August 19, 2025 • 7 mins
Join Theodore Roosevelt as he recounts his thrilling experiences with The Rough Riders, the legendary 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry formed in 1898 for the Spanish-American War. As Lt. Colonel and second-in-command, Roosevelt vividly portrays the brave men and their spirited horses, the challenges they faced, and the fierce battles they fought in Cuba. He paints a picture of soldiers forged from the rugged wilderness, accustomed to the wild and the unpredictable. With a passion for adventure and an eagerness for action, these “grim hunters of the mountains” were ready to face any foe. Roosevelt’s account is a stirring tribute to their courage and camaraderie, making it a compelling listen for history enthusiasts.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Section nineteen of The Rough Riders by Theodore Roosevelt. This
LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Recording by William
Peck Appendix G from a brief speech made to his
men by Colonel Roosevelt after Sunday services on September fourth,
eighteen ninety eight. I have waited this opportunity of speaking
(00:24):
to you before we parted. I feel, and I know
you all feel, that we are knit together by ties
that can only be severed by death. I care much
for the officers, I care even more for the men
who make up the rank and file. Our trials, our hardships,
our victories, we have all shared together, officers and men.
(00:44):
There have been no distinction. We have all worked for
the honor of the regiment. The men who were left
in Florida did their duty as well as the men
who went to Cuba, and all did it without a murmur.
What we have done only calls us to renewed exertion
in the future. I know you are not likely simply
to rest on your laurels. Life is a constant struggle,
(01:06):
and no man can afford to remain idle to rely
in the present upon the deeds of an ever fading past.
After the first fight in Cuba, you did not give
up and rest on what you had done. On the contrary,
you had gotten in touch with the Spaniards once, and
each one of you had registered a vow that no
one should get ahead of him the next time, And accordingly,
(01:27):
the next time you did even better. Carry that same
sentiment and spirit into your life when you separate for
your homes. Every man has felt in the past that
the honor of the regiment was in his keeping, and
that he reflected honor or dishonor on all by his
own individual acts. Now, in peace, let each of you
(01:48):
have the same feeling for the nation as a whole.
Let us so act that at the end of twenty years,
those of us who can look back will see that
each man has prospered, has become a better man, better American,
that we have shown ourselves as capable to fight the
battles of peace as of war. The world will be
kind to you for about ten days. Until then everything
(02:11):
you do will be considered. Right After that you will
be judged by a stricter code, and if you prove worthless,
you will be deemed to have been spoiled by the
war for just about ten days you will be over praise, overpetted.
Then you will find that the hero business is over
for good and all. And if you try to trade
any longer on what you have done in Cuba, you
(02:32):
will merely excite the laughter of derision. You will do
well to remember this, and each turn to his allotted
task with all his heart and strength, to win success
in the only way it can be won, asking no
consideration because of the past, but demanding to be judged
each on his merits in the actual work of the day.
(02:53):
Response of Colonel Roosevelt in accepting an equestrian bronze, Camp Wickoff,
Montauk Point, New York, September thirteenth, eighteen ninety eight. Officers
and men, I really do not know what to say
to you. Nothing could possibly happen that would touch and
please me as this has touched and pleased me. Trooper
(03:14):
Murphy said rightly that my men were nearest my heart.
For while I know I need not say to my
officers and what a deep regard I hold them, they
will not mind my saying that just a little bit closer,
come the men. I have never tried to coddle you,
and have never hesitated to call upon you to spend
your best blood like water. But of course I try
(03:35):
to do all I could for you, and you are
the best judges as to whether I have succeeded or not.
I am proud of this regiment beyond measure. I am
proud of it because it is a typical American regiment.
The foundation of the regiment was the Cowpuncher, and we
have him here in bronze. No gift could have been
so appropriate as this bronze by Frederick Remington. The men
(03:57):
of the West and Southwest, horsemen, right wifemen, and herders
have been the backbone of this regiment, which demonstrates that
Uncle Sam has another reserve of fighting men to call
upon if the necessity arises. The West stands ready to
give tens of thousands of men like you, and we
are only samples of the fighters the West can put forth.
