The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1919-02-13
Joint Session Last Evening
to Honor Memory of
Roosevelt
CHIEF ADDRESS
BY FRAZER METZGER
Randolph Clergyman and Former Bull
Mooser Gave Brilliant Oration-Ad-
dresses also Made by Governor Glenn
ent and Lieutenant Governor Stone.

CIV anu A1euJelaIC GOVeInOT StOue.
MONTPELIER, Feb. l3--The hall of
representatives was filled to its capacity
asst night when the house and senate met
joint assembly to pay tribute to the
memory of Theodore Roosevelt.
Lieut.. Gov. Mason S. Stone presided
md spoke briefly of Roosevelt, the diplo-
nat, historian, writer and president. The
lead chief of the nation, he said, had
.aused the United States to be respected
md recognized among the imperial ma
lions of the earth. He then introduced
,iov. Percival w Clement, who spoke
Jriefly along the same lines.
Rev. Frazer Netzger of Randolph, intro
-luced as disciple Of Roosevelt, delivered
he euloy of the evening 1t was not
MY brilliant Grafton, but a personal
ribute, inspired by his association with
nd admiration for the dead statesman
The speaker referred to that great in
.uenee which had SO exalted and inspired
ur national life and to the manner in
hitch the great leader had been mouFned
By all Americans regardless of their po-
itical affiliations
Roosevelt was misunderstood like all
,reat men, said the orator, and one OF
he commonest charges against him was
hat he was a demagogue and self-seeker.
t once suggested to him, in response to
is request, that perhaps he might with
rofit eliminate the pronoun i from his
peeches. With tears in his eyes he
urned to rue and said:
oh, why do people misunderstood me
o? ! have had surfeit of fame.
yant no more. | want only to do my
| uty ! must do it. | cannot do other
| Use. Like another of his critics, at that
noment ! saw the soul of Roosevelt"
| Mr. Metzger referred to the delightful
ONE life of the Roosevelts and recalled
| ne former presidents tribute to his fam
| ly: The world has reason to find fault
| With me- said Roosevelt" but it can't
nd fault with my family" One of the
4 biggest things he bestowed on the Ameri
an people was the sanetity of the home
aud one of the most sacred influences il
toosevelt's life was that of Edith Roose
elt, who held him up to such standard
8 / doubt if he could ever have attained
lone. The inspiration of his book, Tn
treat Adventure, came out of the soul o
he noble woman who lived by his side
And his sons, fighting, bleeding an
lying overseas for the flag Surely Their
dropped dead over there the fightin
agile of this great American family"
, The orator referred to Roosevelt as hay
ng the viking spirit, tempered with tn
, ;pirit of Gaahad,. and declared tina
he had been president, the Unite
'tates would have gotten into the Euro
, 0ean war at time when. we could hav
,, given even greater assistance than we reI
Tered at the end. He paid tribute t
9oosevelt's devotion to the church.
"He once said: There may be som
(; people who never need to go to churcl
but I'm not one of them | must hav
the inspiration of the House of God, til
constant inspiration of righteousness.
: Roosevelt, he continued, never consit
i cred popular acclaim, but he created i
Arguments for expediency and politics
shrewdness never counted with Roosevelt
He had but one standard rs it right
d Mr. Metzger reached the realm of tn
It ,ratory when he said that the two gre;
clarions Roosevelt had left us were Sc
- vice and patriotism
He was not in favor of a league to G.
force peace, but league To enforce rlgh
eousness. We are not going back to ii
days of ease and self-seeking so long
the spirit OF Roosevelt leads us" "a
piausc.)
The speaker called attention to IL
strong nationalsm OF Roosevelt and d
elared that his spirit would teach us til
the false cry OF internationalism was
dangerous in its way as pacificism or B,
shevism.
I'VE must first of all love our own +
ton before we can love or help anoth
nation. The spirit of Roosevelt shot
save us from losing our national sol
through the menace of internationalis
which appeals first of all to weaklings a
sham altruists. The man who fought
the flag. who would fam have died
It, would say to us, first of all: BE
irst of all Americans,