ELECTED VICE-PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES--PRESIDES OVER THE
SENATE--TAX UPON THEODORE ROOSEVELT'S STRENGTH--START ON ANOTHER GRAND
HUNTING TOUR
But the campaign, sharp and bitter as it had been, was not yet at an
end. In New York City there followed a "Sound Money Parade," which was
perhaps the largest of its kind ever witnessed in the United States. It
was composed of all sorts and conditions of men, from bankers and
brokers of Wall Street to the humble factory and mill hands from up the
river and beyond. The parade took several hours to pass, and was
witnessed by crowds almost as great as had witnessed the Dewey
demonstration.
In New York City, as the time drew closer for the election, there was
every intimation that the contest would be an unusually "hot" one, and
that there would be much bribery and corruption. It was said by some
that police methods were very lax at that time, and that the saloons,
which ought to be closed on election day, would be almost if not quite
wide open.
[Illustration: _Photograph by Pach Bros., N.Y._
PRESIDENT MCKINLEY AND VICE-PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT.]
"We must have an honest election," said Governor Roosevelt. And without
loss of time he sent letters to Mayor Van Wyck, and to the sheriff and
the district attorney of the county of New York, calling their attention
to the facts in the case, and telling them that he would hold them
strictly responsible if they did not do their full duty. As a
consequence the election was far more orderly than it might otherwise
have been in the metropolitan district.
The results of the long contest were speedily known. McKinley and
Roosevelt had been elected by a large plurality, and both they and their
numerous friends and supporters were correspondingly happy. Great
parades were had in their honor, and it was predicted, and rightly, that
the prosperity which our country had enjoyed for several years in the
past would continue for many years to come.
During those days the United States had but one outside difficulty,
which was in China. There a certain set of people called the Boxers
arose in rebellion and threatened the lives of all foreigners, including
American citizens. An International Army was organized, including
American, English, French, German, Japanese, and other troops, and a
quick attack was made upon Tien-Tsin and Pekin, and the suffering
foreigners in China were rescued. In this campaign the American soldiers
did their full share of the work and added fresh laurels to the name of
Old Glory.
The tax upon the strength of the newly elected Vice-President had been
very great, and he was glad to surrender the duties of governor into the
hands of his successor. But as Vice-President, Theodore Roosevelt became
the presiding officer of the United States Senate, a position of equal
if not greater importance.
As President of the Senate it is said that Mr. Roosevelt was kind yet
firm, and ever on the alert to see that affairs ran smoothly. He
occupied the position only for one short winter session, and during that
time nothing came under discussion that was of prime importance,
although my young readers must remember that all the work accomplished
in our Senate is of more or less magnitude.
"He was very earnest in his work," says one who was in the Senate at
that time. "As was his usual habit, he took little for granted, but
usually started to investigate for himself. He knew the rules
thoroughly, and rarely made an error."
For a long time the newly elected Vice-President had been wanting to get
back to his favorite recreation, hunting. Despite the excitement of
political life, he could not overcome his fondness for his rifle and the
wilderness. He felt that an outing would do his system much good, and
accordingly arranged for a five weeks' hunting trip in northwestern
Colorado.
In this trip, which he has himself described in one of his admirable
hunting papers, he had with him two companions, Dr. Gerald Webb of
Colorado Springs, and Mr. Philip K. Stewart, an old friend who in former
years had been captain of the Yale base-ball team.
The party went as far as the railroad would carry them, and then started
for a settlement called Meeker, forty miles distant. The weather was
extremely cold, with the thermometer from ten to twenty degrees below
zero, but the journey to Meeker was made in safety, and here the hunters
met their guide, a well-known hunter of that region named Goff, and
started with him for his ranch, several miles away.
Theodore Roosevelt would have liked to bring down a bear on this trip,
but the grizzlies were all in winter quarters and sleeping soundly, so
the hunt was confined to bob-cats and cougars. The hunting began early,
for on the way to the ranch the hounds treed a bob-cat, commonly known
as a lynx, which was secured without much trouble, and a second bob-cat
was secured the next day.
