Evening Star Newspaper, April 8, 1937, Page 8

A—S8 * THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C. THURSDAY, APRIL 8, 1937. — e e ROOSEVELT RIFT PAINFUL TO ROOT Former Friend’s Attacks in 1912 Failed to Call Forth Reply. The story of Elihu Root—the lewyer “whose lifelong client was the United States,” wlo, for more than 40 years before his recent death at the of 92, was the man behind American history—is told here in a series of articles, of which this is the third. The wrier, eminent as editor and author and professor of international law at Columbia University, had many elose contacts with Mr. Root. BY PHILIP C. JESSUP. ‘Walking past Dorchester House in YLondon on the 2d of September, 1920, Elihu Root looked up at it and said: It is there I had an interesting inter- view with Roosevelt. And if he had done as he promised me—kept out of things political—we should have been spared much of our past trouble. The interview had been in May, 1910, when Roosevelt was just winding up his African trek and his triumphal tour of Europe, and Root, then Senator from New York, was on his way to argue the North Atlantic coest fish- eries case at The Hague. There were already tremors which a political seis- mograph would have recorded as clishes between Roosevelt and Taft, but there was as yet no breach. ‘Root and Lodge used to chuckle over Roosevelt's articles in Scribner’s on the progress of his African hunt. “Of ocourse,” Root said as they discussed one account, “Theodore shot three Uens with one bullet and Kermit shot ofie lion with three bullets.” To which ‘Theodore replied, when the story was relayed to him by Lodge: “Tell Root that I don't at all like hise hardened skepticism about the dions. If this kind of thing goes on, I shall have to head an insurrection to put Tom Platt in Root’s seat” in the Benate. “Cabot and I,” wrote Roosevelt, “Bave been much pleased by your re- cent statement in Scribner’s that Ker- mit (speaking of warthogs) shot a ‘noteworthy sow.’” We have elected the noteworthy sow to the Society of the Milkfaced Grub, the Angleworm and the Wild Ass of the Desert.” Roosevelt Praised Root. It was the same old bantering friendship. In February, 1910, Roose- velt was exhausting his ample store of superlatives in writing to Andrew Carnegie about Root—*‘the man of my cabinet, the man on whom I most relied, to whom I owed most, the greatest Secretary of State we ever had, as great a cabinet officer as we have ever had, save Alexander Hamil- ton alone.” In September of 1810 Roosevelt pre- sided as temporary chairman of the New York Republican convention at Baratoga, and Root followed him as permanent chairman. They worked together in complete harmony and won the nomination of Henry L. Btimson, just as two years before they had co-operated in getting the nomination of Hughes. Yet a month before the 1910 convention Roose- velt had been touring the West, preaching his new nationalism, one of the ancestors of the New Deal. Root wrote to Taft that the only objection he had to it was calling it *“new.” But he thought “Theodore™ said more about the courts than he really meant. “I don't care so much about his grumbling at the decisions of the court. We all do that. * * ¢ ‘The question as to how and when and in what words a man expressed such &n opinion about a decision of the court depends very much on tempera- men and training. I shall be curious to know whether he really meant that he would, if he could, deprive the ecourts of the power to pass upon the constitutionality of laws. Of course, have always considered that the most valuable contribution of America to political science.” When, on February 5, 1837, a later Rooseveltian attack was made upon this principle, Mr. Root was in his fast illness; two days later he died. Interval of Enmity. In 1910, although there was no breach between him and Theodore, the latter had slipped out of his old habit of submitting all his speeches to Root for comment before they were delivered. It was to be some eight years before that practice was re- sumed, and meanwhile all the vials of Roosevelt'’s wrath were to be poured on Root's unresisting head. In October, 1910, Root was again in a campaign speech defending T. R. against the attacks of Wall Street, but this was incidental to a general de- fense of the party, support for Taft and for Stimson’s gubernatorial can- didacy. Through 1911 the breach be- tween Taft and Roosevelt continued to widen. As late as February, 1912, Root was writing a long friendly letter —_— e © ESTABLISHED 1865 @ BEST TIME To Repair Is Now Check up now on the harm Winter weather has done; of advice to Roosevelt, but it was too late; Roosevelt had already decided to be a candidate, and nine days later he announced that his hat was in the ring. Root was already committed to Taft, as were Cabot Lodge and Nicho- las Longworth, Roosevelt’s son-in-law. Roosevelt understood that situation and had no bitter feeling about it, but Root was greatly saddened. ‘To their mutual friend, Bob Bacon, he wrote that “Theodore has gone off upon a perfectly wild program, most of which he does not really believe in, although, of course, at this moment he thinks he does. * * * I shall be glad to get up on the farm at Clinton under the protection of a force of accomvlished liars who will say that I am not at home. In the meantime, however, I wish to fall upon your neck and weep. I wish to walk up and down in your congenial and unre- straining presence and curse and swear and say things which I would not have repeated for the world.” Never Denounced Rooseveit. And one of the things which he surely would have said was that he wished he could be on the other side. He campeigned against the Roosevelt program, but he never said a public word against Roosevelt himself. When the Republican National Committee wanted