TIIE SUNDAY OREOONIAN, PORTLAND, APRIL 9, 1911.
ROOSEVELT IS SINCERE IN ADMIRATION OF BIG FAMILIES
Ex-President Pays Especial Attention to Children on Journey Through Oregon and Has Word of Cheer for Mothers Who Greet Him on Tour Across Continent.
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KT W. T. BL-CHANAX.
ET me iup that little girVa
hand. aald cx-PreIdnt RuoW
Tlt last Wedoeadajr as he stood
on the platform of the observation car
of the tthasta Limited at Eugene, while
enrafed In making bis Journey from
Sacramento. Cai.. to Portland. Tlia
little ftrl was foor years old and bad
olden hair and blue eyes. Bhe stood
by her mother who carried a tx-mostha-old
baby In her arms. The
mother was plain In appearance hat her
.m .m tfltlllnflp Af Kr .rfmlr.tlnti fAi
. ... k . i- .-..1 ' Press Cluh.
slblr do and about her lips was the I wfcn th crossed the atellna
smile of one half frightened and yet ' " mBt ' ""'fr h thtt "T!"
lad to be la the presence of one so P"Pr n. and by Postmaster Merrick,
noted. The mother a-rasped the four- Portland. From that time on mem-year-old
s-lrl and still hoMIn the babe " ,h dtlaenshlp of the state were
w. v n.,i Dicnea UD a l various siauuns. lire
k. Mn fram (h. rrnnnH n that IK. WSS . S. L Ren. In
Colonel could shake hands with the llt-
and the Olonel hung on to It Just a
moment, but long enough for the train to
start. Helen had a hard time getting
off. but willing hands took care of her.
And so It was all day long.
Colonel Roosevelt spent 14 hours In
Oregon last WedtKerfay and they were
strenuous. He began the dsy by deliver
ing his first speech st Koseberg and
followed with addresses at Drain.
Eugene. Albany. Junction City. Salem,
and then tn Portland at the banquet, the
Multnonvah Field, the Armory and the
tie one from the car platform.
Men Ar Chi (led.
"Ilrre you men." said the Colonel,
"what s the matter with you. Don't
yoti see that woman has a baby In her
arms. Why didn't you plrk up the girl
and help the good motherT"
Of course the men were as backward
tn a way aa the woman and simply
did not gather their wits together
quick enough to do the act of courtesr.
"What In your name? my dear
woman." asked the Colonel.
"My name la Peterson." said the
mother smilingly.
"Are both these children yours?"
"Tes: Mr. Roosevelt." was the reply.
"And I have some more at borne.
whom Roooevelt I
took a deep Interest. Prince 1 Campbell.
Professor 8hafer and J. C Friendly, of
Kugroe. representing the University of .
Oregon; Governor West, representing the
state, and President Harvey Beckwlth.
of the Portland Commercial Club, chair
man of the general committee of ar
rangements. Private Car Carried.
Roosevelt was accompanied by Frank
Harper, his private secretary and K.
Lt Simpson, who represented the Asso
ciated Press. Mr. Simpson bss accom
panied Mr. Roosevelt on hla entire trip
which started upon March S. The only
portion of the 'Journey which did not In
clude the uee of a private car was on
the run from San FrancWvo to Portland. 1
Roosevelt Improves. If anything, at
"Fine, fine and I want to congratulate ! range. He has a charming per-
701 Mrs. Peterson. Ton are the high-
eat type of rltlsenshlp we have." con
cluded the Colonel quickly, as the train
began pulltng out from the station.
All this took place after Mr. Rooac
velt had finished hla five-minute talk
to the SO i)0 Eugene people, who had
gathered to do htm honor. When the
train very aiowly pulled out of the
crowd Mrs. Peterson followed as If
compelled by some Irresistible force.
She carried the babe on one arm and
bad hold of the little girl by the hanj.
