The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-02-18

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returned to Oyster Bay. She came back
to Washington again when she was 13,
her father having been appointed as
sistant secretary of the. navy. At this
time she was enrolled in private
academy, but in few months resumed
her education under private tutors.
Among the accomplishments acquired
at that time were fine knowledge of
French, painting in water eolors and
music. She rode horseback and took
long country rambles with her father,
romped with her brother, Theodore, Jr.,
and visited Aunt Anna, then and now
the wife of Lieutenant Commander
Cowles of the navy. She was miss
of IA when she kissed her father good
bye and saw him start for the Spanish
war, and she was hardly Is when she
was taken to Albany, to live for two
years in the, executive mansion there.
When her father returned to Washing
ton as vicepresident, she was IL. -.
First Known to Fame. r--
Until this time the nation-beyond
her own little .circle-did not know that
there was such young lady as Alice
Roosevelt. Even as the vicepresident s
daughter she was little heralded, for
vicepresidents are of little consequence
at best Her father remained in Wash.
ington only, long enough for the. senate
to confirm the president g nominations.
Then, from March until September the
family was united again at Oyster Bay.
Miss Alice was making various and
sundry plans. for a debut the follow
! ing winter, when she would live in
Washington, in the great Bellamy
Storer mansion, now, the embassy of
France. But these visions were inter
| rupted by the death of President Nc
Kinley, and the succession of Vice
President Roosevelt to that office. Miss
Alice was then II years and Z months
old and she quickly found that the eyes
Of the country were upon her. - .
She was then a slender blue-eyed girl,
little below the average stature, with
a face which was the feminine repro
duction of her. father 's--a face broad
at the temples, with eyes far, apart,
nose short and broad, brow full, but OF
! medium height, and crowned with a
wealth of light brown hair. It was a
good, stolid, sincere Dutch face, but
while the mold of the Teuton pre-
vailed, there was some of the bluntnes:
of the Celt--of those Irish ancestors OF
her fathers, who in colonial days set
tied in Pennsylvania. -
The gossips hurried to. the White
House, expecting to behold a very vain
and naughty young miss, self-eonsclous
conceited and ready to. snub all save
the titled and. the rich, for they. could
only base their Judgment upon past ex
periences. But the gossips came away
with mouth agape and complaining tina,
Miss Alice; was sincere to the point OF
brusqueness, that she was not prim
enough, considering her station; had
too much of the tomboy left in her
In other words, it was discovered that
she was s. chip off the old block"
). Debut in Society. = -
Six weeks before her eighteenth
birthday, Alice Roosevelt made her of
fetal bow to society and became Miss
Roosevelt. Her debut was marked BY
a grand ball in the east room, the most
imposing event seen in the White House
since the days of Dolly Madison
Gowned in white silk, the young woman
made her bow to 700 guests, includ
ing all the high officials of the govern
ment and the representatives of all the
nations Of the world The next day sht
sent wagon loads of flowers, left from
the ball, to- the hospitals of the city.
Gossip now began to figure on the
question Of beau. The previous sum
mer the young woman had told hel
grandmother Lee not to introduce hel
to any men out of college, for she
wanted to make the most of this last
girlhood vacation "In Washington
she sighed, ''I shall be compelled to sit
with old men in their thirties anG
more. - -
! A few weeks after her debut Prime,
| Henry sailed over from Germany ant
| invited her to christen the kaiser 7
tyacht Meteor. With specially mad,
nickel Ratchet she cut the ropes AM
4 broke a bottle of champagne over it
bow. The prince, on behalf of the EN-
peror, then presented her with gol(
bracelet set with diamonds, other gem
and small picture of his royal brother
After she had replied to the emperor
telegram thanking her for christenin,
the yacht, London newspaper criti
cised her for not framing the dispatcl
in terms of greater servility. Shertl,
afterwafd William II. named anothe
of his naval yachts the Alice Roose
welt, and therefrom came from Berlin
a story that the PRESIDENT daughte
was to be guest at the royal palace
Berlin; that the emperor and empires
had looked over the list of marriage
able Protestant princesscs and foun,
them all unavailable; that they wer
keen to marry the crown prince to Mis-
Roosevelt; that the kaiser would frs
see to it that some friendly monarcl
would confer upon the president
daughter title. Next, a Paris news
paper said that Miss Roosevelt nigh
take her pick of titled European eligi
bles, and printed her picture in tn
center of u page, surrounded by tn
pictures of many of these princes an
lords. # @
Gossips and Romance.
Some of these stories found more o
less favor at home, and it was wit
difficulty that the family convinced til
public that it wasn't hunting It'll
for this young woman. The gossip
1 IL .