to use in publicity material an old statement of Roosevelt’s that Root was the ablest man he had ever known, Root refused to permit it. Sad and sick at heart, Root went to Chicago to keep his promise that he would serve as permanent chair- man of the 1912 convention. The Roosevelt group fought his election to that post and lost. Root set his teeth and ran the steam roller over one of the stormiest of American po- litical conventions. There probably was not a man in the country who could. have done the job as well; there could hardly have been many who wanted to do it less. Root con- trolled the convention with an iron hand and made rulings which, as a lawyer and parliamentarian, he be- lieved sound, but which Roosevelt, as a defeated candidate, denounced as theft and outrage. Roosevelt denounced Root in no uncertain terms. Root refused to re- ply and Taft thought he was afraid; in fact, he was merely sad and not a little hurt. Not all his philosopsy and power of detachment could stave off that feeling, although he wrote to a friend: “Of course, what Roose- velt said about me in 1902 and" what he is now saying are quite incon- sistent. In each case his words ex- pressed a state of feeling rather than & sober judgment. When I was with him he felt superlatively one way; now that I am against him he feels ~ SOME WOMEN SIGH FOR A “FASHIONABLE FIGURE” Decide just what you shoxld weigh. Then drink three glasses of milk every day. It's as simple as that. You'll be surprised how quickly you can attain your “ideal” weight. To reduce—Drink a glass of milk before each meal. The milk nourishes, while cutting down the appetite probably responsible for your over- weight. To gain weight—Drink a extra Let superlatively the other way. I think he has been about equally wrong in both his utterances.” ‘The “ifs” of history are aangerous playthings, but Root could hgve pre- vented those trying times of 1913 if he had been willing earlier to shape his life along & more political course. In the early days of his practice he took into partnership an able young lawyer who proceeded to run for the Assembly and later the State Senate. “It ruined him as a lawyer,” Root thought. “He became a politician instead of & lawyer. He got in the habit ploiticians have of sitting around and talking instead of work- ing. That is as valueless as horse- shed conversation—farmers with their teams jawing away in the shed trying to get advice from one another with- out paying for it.” Root thought a lot about his partner's experience and made & decision once for all not to 80 into politics. In 1879 Chester A. Arthur did pre- suade him to run for judge of the Court of Common Pleas. Root went West on a law case instead of cam- paigning and was defeated, although he ran ahead of his ticket. He never again ran for elective political office. In 1883 President Arthur appointed him United States attorney for the southern district of New York.- In 11899 he accepted McKinley's invita- glass of milk after each meal and get the calories you need, without undue strain on the di‘festiou. us begin delivery of Chestnut Farms-Chevy Chase Sealtest Milk— with its uniform food value and purity assured by Sealtest approval. Call Decatur 1011, see the salesman, or ask atyour favorite store. 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Very shortly thereafter he turned down his first chance to be President, although he ocould not have known what was in store. A little while before the Republican National Con- vention of 1900, Mark Hanna, Tom Platt, Benator Aldrich and Henry O. Paine came to see him and formally offered him the vice presidential nom- ination. Roosevelt was in favor of it, perhaps partly because he had rather & yearning to be Secretary of War himself. Lodge reported to Roose- velt that Root’s selection had been decided upon. But Root talked to the President and they agreed it was more important for him to carry on with his work in the War Department. After much wavering, Roosevelt ac- cepted the second place on the ticket and thus he instead of Root suc- ceeded to the presidency when Mc- Kinley was assassinated. “I never heard Mark Hanna say but one mean thing,” Root remarked| years later. “A few days after Mc- Kinley was shot at Buffalo he said to me, ‘Now don't you wish you had taken that vice presidency?’” Of course, like many men prom- inent in Government positions, Root was constantly being boomed by his friends and friendly newspapers for various offices. Root discouraged every such attempt. His next real opportu- nity came in 1904, after he resigned from the War Department and before he returned to the cabinet as John Hay’s successor in the State Depart- ment. Senator Beveridge pleaded with him to take Mark Hanna's place as chairman of the Republican National Psychic Message Council 1100 Twelfth St N.W. Cerner of 13th and “L” Circles Daily, 2:30 & 7:30 P.M. Grace Gray Delens. 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Committee and President Roosevelt wanted him to do it, but Root flatly refused. In June, 1904, Root made the key- note speech at ‘the dull Chicago con- vention which nominated Roosevelt Reducing The Colds are costly in money as well a5 in health. Loss of wages, loss of work, other attendant expenses—all 8dd considerably to the cost of living. Bulld resistance to colds, help de- velop & strong, vigorous system by for the presidency. It was one of the many occasions when his rather smali voice, but dominating personality, combined with the clarity and force- fulness of his thought, held spell- (Continued on Page A. Cost of Living taking Father John's Medicing mow. Scientific blending brings you the full value of its ingredients, rich in vitamins. Used as a treatment for colds and a body builder for over 80 years. 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