Besides the Cowpuncher, this regiment contained men from every section
(04:20):
of the country, every state in the Union, and because
of that we feel proud of it. It is primarily
an American regiment, and it is American because it is
composed of all the races which have made America their
country by adoption, and those who have claimed it as
their country by inheritance. It gives me extreme pleasure to
look around among you and see men of every occupation,
(04:42):
men of means, and men who work with their hands
for a livelihood, and at the same time note that
I have you for friends. You are men of widely
different pursuits, yet you stand here side by side. You
fought shoulder to shoulder, no man as quarter for himself,
and each one when and to show that he was
as good as his neighbor. It shows the American spirit.
(05:04):
You cannot imagine how proud I am of your friendship
and regard. I have also a profound respect for you
because you have fighting qualities, and because you had the
qualities which enabled us to get you into the fight
outside of my own immediate family. As I said before,
I shall never know as strong ties as with you.
I am more than pleased that you feel the same
(05:26):
way toward me. I realized when I took charge of
you that I was taking upon myself a great responsibility.
I cared for you as individuals, but did not forget
that at any moment it might be necessary to sacrifice
the individual for the whole you would have scorned the
commander who would have hesitated to expose you to any risk.
I was bound that no other regiment should get any
(05:47):
nearer to the Spanish lines than you got, and I
do not think andy did. We parted with many in
the fight who could ill be spared, and I think
that the most vivid memories that we take away with
us will be of them, those whom we left on
the Cuban sod and those who died in hospitals here
in the United States, the men who died from wounds,
and the men who, with the same devotion to country,
(06:10):
died from disease. I cannot mention all the names now,
but those of Capron O'Neill and Fish will serve. They
were men who died in the pride of their youthful strength. Now,
just a word more I want to say to some
of the men I see standing around, not of your number.
I refer to the troopers of the regular cavalry regiments,
(06:31):
the white troopers and the Coward troopers. The latter the
Spaniards called smoke Yankees, but we found them to be
an excellent breed of Yankee. I am sure that I
speak the sentiments of every man and officer in this assemblage,
when I say that between you and the other cavalry
regiments there is a tie which we trust will never
be broken. I would have been deeply touched if the
(06:54):
officers had given me this testimonial. But coming from you,
my men, I appreciate it tenfold. It comes to me
from you who shared the hardships of the campaign with me,
who gave me a piece of your heart tack when
I had none, and who shared with me your blankets
when I had none to lie upon. There has such
a gift come from this peculiarly American regiment. Touches me
(07:17):
more than I can say. This is something I shall
hand down to my children, and I shall value it
more than I do the weapons I carried through the
campaign N of Appendix G N of The Rough Riders
by Theodore Roosevelt
Section nineteen of The Rough Riders by Theodore Roosevelt. This
LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Recording by William
Peck Appendix G from a brief speech made to his
men by Colonel Roosevelt after Sunday services on September fourth,
eighteen ninety eight. I have waited this opportunity of speaking
(00:24):
to you before we parted. I feel, and I know
you all feel, that we are knit together by ties
that can only be severed by death. I care much
for the officers, I care even more for the men
who make up the rank and file. Our trials, our hardships,
our victories, we have all shared together, officers and men.
(00:44):
There have been no distinction. We have all worked for
the honor of the regiment. The men who were left
in Florida did their duty as well as the men
who went to Cuba, and all did it without a murmur.
What we have done only calls us to renewed exertion
in the future. I know you are not likely simply
to rest on your laurels. Life is a constant struggle,
(01:06):
and no man can afford to remain idle to rely
in the present upon the deeds of an ever fading past.
After the first fight in Cuba, you did not give
up and rest on what you had done. On the contrary,
you had gotten in touch with the Spaniards once, and
each one of you had registered a vow that no
one should get ahead of him the next time, And accordingly,
(01:27):
the next time you did even better. Carry that same
sentiment and spirit into your life when you separate for
your homes. Every man has felt in the past that
the honor of the regiment was in his keeping, and
that he reflected honor or dishonor on all by his
own individual acts. Now, in peace, let each of you
(01:48):
have the same feeling for the nation as a whole.
Let us so act that at the end of twenty years,
those of us who can look back will see that
each man has prospered, has become a better man, better American,
that we have shown ourselves as capable to fight the
battles of peace as of war. The world will be
kind to you for about ten days. Until then everything
(02:11):
you do will be considered. Right After that you will
be judged by a stricter code, and if you prove worthless,
you will be deemed to have been spoiled by the
war for just about ten days you will be over praise, overpetted.