As the train gained speed she began
running to keep up as If desirous of
having a view of the Colonel up to the
very last moment. The ex-President
noticed her and waving his hand, threw
a flower to her which she eagerly
eausht as she heard him ssy:
"Oood-bye. Mrs. I'eterson. Tou are a
good mother. Tell the little girl that
she Is a beauty. Tou ought to be proud
of her. Good-bye." ,
Mrs. Peterson was soon lost In view
and the limited began making fast
time to pick np the few minutes con
sumed in talking to the tlugene mother.
. Incident Is Tjplcal. j
The Incident was typical of Roose- j
velt. He admires the babe and mother.
He la apparently very sincere In hie
desire to see Americana have large
sonallty. Is companionable and Is some
thing of a wag. for he loves a choice
bit of humor. Although occupying an
apartment In one of the Pullman cars
he waa not aveme to meeting anyone
and took great delight In talking on
the ordinary run of subjects.
President Campbell, of the University
of Oregon, while talking with him on
the rear platform after a short speech
had been made to a crowd, remarked.
"Colonel, why do you not coma out
here on a banting expedition some
tlme?"
-Tou know. I would like that." said
the ex-President, with a twinkle In
his eye. "but my reputation has not
died out enough. When I reach the
f-. erT,
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know how you feel and the duty you
believe you have to perform, but you
will have to excuse me this time. All
Interviews which you see as coming
from me on burning political questions
are without authorization. I have so
high a regard for The Oregonlan that
If I saw an Interview In there from
me 1 would almost believe I had given
It. 80 save me the embarrassment of
I.. I I.bI I n t . I . .f mv Awn
point where I do not attract ao much 1 wn,eh dl(, no, ,ve And ner. th.
Colonel laughed heartily at hla own
attention there Is nothing I would like
better. Some day I would like to come
out to Oregon and go out tn the moun
tains but I cannot do It now for I
would be bothered with Insisting men
that I make a 'speech. It's 'speech,
speech. everywhere I go. Now I like
to accommodate all and T feel It my
duty to do so, but when I reach that
haven of reet where the demands will
not be so Insistent I shall be glad of
T"
'Jaonlca" Punlee Kooetcvelt.
Mr. Roosevelt was holding In his
families for he remarked. t am op- ,ani K( the time a beautiful bouquet of
posed to Importing anything even , -jsponlca" or "Japanese Quince."
babies. We Amerlcsns must not permit which had been presented to him by
our stock to run out." , the Women's Auxiliary of the Eugene
It was noticeable that when he talked . Commercial Club,
to older persons he always liked to re- "These are beautiful flowers and I
far to the children. At Drain he said: ! wonder what kind they are?" he asked.
"They are the -japonica. saia sir.
"I like all of your crops In Oregon, .
especially your baby crops." Then
turning the Idea over to get another ;
angle be said at Eugene. "I am glad
to see so many children; keep up the
good work."
So It was at Fslem he said. "I Ilka I
CamDbelL
"They grow on low bushes do they
not? Tou know I am not at all acquaint
ed with the flora of Oregon." waa the
remark of the ex-Presldent.
To the newspaper men he wag par-
Joke.
Valley Surprise? Colonel.
your faces and I like your stock In Or- ! tlcularly pleasant and In greeting the
egon.- Here tne spesaer gianceo uowa writer he said
While he waa speaking the train waa
speeding along at a rapid rate In the
country about Eugene and below It.
"This is a wonderful country." said
he. "You know this is the first time I
hsve ever seen this valley. When I
made ray trip here before I passed
through this whole country In the night
time. I really believe that this is one
of the most beautiful valleys of the
world. The vista la so entrancing and
the soil Is as rich as that of the Nile.
Tou ought to be proud of It."
Here he turned to William McMur
ray. of the Southern Pacific, and said:
"Mr. McMurrir, your road ought to be
proud of this country. It Is without
exception the finest and the future has
In store for your company wonderful
amount of tonnage."
Roosevelt spent all the time he could
In his apartment during his Journey
and only permitted those to coma. In
and aee him either after he had made
at the army of children, who were car
rying flags, and with a chuckle said,
"and I am glad It Is being kept up."
