[...]... was, Taft came to realize, a matter of temperament Finally, my own process of discovery led me to the realization that the story I wanted to tell had three interwoven strands One was the story of Theodore Roosevelt, whose crusade to expand the role of government in national life required the transformation of the presidency itself The next strand was the story of William Howard Taft, whose talents and. .. for Theodore “I do not think my eyes are blinded by affection,” the president told a friend, “when I say that she has combined to a degree I have never seen in any other woman the power of being the best of wives and mothers, the wisest manager of the household, and at the same time the ideal great lady and mistress of the White House.” Their boisterous family eventually included six children Three of. .. rendition of “Home, Sweet Home” by the Seventy-first Regimental Band The uplifted cheers that greeted the man of the hour” as he disembarked were said to exceed the “echoing boom of saluting cannon and the strident blast of steam whistles.” Straightaway, Roosevelt headed from the pier to the speaker’s platform He was in the midst of shaking hands with cabinet members, senators and congressmen, governors and. .. however, was the story they wanted above all Roosevelt s response to the major political issue of the day: the growing disenchantment of progressive Republicans with the leadership of President Taft AS HIS SECOND TERM NEARED its end, Roosevelt had handpicked from his cabinet the trusted friend he desired to succeed him: William Howard Taft The two men had first met in their early thirties, when Roosevelt. .. by a delegation of over five hundred professors and students The college had arranged to bring all the members of the faculty, the entire student body and all the townspeople that could get to the station in traps, autos and on foot.” As the president stepped from the locomotive, the Villanova band played ‘Hail to the Chief’ and the college boys let out one concentrated, prolonged and tremendous yell.”... months, the young couple settled into their new 20th Street home, one of two adjoining houses that C.V.S had purchased for Thee and his brother Robert Here, in the eight years that followed, four children were born: Anna, who was nicknamed “Bamie”; Theodore, Elliott, and Corinne The advent of the Civil War, however, blasted the idyllic days of Thee and Mittie’s marriage While Thee passionately supported the. .. thousands of windows and along the line of march, buildings were draped with bunting.” The night before the big day, a dragnet was set to arrest known pickpockets Five thousand police and dozens of surgeons and nurses were called in for special duty The United States of America at the present moment simulates quite the attitude of the small boy who can’t go to sleep Christmas Eve for thinking of the. .. stem to stern in the ceremony of dressing the ship,” reported the Boston Daily Globe, while “a puff from the muzzle of an eight-pounder” signaled the start of a 21-gun salute, the highest ceremonial honor, generally reserved for heads of state Sailors clad in blue lined the decks of the warship, as the scarlet-uniformed Marine Band played The Star-Spangled Banner.” The cannon roar of the South Carolina... including Roosevelt s sisters, Anna and Corinne; his son-in-law, Congressman Nicholas Longworth; his niece Eleanor Roosevelt; and her husband, Franklin While Edith anxiously sought a glimpse of the children she had not seen for more than two months, Roosevelt busily shook hands with each of the officers, sailors, and engineers of the ship “Come here, Theodore, and see your children,” Edith called out “They... was eleven, Alphonso and Louise sailed to Europe to join their older sons, Charley and Peter, who were studying and traveling abroad with the aid of $50,000 bequeathed to each upon the death of their maternal grandfather, Judge Phelps For Charley, Europe proved life-altering, awakening a love of music, art, and theatre that would continue to deepen in the years ahead Of all the Taft boys, Charley seemed . was the story of Theodore Roosevelt, whose crusade to expand the role of government in national life required the transformation of the presidency itself. The next strand was the story of William. bridge of the ocean liner: twenty-year-old Kermit, who had accompanied his father to Africa; eighteen-year-old Ethel; and twenty-six-year-old Alice, the child born to his first wife. The girls. lined the decks of the warship, as the scarlet-uniformed Marine Band played The Star-Spangled Banner.” The cannon roar of the South Carolina was followed by the rhythmic volley of salutes and