The St. Lucie County tribune. (Fort Pierce, St. Lucie County, Fla.) 1905-1920, 1905-10-27
PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT WAS FLOR|DA'S GUEST

heroes of the past merely as excuses
for sitting azily down in the present
or for standing aside from the rougl
work Of the world, then these memories
will prove curse instead of blessing
But II we treat them as believe W,
shall treat them, not as excuses for in
action, but as incentives to make u.
show that we are worthy Of our father!
and of our fathers fathers, then il
truth the deeds of the past will not have
been wasted, for they shall bring forth
fruit hundred fold In the present gen
GRAFTON. We of this nation, we the cit
liens Of this mighty and wonderful re.
public stretching across continent be-
tween the two great oceans, enjoy ex.
traordinary privileges, and as our op.
portunity is great, therefore our re.
sponsibilty is great. We have duties
to perform both abroad and at home,
and we cannot shrink either set of du-
ties and retain our self-respect.
The President then continued and
pointed out the lines to be followed to
make good citizen. He was repeated
y interrupted by cheers and applause
from his large audience.
Upon the conclusion of his address at
the Seminole Club. the President talked
with various persons for ten or fifteen
minutes and then proceeded to the
Board of Trade rooms.
The feature of the days program was
the reception by the Jacksonville Board
of Trade. The President arrived here
about o'clock. and was introduced to
and shook hands with 600 or more citi-
zens of Florida, some of them members
of the Board of Trade and other guests
from out of town. The handwriting
over, the guests were seated in the as
semby hall, where luncheon had been
spread for 900. The improvised ban
quet hall made happy effect. En-
bossed in roses upon the east wall was
the legend in large letters; Welcome
Roosevelt"
Above this was the Presidents pic
ture, upon which was perched a white
dove-a graceful little testimonial to
Mr.. RoOsevelt's great work of making
peace between two nations and ending
the most sanguinary war of authentic
history. Across the dias, from north to
south, was the table of the honored
guests, the others being arranged from
east to west and all tastefully decorated
with ferns and palms and bearing a
weight of good cheer.
A being seated, President Gardner
welcomed the President and introduced
him.
Acknowledging the warm welcome
given him by the Board Of Trade the
President said:
Here in Florida, the first of the Gulf
States which have visited upon this
trip, wish to say special word about
the Panama Canal. | believe that the
canal will be great benefit to all our
people, but most Of all to the States of
the South Atlantic, the Gulf and the
Pacific slope. When completed the ca
nal will stand as monument to this
nation; for it will be the greatest en-
feat ever yet accomplished in
the world. 1t will be a good thing for
the world as whole, and for the peo-
pie of the isthmus and of the northern |
portions of South America in partcu-
lar. Because of our especial interest
in it, and because of the position we
occupy on this hemisphere, it is mat
ter of special pride to us that our ma
ton, the American nation, should have
the performance of this
world duty.
"A body of the most eminent engin-
GERS in the world, both Americans and
foreigners, has been summoned to ad-
wise as to the exact type of canal which
should be built. At no distant date !
hope to be able to announce what their
advice is, and also the action taken upon
heir advice. Meanwhile, the work is
already well under way, and has adj
,anced sufficiently far to enable me to
announce with certainty that it can
surely be accomplished, and probably at
ess expense than was anticipated. The
work Of building the canal Is great
American work, in which the whole
american people are interested. 1t has
nothing to do with parties or PARTISAN
hip, and is being carried on with abb
olute disregard to all merely political
considerations with regard only to eff
iciency, honesty and economy.
After the luncheon and reception at
he Board of Trade auditorium, Presi-
lent Roosevelt started on the drive