The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-05-11
HE REPLIES TO THE PROTEST
 IN TERMS MOST EMPHATIC
HIGH IDEALS NECESSARY.
Mir. Roosevelt's Address to the Mer-
 chants, CBuh.


 man may be trusted in dealing with his fellowmen. So it is in fact with the success of the nation"
 With these words applied by many who heard them to the critical indus trial situation in Chicago. President Theodore Roosevelt addressed the Merchants Club at the luncheon given the Auditorium this afternoon. 1t was the only point in his speech which was construed as at all referring to the strike and with these words the President led up to the theme of his talk, the upbui1ding of a great navy for the sake of the nations commerce and the nations honor. He appealed to the merchants club and the other commercial organizations of the city to propagate the idea of a big navy. The critical industrial situation caused the President to be subjected to close scrutiny by those who were wondering whether he would discuss the trouble and if he did what his attitude would be Before the luncheon was ended the President was noticed to be talking earnestly but in low tones with Presi- dent Wacker of the Merchants Club and with Mayor Dunne. The Presi- dent appeared to be intensely interest ed and at several points In the con- versation brought his hand down upon the table In vigorous and characteristic gesture.
 President Roosevelt at the luncheon spoke as follows:
 Presidents Speech.
 Tt is a great pleasure and a great honor to be the guest of an association like this. This country of ours Is pre- eminently a business country and we can succeed--and I say this in my turn with entire sincerity, gentlemen only if as a country we carry on the national business as the typical member of this association carries on his busi- ness; that Is, in an entirely practical spirit, in a spirit which desires and commands success, but which desires and commands 1t as an incident acting with decency toward all our fellow citizens. No business community can permanently succeed if the average member of 1t does not possess a cer- tain quantity of high ideals; and, gen. tlemen, there is not a business man of large experience here who will not agree with me, when I say that. Per- manent success will come to the busi- ness community, where the average mans work can be trusted; where the average man himself can be trusted in dealing with his fellow.
 Just as that Is true of the average business community, so it is true of the nation as a whole. The nation must act in spirit which gives full recog- milton to the national demands, which is not in the least quixotic, which sees the need of working for the interest of the average individual nation, but in spirit which recognizes duties as well as rights; which recognizes that in our internal affairs. which recog- nizes that in our external affairs. And Au VFaA n n a Gtfhtnaf corning which I wish not merely to but on behalf of the na- tIon to thank those present upon the part played by the Merchants Club in initiating and with the aid of the Com mercial Club, in carrying to a success full conclusion the movement which re- suited in the establishment of a naval training station here on Lake Michigan.
 Believes in Big Navy.
 T need not say to those of you who know anything of me at all that be- lieve in big navy; and hope I need not say that I believe in 1t not as a to war, but as a guarantee of peace, and want to say every sec ton of this country realizes that the navy stands for the whole country and that the people of the sea coasts are not a particle more interested In 1t than the people of the Mississippi Valley. There were two sides to the estab- lishment of that naval station here where 1t was established. In the first place we get, as perhaps some of you know, a peculiarly valuable class of recruits for the navy from the Missis- sippi Valley and the regions adjoining the great lakes In the next place, wanted to see part of the establish nent of the navy have its local habita- ton or name here in the great west. And so I feel that this organization conferred a favor on the city of Chica- 90 and an advantage to the whole coun- try in what 1t did towards securing he establishment of that station where t has been established.
 q do not think that 1t is now very to make any argument for m efficient navy. We are so fortunate hat In this country we can get along with a very small army, an army which 'elative to the population of the coun- ny is smaller than the police force of my one of our great cities. With the navy the case is different. We have lot the choice as to whether this coun- ny will play great part in the world. ve cannot help playing a great part. III we can decide Is whether we will ,lay 1t we'll or i'll; we have that to ecide We can consider whether we will do badly or we'll, but we cannot Iecide what are the parts to be played; ye have got to play them
 Must stand Pat. "We cannot abandon our position on | he Monroe doctrine; we canot abandon | he Panama canal; we cannot abandon | he duties that have come to us from | he mere fact of our growth as a na- ion. from the growth of our commer- iaI interest in the east and the west; 1 n the Atlantic and on the Pacific.
 Now I earnestly hope that with the dded responsibility there will come ot merely a growth in power to meet hat responsibility. but a growth In obriety of mental attitude on our part oward these duties. If there is one o every good American than anything Ise it is the habit of speaking with
 loose tongue extensively about oreign nations or of adopting an ill., onsidered and retaliating tone to- yards any of them.
 In private life there is no one to ,hom we rightly object more than the lan who is continually offending and nsulting his neighbors except the man -ho in addition to that fails to make ood Now hope to see our foreign oIicy conducted always in a spirit not lerely of scrupulous regard for the ights of others. but of scrupulous ourtesy toward others. and at the anne time to see us keep prepared so nat there is no position that we take n either hemisphere that once taken re cannot stand on. On that attitude ot only is it important that the Gov rnment officials should behave them elves, but 1t is important that private ltizens should. The public speaker. he writer in the press, the legislator s a public servant. all owe 1t to their ountry to behave with that courtesy awards others which we would like . have extended in return to us; but