Evening star., 1944-10-22
Capital Sidelights
By viii P. Kennedy.


Former Representative Roy G. Fitz-
gerald of Ohio, a barrel-chested athlete
who has lived vividly and versatilely-
mentally. morally and physically-and
now Is on the borderline of the Biblical
three score -years-and-ten," finally has
become recognized as a prophet in his
own country by his peers with whom he
served in Congress from 1921 to 1881.
After having been author of the cumu-
lative codification system for statutory
laws of the United States and the
District of Columbia, he was four times
delegate to the Interparliamentary
Union Conferences CParis, 1927; Berlin,
1928; Geneva, 1929, and London, 1890,
endeavoring to get code of interna-
tional law. His efforts were stifled by
the committee chairman, a German.
Prof. Westerman of the University of
Upsala, Sweden 0ater a member of the
Kings cabinet, planned with Mr.. Fitz-
gerald to revolt-but then Mr. Fitz-
gerald's membership terminated His
argument at that time-that an inter-
national court of justice, essential to
world peace, could be much more effec-
tive II there were code of international
law-now generally is recognized.
While on his mission of 1928, Mr..
Fitzgerald made the front page" of
newspapers all over the world by SWIM
ming the Bosphorous from Asia to
Europe with the daughter of Ambassa-
dor Grew. Mr.. Grew, recently returned
from his post as Ambassador to Japan
and presently serving as special assist
ant to Secretary Of State Hull. was then
Ambassador to Turkey Q927-1932), ,
negotiating a treaty of commerce and
navigation after completing Is years in
the foreign service, and having been
American secretary on the International
Secretariat at the Peace Conference in
1919
Ancient history records that Young
Leander nightly swan the Hellespont
to visit Hero. Modern history states
that the same feat was performed in
1910 by Lord Byron (born with a club
love, but swan for glory" while Con-
gresham Fitzgerald simply told the
writer: Il just love to swim" and, to
prove it, he swan the cold, swift Tiber
below Rome, dreaming that I was
Scipio, who was said to have swum the
Rhone with his armor on, which
stretches ones imagination"
Many members of Congress, as we'll
as State Department strategists, looking
toward lasting world peace, have gone
back to their ancient history, and are
studying about the Dardanelles-the
ancient Hellespont. That little strip (4o
miles long and l to miles wide) has
been in the background of successive
world wars, a major contention in in
ternational diplomacy for more than
three centuries and an outstanding issue
in peace settlements of the present
global war 1t caused the Trojan War,
the Polopennesian War was decided by
it, the ancient Greek colony of By
zantium Qater Constantinople) was
founded to secure it, the commercial
prosperity of medieval Venice and Genoa
depended upon it. The Persian tide
advanced over Asia to the strait, Darius
penetrated into Greece, Xerxes in 480
BIC. crossed the strait to enter Europe,
Alexander in 334 BIC. crossed into Asia
and now the American Congress is
again studying what to do about it.
Mr.. Fitzgerald also scaled Mount
Rainier (known as Mount Takoma to
loyal citizens of that fine city, and again
hit the front pages of American news
papers on August Is and 26, 1925. His
party was caught In blizzard on the
mountain and lost"
Mr.. Fitzgerald was SO when he made
that climb and engaged to do it again
at u.s. He is due to climb it again in
1850. He and Maj. Gen. Claire l..
Chennault were boxing instructors at
the C.. M. T. C. at Fort Harrison, Ind.
in 1917. He deplores the fact that Gen.
Chennault was ignored In the present
war until the world rang with his ex-
ploits with the Flying Tigers in China,
and that he himself never even got to
China. While in the prime of virile
manhood lieutenant colonel of infan-
try in the United States Army Reserve,
with overseas experience in the First
World War, he is restless at being
"atrociously" classed with tired old
men" He resents being condemned to
play tennis, run the local Red Cross, the
Public Library. the Historical Society
while the world is at war" He is treas
uring unique letters and documents of
rare historical interest and books known
as incunabula":-and is q gym addict.
In his days in Washington he was one
Of the most active and able men on the
House District COMMITTEES.