The Topeka state journal., 1909-03-01
TENNIS CABINET,
Famous Body Is Given Luncheon
by Roosevelt.
Includes Men With Whom He
Worked and Played.
HE MAKES A SPEECH
In Which He distributes Conn
plimentS Right and Left,
Pays an Especial Tribute to
James R. Garfield.
HE MAKES A SPEECH

washington, March 1-President
roosevelt today gave a farewell lunch
con at the White House to the members
of the famous tennis cabinet" and
others who have been closely asso-
ciated with him during the past seven
years Aside from the distinguished
government officials who have served
among the presidents chief aides dur
ing his administration. and also as his
companions at sports of different kinds
there were present men whom the pres
ident had made friends when he was
roughing it in the west years ago and
with whom he had gone on numerous
hunting expeditions.
The president in a brief speech laid
emphasis on the point that no admin
istration had given its chief more
loyal service, and he stated that he be-
lieved that the country had never had a
more devoted set of public servants
than those men through whom he said
most of the work of his administration
had been accomplished.
The president in his remarks fol-
lowing the luncheon said:
Gentlemen:-You are here nominally
as the members or to meet the mem
bers of the Tennis cabinet''-that is,
as men with whom at tennis Or hunt
ing, or riding or walking or boxing 1
have played, with whom I have been
on the roundup or in the mountains,
or on the ranch country.
Hands Out Bouquets.
But really as you know, you are not
here for that reason at all, you are here
because you are the men. and because
you represent the men with whom 7
have worked whine have oeen presi-
dent. No administration has ever had
a finer or more loyal service than you
have given and I do not believe this
country has ever had an ADLER or more
devoted set of public servants. 1t is
through you and those like you that 1
have done the major part of what las
been accomplished under the admins
tration. Moreover. III vast number
of cases the doing of the work itself
had been your only reward. The credit
has. come to me, to the chief of the ad-
to symbolic a battle by the name of
the commander, so they like to symbol
ize an administration by the man OF the
head, forgetting that a really success
of advancing the honor and
the interests of the country must be
managed as ours has been, in a spirit
of the most loyal association and part
nership.
There are many others like you
whom 1 would have given much to bring
here today; but there simply wasn't
room enough: and so l have brought
you here partly for your own sakeS,
but primarily as representing thousands
of other workers; as representing all
good faithful, fearless public servants,
who strive their best to do what the
public need demands and who N the
last analysis, stand all on the same lev
ell, when judged by that supreme test
which takes into chief account the spir-
it of the service rendered.
Tribute to Garfield.
whether a man is a cabinet minis |
ter, bureau chief, a marshal, an In
dian agent a forester a letter car
rier, a member of the life saving SER
vice, a clerk in department, or a |
workman in a navy yard. or whether
he holds one of a hundred other
positions, makes not the slightest diff
ference if he puts his heart and his
soul and his mind into his work, and
is content to accept as his chief re-
ward the satisfaction that comes
from the knowledge that the work
has been we'll done. So while I
greet you for yourselves I greet you
still more as symbo1izing others; and
in saying farewell to you 1 shall take
as symbolizing all of you, one who
leaves public life when I leave it; a
man who made real personal sac
riffce when seven years ago he came
here to take office at my request; a
man who has stood ever since as the
type of what a good public servant
should be; a man who for the last two
years has been one of the most useful
cabinet ministers who ever sat at the
cabinet table-Jim Garfield
Those present at the luncheon were:
The French ambassador, Secretary
Bacon, Justice Moody, the postmaster