Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-08-25
Roosevelt ON the Doangs
at Portsmouth

The first of the series of articles, compiled
by Joseph Bucklin Bishop from the letters of
Theodore Roosevelt in Scribners magazine for
August, relates to the Portsmouth peace con-
ference of 1905, by means of which Roosevelt
Russia and Japan. The full "inside history"
of the conference is told in Roosevelts own
words. and in the inimitably graphic Roose-
welt manner. II made my first move in the
peace negotiations" he wrote in June, 1915,
ION the request of Japan" and the request was
made in way that aroused Roosevelts sense
of humor.
II was amused" he wrote, "by the way in
which they asked me to invite the two belliger-
ents together directly on my own motion and
initiative. 1t reminded me of the request for
contributions sent by campaign committees to
ofhce-holders wherein they are asked to make
a voluntary contribution Of 10 per cent of
their salary. 1t showed a certain naivete on
the part of the japanese"
The Russian government was equally indirect
in its efforts to secure peace. The Russian
ambassador" wrote the president, announces
to me that officially the government is bent on
war. but that privately he would welcome
peace" This was in complete accord with the
usual Russian methods of procedure, which
were source of constant irritation to pres-
dent who was always direct. What cannot
understand about the Russian is the way he
will lie when he knows perfectly we'll that you
know he is lying" he exclaims in one letter,
and in another:
Did you ever know anything more pitiable
than the condition Of the Russian despotism in
this year of grace? The car is preposterous
little creature as the absolute autocrat of $780,
100000 people He has been unable to make
war, and he is now unable to make peace"
The German kaiser, while OF great service to
Roosevelt in bringing about peace, was con-
tnual source of delight to him. "The kaiser
has had another fit and is now convinced that
nations, in which Germany will be left out.
What junpy creature he is, anyhow
The letters from which these are only ran
dom citations, abound in Rooseveltian phrases.
and show that while he saw the amusing feat
ures of the efforts that he was making, he was
working increasingly and most earnestly to
bring the war to an end. He wrote and tele-
graphed, every day and often many times in a
single day, making strong appeals to the Gar
and to the Mikado to agree upon terms of
peace, and whenever he appealed to the Gar
he sent request to the kaiser to bring pres
sure upon the Gar He gave them no rest till
agreement was reached. Till the very end,
success was more than doubtful and on the
night before agreement was reached, the jap
anese ENJOYS, in confidential messages to the
president, now published for the first time,
abandoned hope. When success came. the
whole world united in a chorus of praise of
Roosevelt, but he remained calm and unmoved
by it.
1T is enough to give any one sense of
sardonic amusement" he wrote to his daughter,
Mrs. Longworth, ITO see the way in which the
people generally, not only in my own country.
but elsewhere, gauge the work purely by the
fact that it succeeded. If had not brought
about peace should have been laughed at and
condemned Now am overpraised. I am
credited with being extremely long -headed, etc.
As matter of fact I took the position I fin
ally did, not of my own volition. but because
events so shaped themselves that would have
felt as if I was flinchng from a plain duty if
had acted otherwise"