Then you will find that the hero business is over
for good and all. And if you try to trade
any longer on what you have done in Cuba, you
(02:32):
will merely excite the laughter of derision. You will do
well to remember this, and each turn to his allotted
task with all his heart and strength, to win success
in the only way it can be won, asking no
consideration because of the past, but demanding to be judged
each on his merits in the actual work of the day.
(02:53):
Response of Colonel Roosevelt in accepting an equestrian bronze, Camp Wickoff,
Montauk Point, New York, September thirteenth, eighteen ninety eight. Officers
and men, I really do not know what to say
to you. Nothing could possibly happen that would touch and
please me as this has touched and pleased me. Trooper
(03:14):
Murphy said rightly that my men were nearest my heart.
For while I know I need not say to my
officers and what a deep regard I hold them, they
will not mind my saying that just a little bit closer,
come the men. I have never tried to coddle you,
and have never hesitated to call upon you to spend
your best blood like water. But of course I try
(03:35):
to do all I could for you, and you are
the best judges as to whether I have succeeded or not.
I am proud of this regiment beyond measure. I am
proud of it because it is a typical American regiment.
The foundation of the regiment was the Cowpuncher, and we
have him here in bronze. No gift could have been
so appropriate as this bronze by Frederick Remington. The men
(03:57):
of the West and Southwest, horsemen, right wifemen, and herders
have been the backbone of this regiment, which demonstrates that
Uncle Sam has another reserve of fighting men to call
upon if the necessity arises. The West stands ready to
give tens of thousands of men like you, and we
are only samples of the fighters the West can put forth.
Besides the Cowpuncher, this regiment contained men from every section
(04:20):
of the country, every state in the Union, and because
of that we feel proud of it. It is primarily
an American regiment, and it is American because it is
composed of all the races which have made America their
country by adoption, and those who have claimed it as
their country by inheritance. It gives me extreme pleasure to
look around among you and see men of every occupation,
(04:42):
men of means, and men who work with their hands
for a livelihood, and at the same time note that
I have you for friends. You are men of widely
different pursuits, yet you stand here side by side. You
fought shoulder to shoulder, no man as quarter for himself,
and each one when and to show that he was
as good as his neighbor. It shows the American spirit.
(05:04):
You cannot imagine how proud I am of your friendship
and regard. I have also a profound respect for you
because you have fighting qualities, and because you had the
qualities which enabled us to get you into the fight
outside of my own immediate family. As I said before,
I shall never know as strong ties as with you.
I am more than pleased that you feel the same
(05:26):
way toward me. I realized when I took charge of
you that I was taking upon myself a great responsibility.
I cared for you as individuals, but did not forget
that at any moment it might be necessary to sacrifice
the individual for the whole you would have scorned the
commander who would have hesitated to expose you to any risk.
I was bound that no other regiment should get any
(05:47):
nearer to the Spanish lines than you got, and I
do not think andy did. We parted with many in
the fight who could ill be spared, and I think
that the most vivid memories that we take away with
us will be of them, those whom we left on
the Cuban sod and those who died in hospitals here
in the United States, the men who died from wounds,
and the men who, with the same devotion to country,
(06:10):
died from disease. I cannot mention all the names now,
but those of Capron O'Neill and Fish will serve. They
were men who died in the pride of their youthful strength. Now,
just a word more I want to say to some
of the men I see standing around, not of your number.
I refer to the troopers of the regular cavalry regiments,
(06:31):
the white troopers and the Coward troopers. The latter the
Spaniards called smoke Yankees, but we found them to be
an excellent breed of Yankee. I am sure that I
speak the sentiments of every man and officer in this assemblage,
when I say that between you and the other cavalry
regiments there is a tie which we trust will never
be broken. I would have been deeply touched if the
(06:54):
officers had given me this testimonial. But coming from you,
my men, I appreciate it tenfold. It comes to me
from you who shared the hardships of the campaign with me,
who gave me a piece of your heart tack when
I had none, and who shared with me your blankets
when I had none to lie upon. There has such
a gift come from this peculiarly American regiment. Touches me
(07:17):
more than I can say. This is something I shall
hand down to my children, and I shall value it
more than I do the weapons I carried through the
campaign N of Appendix G N of The Rough Riders
by Theodore Roosevelt
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