The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1921-10-20

LOT
has been In Washington collecting
material which bears on the life OF
Theodore Roosevelt. Already Mr..
Hagedorn has secured a considerable
amount of valuable memorabilia.
1t Is the intention of the associa-
ton to give o public exhibition of
Roosevelt material in January in the
public library in New York city. A
permanent Roosevelt museum will be
established to hold the association
treasures.
There is in Washington a greas
store Of Rooseveltlana. Nearly every
public man who was in office during
Rooseyelfs administration has letters
written by the colonel, and many Of
these letters, it is understood, will
be given into the keeping of the Me
mortal association.
Recently / saw some of the most
valuable of the Roosevelt manu-
scripts. They are the property of
Rudolph Forster, executive clerk nj
the White House, who served in yir-
tually the same capacity all through
the Roosevelt administrations. 1t is
not probable that ~. Forster will
part with these manuscripts, although
they may be shown at the public eS-
hibitlon in New York do not see
how Mr.. Forster can give them away,
even to a memorial association. for in
real sense they are dedicated to
him by the written word of Theodore
Roosevelt.
First Drafts Of Famous Addresses.
These manuscripts which Mr.. Fors.
ter owns are the first drafts of the
Roosevelt addresses in Berlin, in Paris
and in Oxford, addresses made when
he was on his return from the hunt
ing trip in Africa.
At the top Of the first page of each
Of the manuscripts in a broad, black
mixed hand, appears Rudolph Fors-
ter's name, and following it the col
onel wrote to the effect that the ad-
dresses by right belong "to you" Mr..
Forster took the addresses at dicta-
ton and later took them to the col
onel for revision, The revised first
drafts are those which he has in his
possession. They are underlined,
crossed, re-crossed and sub-noted,
with alterations, additions and amend
ments, some of them written with Il
blunt lead pencil and some Of them
in ink with a broad stub pen. Each
one bears the signature, Theodore
Roosevelt"
1t was Rudolph Forster who took
at dictation most of Theodore Roose-
velt's more intimate personal CORE.
spondence His store of material is
a Roosevelt treasury.
If a personal note is to be allowed,
l will say that | have a Roosevelt
manuscript that IS of high interest
1t IS the original draft of the article
entitled: Roosevelt on the Nature
Fakers" which l wrote and which
appeared in "Everybodys Magazine
some fifteen years ago.
The Mature Fakers" Story.
l spent three hours one evening in
the upstairs study in the White House
with President Roosevelt while he
talked to me about the iniquty Of
teaching school children Il false nat
ural history. He talked of some of
the writer's of the day who said that
their writings were truths, and he
laid bare their falsehoods.
took no notes but wrote the In
teryiew from memory the next day,
and / wrote short introduction.
Then / took the manuscript to the
White House for the President to
read He made few or no corrections
in it, but taking blunt lead pencil
he added enough material to increase
the length of the article about one
quarter
| have this original draft of the
manuscript and 1t is a fearful and
wonderful looking affair. 1t is inter
lined on nearly every one OF its tif-
teen or sixteen pages. On the top Of
one page the President, from some
within or other, wrote his name with
the blunt lead pencil of correction.
At the end of the article he wrote ::
Corrected and approved by Theo-
dorp Roosevelt"
have in my possession a long let
ter from Theodore Roosevelt which
| shall not give to the exhibitors nor
yet present to the Memorial associ-
alton, for the time for the appear
ance OF such letters Is not yet. 1t
was written to me, not in response
to any letter of mine, but apparently
simply to give Colonel Roosevelt an
opportunity to say to n friend what
he thought about certain conditions,
notably that of unpreparedness, dur
ing the days when 1t was said that
we, ms a people, were too proud to
fight