New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1905-05-10
TRAVELLING EASTWARD.
THE PRESIDENT HAPPY.
Makes -Four Short Speeches Con-
graduating Western PeopIe.

Grand Island. Neb. May 9.-Despite the rain
5000 people had gathered at the Union Pacific
depot at $50 o'clock to see and hear President
Roosevelt The pilot train arrived at 6:10 end
promptly at the minute the Presidentia. train
pulled into the station. The President. smiling
and happy, stepped out upon the rear platform
and lost no time in greeting the Nebraskans
gathered here He had already begun to ad
dress the throng when Miss Anna Garrnire and
the members Of the High School graduating
class worked their way through the crowd and
presented the President with a fine bouquet of
flowers on behalf of the business men of Grand
Island and Of the schools The President ex-
pressed his appreciation especially as coming
from the school children, venturing the assur-
snce that he needed not to call attention to his
fondness for school children Oaughter)
After referring to his former visit here, his
address took the more general turn. He had
barely closed when his train pulled out of the
yards amid shouts and hurrahs
With only four stops for speeches, the trip of
the Presidential special from Denver to this
city was uneventfuI United States Senator
Burkett and Edward Rosewater, publisher of
The Omaha Bee" were taken on board to be
the Presidents guests as far as Omaha. The
speeches were all brief, and were devoted almost
entirely 10 the discussion of the country through
which the President passed and to the subject
OF irrigation. The President spoke longest at
North Platte, Neb., where he said:
This is the third time in recent wears have
peeh III North Platte and it is a peculiar pleas
ure 10 be with you once again. This neigh hor-
hooO Is one OF the pioneer spots of the West in
irrigation: II was your good fortune to lead in
showing just what could be done by means of
irrigation Tor the prosperity of this country
NoJhlng VIII count more in the next half CEN
tury in building up the United States than what
is done IN irrigation. 1 am particularly glad to
see ali OF you here but especially the children
heartily believe in your people, and I am glad
that the stock is kept up. Although 1 con-
graduate Nebraska many crops the best
crop Of all is the crop of citizens. What counts
IN any nation more than anything in the end
is the average of citizenship Here as every
where else in the West I see men who
wear the button that shows that they fought
IN the great Civil War. In the Civil War the
winning or the losing of that fight depended
upon the average quality Of the average SOL
dier- We saved the nation because the average
man was OF the right stamp. So it is in civil
life. The one thing that we have got to have
is the average man and the average woman of
the right type, and you cannot have that if
you do not have the children taken care of and
trained they should be. We need material
prosperity We must have that as the founda-
ton. but upon il must build the sxucture
Of happy family life in order TO make the
nation what il should be. Two years ago
went from the Atlantic 10 the Pacific l have
Just been, a little while ago, down in Texas as
I had previously been in Maine and Oregon and
there is one thing that strikes me more than
anything else in going through this wonderful
country Of ours and that is that, fundamentally,
wherever you address a crowd of Americans il
is z pretty decent crowd.