Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1912-09-30

one man as to his
speech is merely ~ M
one mans critical $E$
opinion. Tastes
differ, anyway, as sSA Nd
the old woman 81. M
said when she M
kissed the cow in M
pref ence to I
kissing her hus- " R1SN
band
Up one side and LAH<b-S p REVn<
down the other, by and large, and with
sufficiency of qualifying ifs, ands
and butts, it was pretty poor speech!
1t lacked the old time Roosevelt
punch" and it was jerkily disconnect-
ed and ineffectively delivered
1t may have won some hearts to the
| Roosevelt cause, but that is very
doubtful
Anticipating the protesting below of
Bull Moses galore that one should
make statements so transparency
reasonable as the foregoing, it must
be admitted frankly that Colonel
Roosevelt spoke Saturday night under
disadvantages that would have embar-
rassed seriously the most hardened and
seasoned of stump speakers.
1t was the la st speech of a strenu-
Gus week of speech making. and the
third of the day.
There is a limit to the physical en-
durance of Roosevelt-even Roose-
Welt!
Besides that, the crowd in the rear
of the big Auditorium Armory was
most noisy and disorderly-not de-
signedly 80, of course, but noisy and
disorderly, nevertheless.
There was a persistent tramping
around and shuffling of feet At one
time Colonel Roosevelt turned his
head and asked somewhat protesting
| ly of DR.. Macarthur, in his rear, if
those people were trying to get up
front"
Realizing something of the dampen-
ing effect Of the uneasy and shifting
audience Colonel Roosevelt mounted a
table eventually, and aCtrcss ed the
gathering during the latteN half of his
speech from that improved point of
vantage.
Despite the careful stage settings,
and the appealing notices on the walls
Thou Shalt Not Steal" CONSPICUOUS
among them-the dramatic effect, pal
pably, never was obtained.
Compared with the suave smooth
scholarly calm dissertation of Wood
row Wilson, delivered in the same
building several months ago, Colonel
Roosevelt's speech Saturday night suf-
fered much
And Wilson's speech infinitely was
more persuasive than it was eloquent
or argumentative.
And, curiously enough, It was about
Woodrow Wilson that the finest and
most thoroughly Rooseveltian Incident
of Saturday nights speech centered.
When the former President first
mentioned Wilson's name storm OF
applause broke forth and lasted for a
time sufficient to challenge the speak
er's pugnacity and gameness.
! Like the old-t time Roosevelt
aroused and called sharply to give an
accounting of himself. he arose = in
stantly and splendidly to the moment.
Standing with his right arm up
raised. that brave. if "unpretty," bull
dog smile on his face he waited pa
tiently for the pause that must even
tually give him his opening.
And when it came, the first word he
snapped back al that crowd-like the
pop" of a firecracker-was Mr. Will
SOM"
He dared the audience to do it again
and he got away with it. 1t was
game, all right-it was Rooseveltian!
The crowd, failing in its opportunity
to rub it in" if it wished to- hest
. tated and was lost.
: Immediately the colonel hurled q
Wilson sentiment at it he knew it would
not approve, and then he asked. soar
ing up into the staccato falsetto man
; ner and tone he affects when most sar.
castle, why don't you applaud THAT
statement"
The audience, realizing that the
colonel had beaten it at its own game
came across CALAMITY and generously
and the colonel then and there received
the one and only unanimous round OF
applause accorded him during the en-.
tire evening.
: As for the high and mighty purposes
of Our party" after all the talking
was over and the last word had beer
said, there must have been precious