Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1909-01-19
Theodore Roosevelt


life is Theodore Roosevelt. He has
become involved in SO many contests
of veracity with public men, that
his s'Annanias Club" has become a
by-word, and his own inability to
correctly remember conversations
he has held with others is proven to
the satisfaction of any fair minded
person, who applies to these dis
graceful conflicts between him and
the members of his Annanias Club
the ordinary legalrules of evidence.
In every day affairs, when we hear
dozens of men, who have not here
tofore been known to be liars, con-
tradicted by one man, who was not
previously known to be a liar, we
are obliged, by our consciences and
our judgments to believe that the
one man is lying, and the others
telling the truth. Hence, though
we hate to say it of the man who,
for the time being holds the Office of
president of the United States, yet
when he himself makes appeal for
the judg ment of his fellow citizens
as to whether he or the members of
his large and rapidly growing An
nanias Club, have told the truth,
we can only apply the common
rules of evidence and say "Mr.
Roosevelt, you are in the wrong, not
all these others whom you have
CALI ed liars"
He has some of the faults that
have been called faults of the great,
as well as some of the foibles and
littlenesses that have at one time
and another marked the actions
and lives of great men. But man
is not great; he is only eccentric, by
reason of faults, and foibles, and
what virtue, belonging to great
ness has Theodore Roosevelt An
issue of this paper might be filled
with a mere catalog of his grudges,
spites, fads, expressions, showing
intolerance, pride, arrogance, act
ing to the galleries, jealousy lest
the Congress of the United States,
or some member thereof, should,
for moment, be in the good graces
of the people, or more in the public
eve, than himself. But, aside from
his part, or apparent part, in bring
ing about peace between Russia
and Japan, when both combatants
were very anxious to quit, what
great thing has he done? He has
tailed much, and sent messages to
congress in such number that they
could not be considered, if Congress
attended to its work. And most of
his messages have favored needed
reforms, but his advocacy of reform
has looked much like the independ-
ence of such Journals as Golfers
Weekly, which shows its independ-
ence by editorials against politi-
clans so well entrenched in their
places thai nothing it could say
would affect them in the least.
In like manner, Roosevelt has been
fierce in his advocacy of measures
which he knew his party representa-
tives in Congress would not adopt.
But, we might, nevertheless,
Judge him to be sincere in these
matters, as we judge Senator La
Toilette to be sincere, were it not
for the general fog of insincerity
that pervades all of Roosevelts
official life.
As Pallock says, in his course of
time, take one example, to our
purpose, quite. Mr.. Roosevelt's
present squabble with Senator Till
man. His special message to Con-
gress was made in defense of his
use of detectives to ferret out vio-
lators of the United States laws.
He is quite eloquent, and, as usual,
vehement, in his references to the
detectives and their usefulness to
the public service; says that with
out them the laws would have poor
enforcement, in many particulars.
He acts quite innocent and i'm
partial in giving to the committee
of the senate, certain facts which he
would have US believe happened,
accidentally, to be discovered, while
investigating another matter, and
which show that Senator Tillman
was trying to Gust the claimants of
certain Oregon land grants, and, at
the same time, obtain some of the
same lands, for himself and mem
bers of his family. And, after Sen
ator Tillman had shown. by letters
and kilograms, that he was DESTROYS
of getting some of these lands, he
stated to the senate that he had
not undertaken" to get any of
them.
Now, put the worst interpreta-
ton ON this disclaimer of Tillman, in
his remarks to the senate, that he
had not undertaken to get any of
these lands. Interpret it as an
evasion, as an attempt to deceive
the senate as to what he wanted !;
vet here was not one of the viola
lions of law, which the president
saws he uses his detectives to ferret