dressed to the officers and enlisted men
of the navy, in which the central
thought was that each American must
be good man or he could not be a
good citizen. And one of the things
dwelt upon in that sermon was the fact
I that man must be clean OF mouth as
well as clean of life must show by his
words as well as by his actions his feal-
ty to the Deity and to the Savior if he
| was to be what we have right to
i expect from men wearing the national
uniform.
I'VE have good scriptural authority
for the statement that it is not what
comes into a mans mouth. but what
goes out of it that counts. l am not ad-
dressing weaklings, or l should not take
the trouble to come here. am address
ing strong, vigorous men who are en-
gagged in the active hard work of life.
and life to be worth living must be a
life of active and hard work. 1 am
speaking of men engaged in the hard,
active work of life. and therefore msn
who will count for good or for evil, and
it is particularly incumbent upon you
who have strength to set a right exam
pie to others 1 ask you to remember
that you cannot retain your self respect
if you are loose and foul of tongue, that
a man who is to lead clean and honor
able life must inevitably suffer If his
speech likewise is not clean and honor
able. Every man here knows the temp
tations that beset all of us in this world
At times any man may slip. l do not
expect perfection, but I do expect genu-
inc and sincere effort toward being de-
cent and clearly in thought, in word
and in deed.
"As said at the outset, I hail the
work of this society as typifying one OF
those forces which tend to the better
ment and uplifting of the social sys-
tenn Our whole effort should be toWarC
securing a combination of the strong
qualities with those qualities which We
term virtues in the breast of every gooC
:, citizen. 1 expect you to be strong.
would not respect you if you were not
, IL do not want to see Christianity pro
fessed only by weaklings: l want to Se'
it moving spirit among men OF
strength. / do not expect you to los'
one particle of your strength or cour
age by being decent On the contrary
l would hope to see each man who i
a member of this society. from hi
membership in it, become all the ntte
!; to do the rough work of the world al
I the filter to work in time of peace, anC
if which may heaven forfend. wa
should come. all the filter to fight il
time of war. ] desire to see in Thu
country the decent men strong and tn
strong men decent, and until we ge
that combination in pretty good shaD
we are not going to be by any mean
! as successful as we should be. There
! always a tendency among very stron;
t men and among boys who are not quit
t young men as yet to think that to b
f wicked is rather smart. it shows tina
some Young fellow who boasts that h
! is going to see life, meaning by tina
that he is going to see that part o
life which it is thousandfoid better
1 | it remains unseen
+ II ask that every man here cOnsti
: | tute himself his brothers keeper b,
setting an example to the younge
!. brother which will prevent him iron
getting such a false estimate of life a
that Example is the most potent o
all things. If any one of you in tn
: presence of younger boys. and especial
: ly the younger people of your own faTn