The Ogden standard. [volume] (Ogden City, Utah) 1902-1910, 1909-03-10
BY AIMING HIGH.
politics.

The keynote to Theodore Roose-
velt's greatness is found In this dec
laration made by him to Outdoor
America:
You ask me to speak about vigor or
body l believe in 1t for its own
sake. / believe In 1t still more as an
aid 10 vigor OF mind, and above all.
to vigor OF character. But ! do not
bolieve In It at all If IL Is made an
end instead of a means. and especially
II play is permitted 10 become the ser
ious business Of life.
High proficiency in sport is not
necessary in order 10 get good out OF
it; altho, of course, it is In every way
bad TO show a slipshod indifference
to high proficiency, an unwillingness
OF inability TO put ones whole heart
into a struggle. Personally. as you
know, l am not really good at any
games Perhaps in my time l camo
pearer TO being fairly good as a walk
er. rider. and rifle-shot than in any
other way; but l was never more than
an average good man even in these
three respects.
Whatever Theodore Roosevelt has
undertaken, he has placed his heart
and soul in the effort He has aimed
at proficiency. even though he attain
cd only small degree OF proficiency
His love of home and his boys and
his considerate regard for the boylSh
desires are made evident in the fol-
lowing:
lor boys Tor what they call night
picnic on the Sound we row of eight
or ten miles, camp out. and row back
In the morning. Each of us has light
blanket TO sleep In, and the boys are
sufficiently deluded TO believe that
the chicken or beefstea& fry in bacon
fat on these expeditions has flavor
impossible elsewhere to be obtained
Now these expeditions represent Just
about the kind OF thing | do. Instead
OF rowing, 1t may be riding, or chop
ping. or walking, or playing tennis,
or shooting at target But 1t is al
middle-aged man fond of outdoors
life. but not an athlete, can indulge
In If he chooses.
A man of such keen enjoyment in
the company of his boys and who so
carefully plans their pleasures, must
be at heart a good man
Roosevelt distinguishes between the
success which comes to a genius and
that which is gained by perseverance
He says:
1t has always seemed to me that In
life there are two ways OF achieving
success. or. for the matter OF that. of
achieving what is commonly called
greatness One is to do that which
can only be done by the men of excep-
tional and extraordinary abilities, Or
course this means that only this one
man can do II, and It is a very rare
kind of success or OF greatness. The
other is to do that which many men
could do, but which, as a matter OF
fact, none OF them actually does. This
Is the ordinary kind OF success or
kind of greatness. Nobody but one
of the worlds rare geniuses could
have written the Gettysburg speech.
or the second inaugural, or met as
Lincoln met the awful crises OF the
Civil War. But most of us can do
the ordinary things. which, however,
most of us do not do My own sue
cesses have come within this second
category Any fairly hardy and healthy
man can do what | have done In hunt
ing and ranching If he only really
wishes TO, and will take the pains and
trouble, and at the same time use
common sense.
This Is modesty on the part or
Roosevelt for many rank him as a
genius in achievement of greatness.
Although it must be conceded that
his prominence was attained not so
much by any brilliancy of mind as by
his wonderful capacity for work and
his we'll defined course of conduct
of right doing,
Roosevelt, if not genius, is GER
tainly one OF the most remarkable
| plodders the world has ever known.