President Theodore Roosevelt States His Philosophy In Life: “Don’t foul, don’t shirk, and hit the line hard!”

The only time we have ever seen this famous quote in TR's hand reach the market

Roosevelt was a sickly child afflicted with asthma. As a teenager, he decided that he would "make his body," and he undertook a program of gymnastics and weight-lifting, which helped him develop a rugged physique. Thereafter, Roosevelt became a lifelong advocate of exercise and the "strenuous life." He became the epitome of the hunter and outdoorsman, and always found time for physical exertions, including hiking, riding horses, and swimming. He aimed to pass this along to his own children, imposing on them exercises, such as one where they had to pass from one point to another geographically without deviating from a straight line.  Mental and physical toughness and this was the guiding philosophy of his own life, a sort of companion to his great quotation: "speak softly and carry a big stick."

Although his nearsightedness kept him off the Harvard varsity squad, Roosevelt was a vocal exponent of football’s contribution to the “strenuous life,” both on and off the field. As New York City police commissioner, he helped revive the annual Harvard-Yale football series after it had been canceled for two years following a violent 1894 clash. His belief that the football field was a proving ground for the battlefield was validated by the performance of his fellow Rough Riders, some of whom were former football standouts.

St. Nicholas was a popular American juvenile periodical that was issued monthly from November 1873 through March 1940. The May 1900 issue opens with an essay by Theodore Roosevelt entitled, "What We Can Expect of the American Boy."
"Of course,” the essay begins, "what we have a right to expect of the American boy is that he shall turn out to be a good American man. Now the chances are strong that he won't be much of a man unless he is a good deal of a boy." And what did Roosevelt think it took to make a "good deal of a boy"? Basically, three things: a strong body, a strong mind, and courage.

This article ends with what is now one of his most famous and inspirational quotes: "In short," Roosevelt advises, "in life, as in a football game, the principle to follow is: Hit the line hard: don't foul and don't shirk, but hit the line hard."

This quotation has become one of the most renowned of TR and is commonly employed today.

Signed photograph, no date but as President, inscribed with his great quotation. "Don't foul, don't shirk, and hit the line hard!” A unique piece, as we have never seen another example of this quotation signed by TR.