New-York tribune., 1908-12-11
TAFT ON JOYS OF GOLF
DEMOCRACY OF LINhS.
Gouernor Also Defends Game IN
TeLegran, to St. Andre1CS Club.

TrAS
| .,r absont from, tbe twentieth birthday cele-
hrat,on ard dinner OF the st. Andrews COLI Ciun'
| scored through their humorous kilograms anu anu,
ters Eead to the two hundred members anu :. :,
| of the club at ,Demoncos last night JUDGE idi'
Srote that there was nothing more den1ocrauc uan
! golf and nothing which furnished greater test
of character and self-restraint-
Austen O Fox was the POSTMASTER AT tne
quests table sat J. B. Thomas, the cuos tnlIu
president; Patrick Francis Murphy. Martin y"
| Iittleton Ransom Il. Thomas. president OF 'ie
stock Exchange; Simeon Ford. Walter j. IraEIs'
A H Tarkin F. S Douglas, e. B. Macdonald, w
! Whvham Justices Gldersleeve and Dayton w
H. Sands and Daniel Chauncey.
The great flag of the club decorated the wan
back of the speakers table. and beneath II was an
enlargement of a photograph showing the hrS'
came Of golf pIaved in America near fonkers.
thirty yesrs ago. Harry Holorook' Jonh D.
I-phan1 A. P ". Kinnan and John Reed TOOK part
Judge Tafts letter. dated Hot Springs va. De-
cember 3. read by Mr.. Fox, created much iiieIIi
ment The letter follows.
| have your kind note of November 80; have
had good many Invitations recenty r gIt HG5g 3;of
clab 31s 'IR" VIXEN learn that Your eiu6t5e oldest in
this ees only paving sS sGse Ee
sarpFssd 0@d mould s Ps5Psed 2 3 hay ays Hsnsr
in long time so little excellence nut ,o so-L =
greater apPcaton 5E to K than to any other sport
| know:
| Hope springs eternal in the human n. breast
Man never is. but always to be- best
should like, therefore to be & guest , at rGs yoG5 IN
board, and meet men who sympathze WIN Ia slI 1a ~
an average OF SIX something not dishonorDls or
Feeding the late election campaign. there were
deprecated its becoming known that was sddieted
golf. an evidence Of sristocIatIc ION
know ana know that nat, there here is is 66b5s Netting whG
q1rnes STeateP test Of Character and sefre
sran nothing which puts one Ia more e 9a ene an 6Rer
than ones fellows, than the game % or ff gof ~ ones
/ heart more intense feeling OF -abasement and
! humiliation than the game Of golf should Ike
have never had the pleasure Of Rlay5s tIa5 2vsT s
the ST. Andrews on the Hudson % and ~ mas F tS{
been been I5 msny goV1 expert golfers But when men
play golf fer the lGys s OF 1T ar6re y'SS th '
/ For that reason, I am very certain that @ haa J
To9r yae Phvitsti6n Should eniov your hospitality ex
tremely ! regret that at The tine menti4onea. 4 REQ.
fberefore deny myself the privilege Of attendance
/ Governor Hughes's telegram was as follows:
greatly regret that canEot be at the d.npe5 rG
this evening I know the JOYS and sorT2Ns f o. ne
bunker is worthy of the highest office IN our great
Ing temporarily encountered the hazards of Other
ne nelds, 1k but what is more delightful than
the memcry of one long drive and the forgetfu-
Nv greetings 70 the members of the St Andrews
! club. and my congratulations upon their ami
versary.
As Mr. Travis had been promised that he woulo
! not be called upon for address his health was
! drunk and reference by the toastmaster 10 his
: capture of the championship was followed by ap-
pIause and the singing OF For He's a Jolly Gco1
! Fellow
/ Patrick Francis Murphy. in responding 10 Gov
ernor Hughes's telegram. said that the toastniaSter
I had called him Democrat, whereas all that the
public knew about his politics that he was an
! early riser and his wife PRESBYTERIAN He said
/ George Washington would have been a poor golfer
! because he couldn't tell good lie
The toastmaster expressed regret that Andre"
! Carnegie was unable be present. and said that
! having tried to lower his own score as much as
possible" he was Washington. pursuing the
/ ambition of lowering the tariff.
/ Simeon Ford said that he was anxious to find out
! whether golf was played in heaven NOS before
! deciding upon hts future residence "AH hot wea-
! ther resorts he commented. have links Then
| he said:
| It was once my privilege to touch John D. Rocke
! feller in the offhand leg with golf ball and 1
( take great pride In the thought that I'm probably
| the only living who ever touched john u.
! Rockefeller and got away with it. I took a drive
/ and hit John D i'm the golden calf John threw
down his club. executed few steps of Salonle
| dance and gave other evidences Of tmpatience
/ That vas the that I ever came 70 getting
! into the % Broadway crowd
! Martin W IittIetor congratulated the club mem
| bers upon the long history of their organization
and was appauded fo~ his references to the Scotch
! game.