In 1912 former United States president Theodore Roosevelt lost his re-election campaign and was looking for something to do.
Usually former American presidents who have lost elections retire to write their memoirs but not Theodore Roosevelt.
In 1913 he was invited to give speeches in various South America countries.
He received an interesting invitation from Brazil's minister of foreign affairs to explore an "unknown river", the "River of Doubt". Theodore's son Kermit was working in South America and joined the expedition, which was led by Colonel Candido Rondon, Brazil's famed
Amazon jungle explorer. There were fifteen Brazilian porters (camaradas) along on the expedition who did most of the work.
The trip is described in the 2005 book
The River of Doubt - Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey by Candice Millard.
The expedition lasted from February to April 1914 and was a real jungle horror story with actual cannibals, deadly snakes, insects, diseases, infections, deaths, a murder, and starvation. When they were able to exit the river Theodore Roosevelt was taken to a hospital in Manaus to recover and then boarded a steamship for the trip back to the United States.
The book noted that Theodore Roosevelt gave two gold coins to each of the members of the expedition.
But what were the gold coins? Could they have been some of the American gold coins which, as president, Theodore Roosevelt had a part in designing?
Well, the gold coin question has been answered in another book.
The book is the recent (2023) book
Into the Amazon: The Life of Candido Rondon by Larry Rohter.
Then Rondon and the other Brazilians came on board the steamship Aidan to say goodbye. Roosevelt shook hands with every camarada, gave each two gold sovereigns and made a speech, which Kermit translated into Portuguese. "You are all heroes," he told them, adding that they were "a fine set-brave, patient, obedient and enduring." Nor was Simplicio (a camarada who died) forgotten: Roosevelt directed that his gold coins be sent to his mother. British gold sovereigns were an international currency then. They were used all over the world, including in South America.
A British gold sovereign, minted too late for Theodore Roosevelt's purposes:
Great Britain King George V Sovereign 1915
Posted 04/28/2023 11:21 am
