The Spokane press. [volume] (Spokane, Wash.) 1902-1939, 1909-04-14

I-Dlg mistakes That mad to do with
sizing up people. That is his blind
side In his judgment of men he
was weak. He is apt to leap to a
conclusion. And he is apt to base
a judgment on a momentary i'm
preston. A big snappy vigorous
looking man that looks you right
in the eye-a Paul Morton kind of
MANS apt to take T. r. right off
his feet. He sees the ability of
the man, and he does not properly
: estimate the other things that en-
ter into the equation-the mans
political principle, his social en-
vironment, his intellectual point of
view, his business experience.
Roosevelt idealizes men. HIT is
apt to endow them with moral at
tributes which are foreign to their
nature. He concludes that they are
dead square,; and then nothing
will shake him in the judgment he
has formed.
That is what happened in the
case of Paul Morton. That is how
he came to take into his cabinet
one of the chief tools of the rail.
road political influence-one of the
chief offenders against the laws OF
fair dealing in railroad business
And not only to take him into the
administration councils, but to
turn over to him the formulation
of the legislative remedies for rail
road abuses.
That was fragrant and illumin
ating example.
Yes, Roosevelt did tumble tC
Paul Morton. But it took a clut
to beat it into his head.
| would recall to your mind, also
the case of Leslie M. Shaw, some
time secretary of the treasury
Brother Leslie went out of Roose
velt's cabinet the author of book
circulated by the Standard Oil Co
and written to show that Roosevelt
was responsible for the panic.
Think of that And the girls il
the grammar grades of Iowa's pub
lie schools knew what Shaw was
when Roosevelt invited him into
his cabinet. And the office boys II
the lobby-lawyers' offices in Wash
ington knew what Shaw was wher
he was in the treasury department
He was a reactionary, and disloya
to the njstration-trying to
overturn it-for months before hi
was Quietly assisted by Roosevelt
into private life-the private lif'
of Wall street banking.
"The mistakts of my life hav
been many" What is that oil
hymn tune?
l am sure T. r. must hum |
: every time he thinks of the men h
has appointed to office. They wer
not all bad, but some of them wer
awful. And the men he has truste
mot appointed, but permitted t
. give him advice. John c. Spoonel
~ for example. Spooner hated T. F
7 always. Yet T. r. persisted in BIZ
| lieving that Spooner was square.
| 1t was only after Soponer had gon
| to practicing Wall street law, an
making speeches at bankers dir
| ners (supposing no reporters to b
1 1 tn
| next to Spooner.
| In his selection of federal judge
Roosevelt was generally fooled.
| heard the other day of a very goo
I example. 1t seems that during tn
| closing days of the Roosevelt az
ministration senator made an al
plication for a pardon for ban
| teller serving a sentence in fec
eral prison. The case grew out @
| some big boodling operations 1
one of our large cities. The telle
had turned states evidence, and
| was advisable to pardon him i
| order to get some higher ups.
i Roosevelt asked why the applict
i ton for the pardon had not bee
j signed by the federal judge VIII
\ tried the case, and was told franl
I ly that the judge had been par
ner in the law firm which was &C
1 counsel" to the gang of boodler:
| and had shown them how to pas
| the Doodle ordinance. Natural
the judge did not want any ma
pardoned who might involve him i
| the capacity of one of the col
| spirators.
| And this judge--a former men
I Der of the United States senate
was an appointee of Roosevelt's.
| 1t was one of the many case
where he misjudged men.
| Other men were underestimate
by Roosevelt. l have felt Away
that he did not fully appreciat
Ethan Allen Hitchcock. Here wa
a case of sturdy New England COZ
science prevailing over moder
business training, and Hitchcoc
did one of the grandest works don