The Paducah sun. [volume] (Paducah, Ky.) 1898-1906, 1905-07-08
Paints a Glowing Example Of
Mr.. Hay and Secretary Root.
He Says They Put Ideals Above Mon
cy and Pays Them Both High
Tribute.
TELLS OF ROOTS ACCEPTANCE.

hthl ihOoo'Ntll pau ah app w iN'N
and eloquent tribute to the life and
services OF the late Secretary John
Hay in his address before the Ma
tlonal Educational Association at
Ocean Grove yesterday He follow
ed this tribute with an estimate of
the personal sacrifice Ellhu Root
had made In becoming Secretary
Hays successor in office. The ex-
ample of these two men. not entirely
unique. as the president indicated in
reference be made to other members
of his cabinet. enabled hi INTO point
most effective moral.
At the conclusion OF his prepared
address the president put aside his
notes and with manifest earnestness
and feeling. spoke as follows 20 the
great audience:s
I'm closing. want to speak to
YOU of how certain things. some OF
which have happened, and some OF
which have been suggested to me by
what has happened in the past week.
emphasize what | have said to you
as to the importance to this country
of having within its limits men who
put the realization of high Ideals
above any form of money making.
within a week this country has
lost a great statesman, who was also
great man of letters, a man who oc-
cupied peculiar and unique posi-
ton in our country. a man of whose
existence we could each of us be
proud. for the United States as
whole was better because John Hay
lived.
John Hay entered the public
service as a young man just come oil
age. as the Secretary Of President
Lincoln. He served in the war and
was a member of the Loyal Legion.
He was trusted by and was intimate
with Lincoln as hardly any other
man was. He then went on render
ing service after service. and always
able. this was one OF his great add
vantages, and great merits-at any
moment to go to private life, unless
he could continue in public on his
own terms He went on rendering
service after service 10 the country
until as the climax of his career he
served as secretary of state under
TWO successive administrations, and
by what he did, and by what he was,
contributed in no small degree to
achieving for this republic the re-
speet of the nations of mankind,
''Such service as that could not
have been rendered save by a man
who had before him ideals as far
apart as the poles from those ideals
which have in them any faint of
what is base or sordid,
Now. wished to secure as John
Hays successor the man whom | re-
garded as of all the men in the
country that one best fitted to be
such successor. In asking him to
accept the position of secretary of
state was asking him to submit to
very great pecuuiary sacrifice, and
never even thought of that aspect
of the question. for knew he would
not either knew that whatever
other considerations he had to weigh
for and against taking the position
the consideration of how II would
affect his personal fortune would not
be taken into account by Elihu Root,
and he has accepted.
III am not speaking of HAY and
Root as solitary exceptions. Or the
contrary, am speaking of them as
| typical of large class Of men in
| public life
Even we hear so much, criticism
of certain aspects OF our public life
aud of certain of our public servants,
crlticism which, | regret to state. is In
many cases deserved. II is well for
us to remember also that other side
OF the picture, to remember that here
! in America we now have and always
have had at the command of the ma
ton in any crisis, in any emergency,
the very best ability to be found
within the nation, and that ability
has been given with the utmost free
dom, given lavishly and generously,
although a. great pecuniary loss to
the man giving IT,
There is not in my cabinet one
man TO whom It is not financial dis