Evening star., 1937-04-10
inquired evenly as he extended his

inquired evenly as he extended his
hand.
About half 4 century later, Prof.
Roots younger son, Eihu, then Score
| tary OF State, wrote to President
Roosevelt: There are some things
which men (not being dasoes) can't
say to each other easily. especially
If they belong to the race with whom
how do you do, sir7' Is sn expression
of affection"
In 1864, Eihu Root was the vale
dictorian of the graduating class at
Hamilton College, where two Of his
brothers and later his son also served
on the faculty. Tc the college during
his life be gave freely Of his time and
OF his money; it was the beneficiary
of the largest beQuest in his will. His
home was on the edge Of the campus.
Old Home Was Influence.
At the conclusion OF his speech on
Invisible Government" at the New
York constitutional convention Of 1915,
Senator Root spoke of "A plain old
house in the Oneida hills, overlooking
UllC SallCy vi Z1Ol14 Va, WAlCAC
truth and honor dwelt in my youth"
1t was = tie that always bound him,
an influence always felt.
One of the things from which he
derived the greatest satisfaction In
his later years was the Inauguration
of the Carnegie Institution in Wash
ington of the Elihu Root lectures,
designed to present various scientific
matters in an intelligibIe popular form.
That" he said, would have pleased
my father very much. I think per-
haps I have been able to be of some
use in my 80 odd years Of connection
with the Carnegie Institution because
Of the fact that grew UP Is . child
in an atmosphere where one came to
believe that the only really important
thing in life was science"
He was not the crusader; crusading
requires an emotional outpouring.
The crusading spirit sees . wrong and
in its righteous wrath leaps into the
fray--or into print. Elihu Root saw,
pondered and devised methods which,
in the slow course of human events,
would start the trend in the right
direction.
In his earlier years, as he himself
has said, he was to overwhelmed with
the exactions Of great law practice
to see the larger issues Of the law and
social policy. But for nearly 40 years
he had the statesman'S view on
politics, domestic and internat tional;
on science, the arts and education; on
the fundamental principles of govern
ment. In his ninetieth year, he was
still the sage counsellor at law and he
never lost the deeply imbedded law
yer's sense of loyalty to 4 client,
whether individual, corporation, politi-
cal party, government or cause.
ReliEiousIy Loyal to Party.
He was one Of the old school, whose
ranks now fast diminish, who believed
that the American form Of govern
ment requires loyalty to party which
is almost religious in its nature Yet
in his last years of detachment he saw
the weakness of the party to which
he devoted much of his life.
'If I were not $50 years DID," he
said in 1892, land had to explain
publicly why I am a Republican, I'm
damned if I'd know what to say. I
think they are wrong on tariffs, they
are wrong on prohibition, wrong on
foreign affairs. They have made into
a formal policy political squabble
with Wilson over the League. Any
| one with any vision should see how
| foolish that is. Prohibition is as much
a noble experiment. as the Spanish
inquisition-the same idea of forcing
people to conduct their lives as you
want them to-
He was not disillusioned in his old
| age because his intellect had never
allowed him to cherish illusions. To
every problem of law, politics or
craftsmanship he applied the scien-
tific spirit with which his father ex-
amined mineral or problem in
mathematics. Yet, from the fullness
of his experience in the Sordid affairs
Of this world, he drew an understand
ing of human frailties which Nnctured
his course Of action-the Immediately
practical as against the ultimately
ideal. Cartooned and lampooned as
q mind packed in ice, he was in
| reality q man OF deep emotions, held
in rigid restraint by an iron will. Yet
! there are not a few who have seen
the tears run down his cheeks. He
could be hard-even deliberately cruel
but never unfeeling.
The world needs crusaders as It
| needs also radicals. But the world
is a poorer place for the passing Of q
wise and great conservative.
| (Copyright, 1887, by the North American
Newspaper Alliance. IncJ