When ho took his seat In hie compart
ment hi attention waa called to his
reference to children and babies.
"I love a baby. Their rosy cheeks and
their dimples." said the Colonel. Some
how have av fascination for me." .
At Rose berg a boy climbing a telegraph
pole amused htm. at Junction City a
girl gave him a bouquet and at Albany
it was a pair of twine dreesed In white
sweaters At Salem It waa Helen West,
daughter of the Governor.
"You are a pretty girl." aald the ex
PresMent as he took ber bouquet of Ore
goa grape. "Let me. AfcsJks lour JjanO-
-The last trip I made through Ore- I M notlfled nlm wno delrfHi to Be8
gon the late Harvey tt. neon came
down to meet me. He waa a fine man.
fine man and I read of his death
with great sorrow."
He waa asked If he desired to relieve
himself of any sort of political talk.
"Oh you mean do I wish to express
my views upon some of the Issues di
rectly applicable to the coming Na
tional convention?"
He waa assured that such was the
case.
"No, X have no desire to do go. Of
course yon know the rule which I have
laid for my own guidance on this trip.
I do not want to talk any kind of poll-
j. am a. mrlvau "n tosi t
him. 8UU he refused no one. He
aeemed to take a liking to C R
Merrick, the postmaster of Portland,'
who waa on the train.
With W. 8. U'Ren he seemed much
Interested. He recalled an hour's visit
he had with Mr. U'Ren In New Tork and
began discussing the various phases of
the Oregon system. In speaking of the
conversation afterward Mr. U'Ren re
marked that he failed to give the. Colo
nel much light on the "Oregon system,"
"because he already knows all about
It."
In the course of the day he walked
llULlpha fjiall rar and linked Jinan. tb
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clerks sorting the mall and chatted
with them for 10 or 15 minutes. With
Governor West he went over the Ore
gon situation and expressed the Idea
that Oregon was a grand place to live.
He seemed to take delight In discus
sing the situation as ne viewed It In
the country at large, but In each case
be did not devote any time to live pol
itics. It was always "progressive ideas
In the conduct of government wltn
him. As town after town passed he
seemed to feel that he must save up his
strength for Portland.
"I do not object to these minute
talks." he said. "I rather enjoy them.
It is these long drawn out affairs that
get- the best of me. But I must save
my voice for the discussion In the Ar
mory at Portland."
He was told in an indirect way of the
unique banquet which was to be given
try hi, honor ftX POUiand,
"Don't tell me a word of the details.
I want to enjoy It all. You know It is
a relief to get Into a position where
you are entertained Instead of being
the entertainer. For five weeks I have
been doing the entertaining. I heard
that I was to have a good time In
Portland and I am looking forward to
It with a great deal of pleasure."
One of the noticeable features In con
nection with his talking to an audience
was the sinking of his voice ae If it
was about to fail lilm. Thane with him
declared that it was ' not a weakness
but the result of chuckling over a Joke.
Whenever he thought of a funny thing
ha would, without knowing It, give a
chuckle which sent his voice down to a
very low pitch and often became in
distinguishable. And such was the case.
When Portland was reached he was
taking hie lunch in the dining-car. . He
had kept up a long chatter of various
topics and became enthusiastic over the
growth of the city. Presently he left
the table to look after bis luggage. He
passed Mx. McMurray on the way out of
the car ejid as he did so he remarked:
"Mr. McMurray I wish you would thank
the engineer and fireman for me you
know I belong to the engineers' union
they have brought us to the end of our
Journey on time and we have not missed
an engagement on the entire trip. I
wish vou would write them a letter
thanking them for me.'1 Mr. McMurray
expressed his appreciation of the courtesy
and promised to do so.
Day In Portland Busy.
In Portland he had a "strenuous" time
from the moment that he walked out of
the Pullman until he entered the private
car of H. C. Nutt. fourth vice-president
of the Northern Pacific. Senator Poln
dexter. of Washington, arrived in the
city at o'clock Wednesday night and
did not have a chance to meet the Colo
nel until 11 o'clock, when he found him
in the car. In commenting upon the
banquet given in his honor at the Com
mercial Club Mr. Roosevelt told the
Senator that he had one of the "best
of times."
