The Washington herald., 1907-10-03

St Louis. Oct. I'm an open carriage,
president Roosevelt drove five miles
through the streets Of St Louis this
morning while the rain fell in torrents.
But inclement weather did not dampen
the ardor or enthusiasm OF the crowd
waiting TO greet him. Thousands braved
the elements along the line Of the Presi-
Dental procession and gave the Execu-
tive a rousing cheer.
Throughout the entire drive from the
levee to the Jai Alai Building in Forest
Park the Presidents only protection from
the rain was an umbrella At times he
discarded it and rose in mis- carriage,
bowling right and left.
Just as the Jai Alai Building was
reached the rain ceased and the sun burst
through the clouds; but the downpour
had done its work, and the President was
drenched. He did not allow his physical
discontinue. however. to interfere with
the carrying out Of the programme ar
ranged. With water dripping from his
clothing, he mounted the platform, on the
arm Of Gov Folk, and was greeted with
prolonged applause.
Introduced by GOV. Folk,
In introducing the President. Gov. Folk
referred to the fact that It was Nicholas
Roosevelt, a great grand-uncle of the
President who had brought the first
steamboat into the Mississippi. and the
visit of President Roosevelt. he said.
slgnaiized the beginning of the work for
deep waterway on the Mississippi
River, from the Lakes to the Gulf
The President prefaced his remarks by
4 reference 10 the weather conditions
and caught the favor of the audience bv
saying Il hope You viii pardon me if
you ind my speech dry. 1t is the only
thing about me that is" Great laughter
an,. e-nIauseD
Judging from my brief experience in
my drive out here, would say that in nv
opinion a fourteen-foot channel would
be altogether insufficient" tRenewQd
laughter and applause.)
The Presidents Address.
In part the President spoke as follows
We have lived In an era Of pbenomana1
railroad building AS routes for mer-
chandlse, the iron highways have COM
pletely supplanted the old wagon roads
ana under their competition the irnpor-
tance Of the water highways has been
much diminished. The growth Of the
railway system has been rapid all over
the world, but nowhere so rapid as In
HE United States Accompanying this
there has grown in the United States
tendcEry toward the practically complete
abandonment of the system Of water
transportation
Such -e2dency is certainly not healthy
ana L am convinced that it viii not be
permanent There are many classes Of
commodities, especially those which are
perishabie in their nature and where the
value IS high relatively TO the bulIz vr7ic,
WI! always be carried by rail Bur hrlllz,-
commodities which are not Of perish
able nature will always be specially shit
co Ior the conditions Of water transport
FROM every standpoint II is desirable
Tor the nation 10 join IN IMPROVING the
greatest system of river highways within
lis borders. a system second onIv in i'm
pOTJdnce 10 the highway afforded by the
great lakes. the highways of the Aiissis
slppl and its great tributaries s1lcb as
the Missouri and Ohio This river svs-
ZEN lT4EeIses TOO many States TO render
u possible to leave merely to the States
the task Of hitting it fer the greatest usa
Of which IL is capable II Is smnbaticoiI,-
national task. for this great river sys-
TEN IS Of Itself one Of our chief national
assets
Nation Awakens TO Need.
Within the last few years there has
been an awakening in this country 10 the
need Of both the conservatism and tho
development Of our national resources mn
der the supervision Of and by the aid of
the Federal government This Is esDe-
cially true Of all that concerns our rlln-
ming waters.
II the Mississippi Is restored 10 its
foTmer place Of Importance as a highway
OF commerce. then the building Of Tho
Panama Canal Will be felt as an imme-
diate advantage to the business Of every
city and country district in the NissiS-
sippi Valley.
Therefore I am glad TO be able to re-
port TO you how well We are doing with
the canal.
Now, gentlemen, this leads me up to
Snother matter for national COnsidara-
tion. and that is our navy. The navy is
not primarily of Importance only TO the
coast regions. 1t is every biz as much
The concern Of the farmer who dweIls
thousand miles from sea water as of the
fisherman who makes his living on the
ocean, for it Is the concern of every good
American who knows what the meaning
of the word patriotism is This country.
IS definitely committed to certain funda-
mental pOlices-tO the Monroe doctrine
for instance, and 10 the duty not only of
building. but when it is built, Of policing
and defending the Panama Canal We
have definitely taken our place amOng
The great world powers and Ii would ba
sign Of ignoble weakness. having taken
such place, 10 shtrk It's responsibilities
Fleet Going 10 Pacific.
In a couple of months our fleet of great
armored ships starts for the Pacific. Cal
ifornia, Oregon. and Washington have
coast line which is our coast line lust as
emphatically as the coast line of New
York and Maine. Of Louisiana and Texas
Our fleet is going to its own home waters
III the Pacific, and after a stay there if
will return 10 its own home waters in the
Atlantic
In conclusion, I wish 10 say word IN
this body. containing as it does so MANY
business men, upon what is pre-eminenr-
" a business proposition and that is the
proper national supervision and control
OF corporations
Now that the questions Of government
are becoming so largely economic the
majority of our so-called constitutional
eases really turn not upon the interpreta-
tiOn Of the instrument itself. but upOn
n -