During the 1912 campaign, accusations that Roosevelt was
a drunkard began surfacing, though entirely unfounded. Roosevelt argued
that this accusation was merely campaign slander and untrue, but
his protestations had little effect. He privately determined that
if this lie was ever printed, he would squelch it once and for
all. On October 12, 1912, the newspaper Irong Ore in
Ishpeming, Michigan made the mistake of printing that Roosevelt
was a heavy drinker and frequently issued torrents of "lies and
curses" when drunk. Roosevelt kept his personal vow and immediately
filed a lawsuit for libel against the paper's editor, George S.
Newitt. During the trial–held in Marquette, Michigan, in May 1913–scores
of witnesses testified that Roosevelt abstained from heavy liquor
and beer and drank only an occasional glass of wine with meals.
Newitt was unable to produce a single witness to support his article's
claim, and he offered a retraction and apology. The court assessed
damages at six cents and adjourned the case.
Within months after his victory in the courtroom, Roosevelt
set out on his last great adventure abroad. As a boy and young
man he had seen Europe, Egypt, and the Middle East. In his middle
years he took in Cuba and Panama, and after his presidency he explored Africa.
The final test of his endurance and strength was the Amazon River.
After a brief tour of several of the most prestigious South American
universities, Theodore Roosevelt set out for southern Brazil in
1913 with his son Kermit to collect rare specimens for New York's
Museum of Natural History and to explore the uncharted River of
Doubt in the Amazon basin. The 1000-mile journey upriver was both
thrilling and perilous. The team of explorers was entirely alone
in the jungles for months at a time, and many of the humans they
did encounter were hostile natives. One of the porters died in
the river's rapids and another went insane before stealing food,
murdering another porter, and running off into the jungle. Roosevelt
himself nearly met his end when he re-injured the leg he had hurt
in the carriage accident in 1902, and then contracted jungle fever
and could not be moved. Roosevelt begged to be left alone in the
jungle so that the others could escape, but his son would not listen
and continued to care for his father. When the explorers returned
to New York in May of 1914, Roosevelt had lost thirty-five pounds.
For his efforts, the River of Doubt was renamed the Rio Teodoro.
Roosevelt spent a couple of years recuperating from the
excitement of the Brazilian adventure, but jumped back into the
thick of things in 1915 when a German U-boat sank the British ship Lusitania and
killed over 1,100 people, 114 of which were American. Since 1914,
the powers of Europe had been battling each other in the Great
War, now known as World War I. When war was first declared, President
Wilson advocated total neutrality for the United States, and for
a while many Americans agreed with him. The sinking of the Lusitania, however,
caused many Americans–including Roosevelt–to doubt Wilson's position.
Just as he had in his book A History of the Naval War of
1812 and as Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Roosevelt
once again crusaded for military preparations. In a series of articles,
he called for a massive military buildup and permanent military
conscription for all young American men. He repeatedly denounced
President Wilson for his unwillingness to fight and impatiently
called for entering the war immediately on the side of Britain
and France to fight Germany. Although many Americans considered
Roosevelt's call to arms a bit overzealous, his efforts did help
prepare the nation for the war they would eventually fight.
President Wilson changed his tune when Germany began dictating
which shipping lines the United States could and could not use in
the Mediterranean and North Seas. On April 2, 1917, the recently
reelected Wilson declared war on Germany. Roosevelt, excited at
the prospect of a righteous war against the immoral and unjust
Germany, immediately rushed to Washington to see Wilson and to request
permission to organize and lead a volunteer combat unit similar
to his Rough Riders in the Spanish-American War. Wilson, though
amused, did not grant the old Colonel his request.
Although Roosevelt was unable to fight in Europe, he was fiercely
proud of his four sons who joined the military and fought against
Kaiser Wilhelm II. All served with bravery and distinction. Ted
commanded an infantry regiment, was wounded, and received the Distinguished
Service Cross. Kermit earned the British Military Cross, and Archibald
was awarded the French Croix de Guerre. The youngest, Quentin,
served as a combat pilot until July 14, 1918, when he was killed
in action, shot down by two German planes behind enemy lines. The
news of Quentin's death shook Roosevelt to his core. Many of his
friends claimed that Roosevelt lost his energy and boyish exuberance
and never regained it. Quentin quickly became a symbol for all
young American men who died in service, and the nation joined Roosevelt
in his mourning.
Quentin's death marked the beginning of the end for Roosevelt. When
the war eventually ended and the world was celebrating Armistice
Day on November 11, 1918, Roosevelt was undergoing surgery to once
again drain abscesses that had developed on his bad leg. He also
suffered from rheumatism and remained in bed for the last several
months of 1918. He was eventually admitted to Roosevelt Hospital
in New York, where he remained for seven weeks. Doctors warned him
that he would probably be confined to a wheelchair for the remainder
of his days.