"You know I really enjoyed myself be
cause. I was entertained. And the
stunts they were good. Of course I
criticised the talk of the Queen of
Mombafia on the race suicide question. I
did not criticise with a view of being
obnoxious but for the purpose of having
a theme to talk upon.
"But these Portland people are mighty
fine. I never have enjoyed an affair eo
much."
Probably no feature of his trip of six
weeks the Colonel is due in Oyster Bay
on April 16 will equal the "African
Jungle" banquet given to him in Port
land. It was a unique affair emd carried
out with superb attention to detail. It
was thought of by W. J. Hofmann, ad
vertising manager of The Oregonian. and
Its success was due in large measure to
his untiring efforts In looking after the
work involved. Fred Larson, of Umben
stock & Larson, proved to be an excel
lent stunt-master and hla Ideas material
ly aided in the complete production. The
characters represented in the stunts
were "Joe Cannon," by J. F. Burke of
the Baker Stock Company. He tookthe
part , with exceptional ability and pro
duced by far the hit of the evening.
President Taft was found In the
person of Fred Lockley, manager
of the Pacific monthly; Senator
Bourne was presented by Earle Dwlre
and "the Caddie" by Winfred Renfort,
both of the Baker Stock Company. The
display of African trophies was. fur
nished by David Kramer, formerly chef
for the Viceroy of Idnla. Dr. Maxiam
Schumann was assistant to William
Grabach, scenic artjet, who performed
wonders In transforming the banquet
hall into a perfect African Jungle bj
hie large scenic painting. Professor
Wilder had charge of the vocalists 1
double "African" quartet. Professoi
Fred Prasp was in charge of the or
chestra and Mrs. Sylvia McGuire pre
sented the final stunt in "a speech" by
the "Oueen of Mombasa." it was her
talk which led to Colonel Roosevelt's
criticism as to some of the subject mat
ter used. The police band furnished a
stunt as the Colonel walked out and he
did not fail to thank them.
Menu Card Unique.
A unique feature of the banquet waa
the menu card. The cover was an en
graving. In colors, of a Junple. In the
center was a tent with the flaps ready
to open. Upon opening them a picture
was presented of Colonel Roosevelt
pounding at a typewriter and the word.-
printed "tl a word." On the second
page was this sentiment printed:
"That he may not forpet us this din
ner given in the 'Jungle' of Portland,
Oregon, where the sun shines with un
remitting splendor and the entrancing
pink of its orchards rivals only ita
eternal snow-tipped peaks In their
wondrous beauty. Not that one so
great would forget a land so dear, but
in this world of travel a memory 13
oft dimmed by the fleeting panorama,
of the sweet smiles of Mother Earth.
So we say, lest this mighty hunter
should fill his mind with the effer
vescence of the present, and lest this
fair land becomes only a subdued light
within the memories of bygone days wa
give this feast to recall and encourage
a lasting thought of tiiose who fol
lowed the 'Oregon Trail' to perpetuate
American institutions and American
freedom upon the rugged banks of the
Columbia as It rolls on its unending
course toward the mighty Pacific."
When the Colonel picked up his menu
card and read the sentiment after hav
ing gone through the experience of
walking into the jungle, he remarked:
"You people of Portland win my heart.
This sentiment Is beautiful, this dinner
Is delightful and It is all so marvelous."
He gave his special thanks to Mr.
Hofmann and could not resist giving a
thorough Rooseveltian expression to
the director by saying. "It is simply
marvelous, Mr. Hofmann, marvelous,
marvelous, and I am Immensely
pleased."
Thus with speeches, -with parades,
with guards of honor, with the layins
of the cornerstone and the multitude
of affairs connected with the stay In
Portland, the Colonel could not speak
loud enough of his praise for the treaU
ment accorded him in Portland.