Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-07-20
GRIEF FOR son
BARS POLITICS.
SAYSROOSEVELT
Former President, Returning
to Oyster Bay, Refuses to
Talk on State Fight
By Associated Press

onel theodore Roosevelt, upon his
arrival here last night, refused to
discuss the Republican situation in
New York state.
my mind is not on politics at this
time" he said. You can understand
what my thoughts are on In this
he referred to his son, Lieutenant
Quentin Roosevelt who fell behind
the German lines in France after an
aerial fight last Sunday.
Among the messages which await
ed his arrival was one from his
daughter-in-law, Mrs. Theodore
Roosevelt. Jr., in Paris. 1t said:
"Quentin's plane seemed to dive
eight hundred meters. Not in flames.
Seen to strike ground. Could have
been under control as did not spin.
Chance exists he is a prisoner"
I'VE have received many hundreds
of kind and friendly kilograms and
letters" said Colonel Roosevelt.
They will all be acknowledged in
time and 1 ask the forebearance of
the senders because it will neces-
sarily take some little time"
Just before Theodore Roosevelt's
sons and his son-in-law left for the
front there was a last family gath
ering at Sycamore Hill, which has
beer recalled by the probable death
of his youngest son, Quentin, who
was seen to fall from his airplane a
few days ago within the enemy
lines. The whole family was at the
farewell party, two of the boys with
wives who were little more than
brides. Oppressed with the knowl-
edge that, in all human probability,
it was the last time the circle would
be unbroken, the colonel tried to in
still a little gentle warning into the
general gayety and high spirits.
1T wasn't, 1 found. that they
didn't realize it," the colonel ex-
planned afterward to intimates.
Things they said and looks they eX-
changed showed me quickly enough
that they didn't expect ever to be
there like that again; but it was just
that they had counted the cost and
stood ready to pay it, and, having
once counted it, they put the thought
away from them so resolutely that
for a while I'd thought they didn't
understand the gravity of the thing
they were doing. And those young
wives were as game as the boys. and
as full of fun and confidence. There
wasn't any use trying to slip warn
ing into that last gathering; every
one of them seemed to have de-
termined that the memory of that
night was to be about the brightest
memory in their lives"
Three of the young wives, Mrs
DENLY (Ethel Roosevelt), Mrs. Theo-
dore Roosevelt, Jr.. and Mrs. Archie
Roosevelt have had babies since the
husbands went to the front.
Hundreds of kilograms and cable
grams and letters were delivered to
him during the day. When the
Colonel was asked about them he
said: I'VE have received many hun
dreds of kind and friendly kilograms
and letters. They will all be ac-
knowledged in time, and 1 ask the
forbearance of the senderS because
it will necessarily take some time.
81 do not intend to make any of
them public. Some were from promi-
nent people and some from people
who were not prominent. Some
from old friends and some from
strangers. They were not meant for
publication, but to express sympa-
thy with Quentin's father and moth
er and sorrow for gallant boy who
had been doing his duty like hun
dreds of thousands young Americans.
MANY of them, indeed, 1 think,
were really an expression of sympa-
thy for the many mothers and faith
ers who have gladly and proudly and
yet with sorrow seen the sons they
love go forth to battle for their coun-
try and the right. Many of them
were from fathers and mothers who
had sons at the front, and some of
them from those whose sons had
been killed at the front"
Excerpts From Letters
Colonel Roosevelt at this point
turned to his desk and picked up
several letters. AS he glanced
through them, he said: This is
from a father of two boys fighting
and in the Chateau Thierry fight.
He writes, We've no knowledge of
what happened to our own in the last
battle
Another writes" and the Colonel
turned to the next letter, One of
my two sons in service, a naval avia-
tor, was killed in February last An
other writes that he is a father of an
army aviator who fell in action on
March IA last. The son was twenty
five years old and fell in his second
action.
"And here another writes, We lost
our only son, lieutenant in the avia-
tion service over there
Another expresses sympathy and
concludes. My eighteen-year-o son
entered the aviation service on Sat
urday.'
And yet another. from a mother
and\father of three boys. all in serv-
ice, who send their heartfelt sympa-
thy and say, Our youngest is an
aviator eager to take your boys
place in France
These are only a few among
many kilograms and I know they
show the spirit of our whole peo-
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