Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1914-05-20

VIII Be Sept Busy
For the ten days before he sails for
Europe Colonel Roosevelt has mapped
out a program which will keep him
busy. His present desire is to get
back in touch as soon as possible with
the affairs of the Progressive party in
all parts of the country and help to
start the machinery for the coming
campaign. Before he left South
America he planned his work. arrang-
leaders of the Progressive party. The
first of these was set for to-day.
George w. Perkins. of New York,
chairman of the. National Executive
Committee, and o. K. Davis. of Wash
ington, secretary of the committee,
We're expected at Sycamore Hill to
give Colonel Roosevelt report on the
siatuation.
Plans to Come Here
Colonel Roosevelt already has made
appointments with Progressive leaders
of several States. One of the most i'm
portant of these conferences will deal
with the situation in Pennsylvania
where Colonel Roosevelt expects to
make a hard campaign this Fall.
Within the next few days the Colonel
will see William Draper Lewis. dean
of the University of Pennsylvania Law
School, who was nominated for gov
ernor at yesterdays primaries. and
Clifford Pinchot. the candidate for
United States senator. e. A. Van
Valkenburg, publisher of the Phila-
delphia North American. and William
Finn. of Pittsburgh, both of whom
were prominent in Colonel Roosevelts
1912 campaign, also will attend this
conference.
William Brown, of Ohio. chairman
of the national organization work of
the Progressive party, will come to
n.,-A A~h .,.
his State.
Colonel Roosevelt will go to his edi-
torial office in New York tomorrow
and will spend most of the day in
meeting political associates. At that
time he will confer with the New York
State leaders.
The address which Colonel Roose-
welt is to make before the National
Geographical Society in Washington,
has been set for next Tuesday evening.
1t is in this address that the Colonel
will make the first formal announce
| ment of his discovery of a river in
| Brazil.
Criticises Wilson
The Wilson administration attitude
in the controversy with Colombia over
| the Panama canal was criticised to-
| day by Colonel Roosevelt. He OBJ
jected strongly to the payment of what
| he termed "blackmail' to Colombia.
In submitting to this he said, lit
| is just as though some future presi-
| dent of the United States should apollo
| gize to a successor of Huerta for the
seizure of Vera Cruz. AS for the pay
| ment of $25,000,000 to Colombia
here the Colonel threw up his hands
I-"well, that is unthinkable."
| Colonel Roosevelt expressed himself
as strongly opposed to the repeal of
the law for the exemption of Ameri-
can coastwise ships from payment of
Panama canal tolls. He said he
thought it perfectly right to arbitrate
the question, if the rights of the coun-
try to grant exemption were ques-
toned, but declared that to yield the
point unequivocally without arbitra-
tion was indefensible, as he was con-
Vinced that the United States was
within its rights in freeing coastwise
ships from payment of tolls.
! When he goes to Washington next
week, he said, he will be ready to re-
flute statements of Henry Savage Lam
dor, of England, and other who have
expressed doubt as to the correctness
of his statement that he had discov-
cred a great river in the wilds of
/ South America.
The river is still there" said the
/ Colonel with a laugh. 1T wasn't like
climbing an uneXplored mountain or
going to the North Pole, for such eX-
! petitions leave no traces which are
there a year later. But nobody is
going to roll up that river and carry
| it off. Anybody can go down there
and see it for himself. l will give
him the address of the owner of a
rubber plantation who will furnish
river men for the trip. The lower
third of the river is easily navigable
and anyone who doubts the existence
of that river may go down and see
for himself"
The Colonel went on to explain why
he made the trip to South America.
II wanted to do something more"
he said. Il was getting to the age
where L felt that if / was to do any
thing requiring unusual physical ex-
ertion, L must do it now. In fact,
was just little over the age, but l
put it through"
Colonel Roosevelt said that it was
pretty hard going for a few weeks.
Rations ran short and they got down
to eating monkeys. which, the Colonel
declared, could hardly be considered
a delicacy. However, he said, at about
that time he was hardly we'll enough
to eat anything.
Colonel Roosevelt reverted to af-
fairs in this country long enough to
speak of the testimony in Washing
former president of the New York,
New Haven and Hartford Railroad.
He said that when Mr.. Mellen went to
him to discuss the merging of the New
Haven with the Boston and Maine he
told him that so far as he was con-
cerned he would have no objection
provided the merger came within the
law
The Colonel protested that he felt
as we'll as ever.
| He said that the return to a north
ern climate had caused him to have
chills, but that they were not serious
and that he was feeling entirely fit.
| Accompanied by the two naturalists
of his party, George K. Cherry and
Leo A. Miller, Roosevelt arrived at
Quarantine from Para, Brazil, shortly
before o'clock on board the Booth
Nv With few crisp sentences, pune
! tuated by decisive gestures, he reai-
| firmed the verify of the River of
Doubt" curtly denied having express
blities for 1916. declared he would not
run for Governor of New York, made
few deprecatory remarks about his
critics, and with harbor craft footing
and flags fluttering was taken on board
the tug w. f. Dalzell, which proceed
ed to oyster Bay.
| Colonel Roosevelt was noticeably
I thinner and used a cane as he walked
about the steamers deck, but his face
wore healthy tan, and he had appar-
and energy ever characteristic of him.
| After stopping ten days in this coun-
try Mr.. Roosevelt will go to Spain to
the wedding of his son Kermit.
| AS Collector of the Port Malone and
host of newspaper men scrambled up
. the cOmDaniOn way the Colonel stoOd