Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-06-23
PRACTICAL POLITICS
Tenor of Presidents Talk to
Williams Students
WILLIAMSBURG, MASS.
GOVERNMENTS sANTo DOMINGO
ATTITUDE EXPLAINED.
Touched on Trust Question - United
States Supervision Advised-Re-
marks at Other Places.

Yesterday at Williamstown, Mass, aftel
The Stars report closed the text of Pres.
ident ROOsevelt's address to the students Of
Williams College was received. The Pres.
ident spoke as follows:
Mr. President and you of Williams: II
Is a high honor that l have received a,
your hands, and very deeply appreciate It.
Before speaking Of what had intended
to say here today I want to say a word
just suggested by that address on Idealism
in Politics. I wish to see every graduate
of this college and every graduate of every
other college in the land feel the need OF
ideals in business and in law, quite as much
as in politics. want you to have high
ideals, but practical ideals. do not want
you ever to get into a frame Of mind, which
we see pretty often IN the world at large,
which believes that you can only have
either high and fantastic ideals, or else low
and practical ones.
noxious and merely harmless. Of course,
choose to be harmless. But do not expect
very great gratitude from any person in
terested IN the country. II you choose
merely to be harmless II you choose to
have high ideals SO fantastic that they are
OF no use when you try to apply them in
practical life. do not for one moment de-
lude yourself into the belief that to have
are
more virtuous than the man who has not
them. 1t merely shows that you are more
foolish. Have high ideals and try to real
lie them in practical shape
The Santo Domingo Situation.
He paid tribute to Elihu Root, Joseph
Choate, Senator Crane, Representative
Lawrence and Commissioner Garfield The
President then referred to Santo Domingo,
saying:
had done everything that in me lay to
prevent the crisis coming All l asked on
behalf of the people Of the United States
OF Santo Domingo was that it should be
gooo ana happy. Without entering into the
ethical question l shall merely say that it
was not happy. Finally affairs grew into
such shape down there that it was evident
that the bonds of society were on the point
or dissolution; and the government of San
10 domingo made an earnest appeal to the
government ~4of the United States and
asked that this nation, out of the abund-
ance of Its strength. should strive to help q
weaker Lrother. In the interest of the
peace OF the world, and in the interest Of
justice we yielded to Santo Domingo's re-
quest, and have started to try to help her
SO to carry on her finances that she may
Justly owes, individual or national. without
implicitly formulating a responsibility and
obligation to go with that right.
We say that In our own interest and in
M .iitoi oSeS VI the people OF the western
hemisphere we adhere to the Monroe doc
trine. We cannot say that other peoples
shall not do what ought to be done unless
we do 1t ourselves. People answer that
trouble and bother will come IL we do It.
" course. II this nation does not do its
duty because it thinks the duty will neces-
state encountering some trouble, some
bother, then let this nation cease to claim
to be great I demand that the nation do
It's DUTY, accept responsibility that must 20
with greatness. ask that the nation dare
to be great, and that In daring to be great
1t shows that 1t knows how to do Justice
to the weak no less than to exact Justice
from the strong.