PRESIDENT HARDING TAKES 'OATH OF KINDNESS' IN ALASKA
Skagway, Alaska Territory (JFK+50) The Evening Star reports on July 12, 1923 that President Warren G. Harding took an oath yesterday here in Skagway to never "mistreat either a dog or a horse."
The oath was part of the Chief Executive being admitted as a member of the Arctic Brotherhood*.
The Associated Press says that the President has loved animals since he was a boy growing up in Ohio and he "enthusiastically" told the First Lady about taking the oath.
In a speech given in Skagway, President Harding said...
"The sweetest thing in the world is the friendship of a few dependable friends. This is the happiness that makes a life of contentment."**
*The Arctic Brotherhood was organized in 1899 on the Steamer Seattle by gold prospectors who loved & used horses and dogs in their work.
**This quotation is ironic because of the scandals associated with the Harding administration. The President is often quoted as saying, "I have no trouble with my enemies...but my friends...keep me walking the floor at nights."
SOURCES
"President Takes Oath of Kindness," The Evening Star, Washington, D.C., July 12, 1923, Chronicling America, Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/
"Warren G. Harding, Quotes," Good Reads, www.goodreads.com/
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