The territory surrounding Goff's ranch, called the Keystone, was an
ideal one for hunting, with clumps of cottonwoods and pines scattered
here and there, and numerous cliffs and ravines, the hiding-places of
game unnumbered. The ranch home stood at the foot of several well-wooded
hills, a long, low, one-story affair, built of rough logs, but clean and
comfortable within.
The two days' ride in the nipping air had been a severe test of
endurance, and all were glad, when the ranch was reached, to "thaw out"
before the roaring fire, and sit down to the hot and hearty meal that
had been prepared in anticipation of their coming.
The hunters had some excellent hounds, trained especially for bob-cats
and cougars, animals that were never allowed to go after small game
under any circumstances. Theodore Roosevelt was much taken with them
from the start, and soon got to know each by name.
"In cougar hunting the success of the hunter depends absolutely upon his
hounds," says Mr. Roosevelt. And he described each hound with great
minuteness, showing that he allowed little to escape his trained eye
while on this tour.
On the day after the arrival at the ranch the party went out for its
first cougar, which, as my young readers perhaps know, is an animal
inhabiting certain wild parts of our West and Southwest. The beast grows
to a size of from six to nine feet in length, and weighs several hundred
pounds. It is variously known as a puma and panther, the latter name
sometimes being changed to "painter." When attacked, it is ofttimes
exceedingly savage, and on certain occasions has been known to kill a
man.
In Colorado the cougar is hunted almost exclusively with the aid of
hounds, and this was the method adopted on the present occasion. With
the pen of a true sportsman, Mr. Roosevelt tells us how the hounds were
held back until a cougar trail less than thirty-six hours old was
struck. Then off went the pack along the cliffs and ravines, with the
hunters following on horseback. The trail led up the mountain side and
then across the valley opposite, and soon the hounds were out of sight.
Leading their steeds, the hunters went down the valley and followed the
dogs, to find they had separated among the bare spots beyond. But soon
came a welcome sound.
"The cougar's treed," announced the guide. And so it proved. But when
the hunters came closer, the cougar, an old female, leaped from the
tree, outdistanced the dogs, and leaped into another tree. Then, as the
party again came up, the beast took another leap and started to run
once more. But now the hounds were too quick, and in a trice they had
the cougar surrounded. Slipping in, Theodore Roosevelt ended the
struggles of the wild beast by a knife-thrust behind the shoulder.
The next day there was another hunt, and this had rather a tinge of
sadness to it. The dogs tracked a mother cougar, who occupied her den
with her three kittens. The hounds rushed into the hole, barking
furiously, and presently one came out with a dead kitten in his mouth.
"I had supposed a cougar would defend her young to the last," says Mr.
Roosevelt, "but such was not the case in this instance. For some minutes
she kept the dogs at bay, but gradually gave ground, leaving her three
kittens." The dogs killed the kittens without loss of time, and then
followed the cougar as she fled from the other end of her hole. But the
hounds were too quick for her, and soon had her on the ground. Theodore
Roosevelt rushed up, knife in one hand and rifle in the other. With the
firearm he struck the beast in the jaws, and then ended the struggle by
a knife-thrust straight into the heart.
To many this may seem a cruel sport, and in a certain sense it assuredly
is; but my young readers must remember that cougars and other wild
beasts are a menace to civilization in the far West, and they have been
shot down and killed at every available opportunity. More than this, as
I have already mentioned, Theodore Roosevelt is more than a mere hunter
delighting in bloodshed. He is a naturalist, and examines with care
everything brought down and reports upon it, so that his hunting trips
have added not a little to up-to-date natural history. The skulls of the
various animals killed on this trip were forwarded to the Biological
Survey, Department of Agriculture, Washington, and in return Mr.
Roosevelt received a letter, part of which stated:--
"Your series of skulls from Colorado is incomparably the largest, most
complete, and most valuable series ever brought together from any single
locality, and will be of inestimable value in determining the amount of
individual variation."