El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-03-07
SIGNIFICANCE
IN TOUR Of
ROOSEVELT
Political GOssips Busy With
the Colonel and His Trip
on the West.
SOME THINGS THAT
ARE CAUSING TALK

a day spent IN presiding over CeAo-
monies, to be held in the town Of
Rooe1-rIt, Ariz., to mark the opening
! of the Roosevelt dam, one of the great
est engineering feats in the west; and
long hunting and fishing trips in and
about the Rockies are some Of the
things that will enliven the peregrina-
/ tions Of Col Theodore Roosevelt, who
viii start tomorrow on a two months
tour of the south and southwest But
aside from the pleasure with which
/ such an array of stunts" may be par
donabIv viewed. the colonel departs
With the knowledge that coincidence
OF events, whether planned or acct
dental, has set the tongues Of rumor
a-Wagging and caused politicians great
and small TO awake from post
election Iethargy and once more fas-
ten their attention upon the expresi-
dent
Some Significant Condolences.
The incidents that have aroused this
political speculation are: The an
nouncement of his tour Immediately
after the formation of the National
Progressive league in Washington; his
choice of the south and southwest as
the scene of his activities, and his re-
fusal TO comment upon the political
significance of his trip or its relation
to the Progressive league It is pointed
that the announcement OF the tour i'm
mediateIy following the formation of
the Progressive league, body said 10
profess political beliefs akin to those
entertained by the eXpresident, and be-
lieved to be hostile to the renomina-
ton of president Taft, is Of more than
ordinary significance. Second, that
his journey through a country where
delegates to the national convention
Nv Pc
publican candidate or friends of a can
didate. may be for the purpose of as
certaining the political trend Of south
ern and southwestern voters and pos
sibly launching a presidential boom,
and third, that the ROoseve1tian
reticence with which he has seen fit
to shroud the political tenor Of his
speeches en- route, hints that something
unusual is afoot.
The colonel, however, persistently re-
fuses to either affirm or deny the ru-
mors that his trip would embody any
undue political activity, and. UP to the
eve of his departure. would not COM
ment upon his utilization with the
Progressive league. With the excep-
ton of two or three of my speeches..
he said. Il shall prepare no orations in
advance, but will be governed by the
conditions prevailing at the time. Re
garding the political significance Of
the tour and the Progressive league I
have nothing to say"
Some of the stopping Places.
In Atlanta he will address the South
ern Commercial congress composed Of
leading business men throughout the
south, many of them prominent in poll
tics. He Will have II hours for confer
ence.
In Birmingham ne will address
child labor commission. This is made
UP largely Of fedceal officeholders and
prominent women Of the south. At
Jackson, Col Roosevelt will meet the
governor of Mississippi, and this stop,
the colonel says, is due largely to SEN
timental reasons because Of the hearty
reception he was given recently in that
city.
New Orleans will entertain the ex-
Rough Rider with a $4,000 banquet,
given under the auspices of the Com
mercial club of Louisiana This elab-
crate affair will seat 500 guests at S15
per plate and will number among ITS
speakers some of the foremost men in
the south and southwest Each ban
queter will receive a Roosevelt me-
dalton, costing about SO apiece as a
Of the occasion
The annual convention of Cattle
Raisers.7 one Of the most powerful or
CARNATIONS in the state of Texas. will
then be addressed by the colonel al
San Antonio. He will be followed ~
many Of the political leaders of fhe
state.
The next stop in the itinerary viii be
N NJ, where the ex-
Rough Rider will spend two days
among his old friends of the saddle. /
These will be informal affairs" said
Col. Roosevelt L would never dare |
pass through the state without stop |
ping TO greet my old comrades" |
the affairs may be informal, 1t |
is said that they will be decidedly Law |
ish, for the expresident is dear to the /
hearts of the plainsmen and his former /
many of whom now hold Of
fetal positions are making every effort /
10 provide an entertainment that will 1
not soon be forgotten.
The next stop will be Grand Canyon,
Ariz., where short address win be /
delivered Then on to Phoenix for the l
opening of the Roosevelt dam, that /
great structure which plays so import |
ant part in the vast system of recla-
nation inaugurated under the colonePs /
administration.
VIII Motor Across Desert.
Col Roosevelt who will preside at |
the exercises attendant upon the open
ing of the dam, viii motor 10 miles
across the desert and after taking part /
in the ceremony will spend the night /
In the town of Roosevelt, where they
are TO be held.
This dam is regarded as one Of the
most remarkable feats of engineering
IN the west. 1t is 2S4 feet high from a
Darapet to the foundation and is 1880
feet long OF top. The waters held in
check by this great structure will be
used to irrigate more than 1000 acres
Of land in the region Of Phoenix, Ariz.
In Los Angeles, Col. Roosevelt will
speak at the invitation of governor
Johnson of that state. The colonel talk
ngT on this portion Of his trip spoke
most enthusiastically of governor
Johnson.
Governor Johnson is great friend
If mine" he said, and gave him
ny promise to make one or two speech
IS in his great state" He will also
Journey TO Pasadena, which is nearby,
md deliver an address before the
rhroop Polytechnic institute.
Ten Days IN Frisco.
San Francisco, the termination OF his
ranScOntinentai trim will receive Sopne