Kermit was tough, fearless, and independent, but, as his parents well knew, he was not invulnerable to setbacks or disappointment. Of all of Roosevelt’s children, Kermit was the most sensitive. Even in childhood he had had a quiet, brooding disposition that gave him a gravitas that was startling for his age. “Kermit was a very solemn little boy,” his older brother, Theodore Jr., recalled. “He was not talkative. As a result when he said anything it gave the impression of a carefully weighed accurate statement.”
