Of the addresses included in this volume the next in chronological
order was that on "International Peace," officially delivered before
the Nobel Prize Committee, but actually a public oration spoken in the
National Theatre of Christiania, before an audience of two or three
thousand people. The Norwegians did everything to make the occasion a
notable one. The streets were almost impassable from the crowds of
people who assembled about the theatre, but who were unable to gain
admission. An excellent orchestra played an overture, especially
composed for the occasion by a distinguished Norwegian composer, in
which themes from the _Star-Spangled Banner_ and from Norwegian
national airs and folk-songs were ingeniously intertwined. The day was
observed as a holiday in Christiania, and the entire city was
decorated with evergreens and flags. On the evening of the same day,
the Nobel Prize Committee gave a dinner in honor of Mr. Roosevelt
which was attended by two or three hundred guests,--both men and
women. General Bratlie, at one time Norwegian Minister of War, made an
address of welcome, reviewing with appreciation Mr. Roosevelt's
qualities both as a man of war and as a man of peace. The address in
this volume, entitled, "Colonial Policy of the United States" was Mr.
Roosevelt's reply to General Bratlie's personal tribute. It was wholly
extemporaneous, but was taken down stenographically; and it adds to
its interest to note the fact that on the evening of its delivery it
was the first public utterance on any question of American politics
which Mr. Roosevelt had made since he left America a year previous.
The Nobel Prize speech and this address taken together form a pretty
complete exposition of what may perhaps be called, for want of a
better term, Mr. Roosevelt's "peace with action" doctrine.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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