Let ‘er go, Professor!
Subject(s): Conducting, Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919, Root, Elihu, 1845-1937, Symphony orchestras, Taft, William H. (William Howard), 1857-1930, United States. Congress
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President Roosevelt conducts the orchestra at the “Congressional Vaudeville” with a baton labeled “The Big Stick,” with two band members, Elihu Root and William H. Taft, performing “Overture President’s Message.”
Comments and Context
This cover cartoon in Puck Magazine appeared one week before President Roosevelt’s annual message. The address was anticipated more than many previous such messages (mandated by the Constitution, but its timing and frequency a matter of tradition, as is its common name, the State of the Union address) because 1906 had been tumultuous year in Washington by any measure; and Roosevelt recently had returned from a trip to Panama to inspect progress on the canal.
In fact the message was not an address at all — Woodrow Wilson established the precedent of a president delivering the speech to a joint session of Congress, directly, something that Roosevelt might have relished himself — but a message. The message, as a synopsis of the year’s achievements and a program for the coming year, really went over the heads of legislators and to the public; that is, he proposed few specific legislative measures. (Some observers saw this as the subtext of a president who increasingly was relying on proclamations and executive orders.)
Cartoonist L. M. Glackens depicted Roosevelt as conductor of the orchestra in the pit, with the famous Big Stick instead of a small, thin baton. And the choice of showing Secretary of War William H. Taft, and Secretary of State Elihu Root — and no fewer nor more figures, was to emphasize that Taft and Root had become the “captains” of the cabinet. They had the president’s ear and he relied on them for much; and routinely shared the administration’s position in public statements.
Taft was Roosevelt’s public choice to succeed him in the presidency. And Root was (and would continue to be into the 1930s) a remarkably effective statesman and advocate. He already was a prominent lawyer when he joined other respected New Yorkers in the early 1880s endorsing the Assembly candidacy of a young, little-known Theodore Roosevelt.
Collection
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
Creation Date
1906-11-28
Creator(s)
Glackens, L. M. (Louis M.), 1866-1933
Period
U.S. President – 2nd Term (March 1905-February 1909)
Repository
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division
Page Count
1
Record Type
Image
Resource Type
Rights
These images are presented through a cooperative effort between the Library of Congress and Dickinson State University. No known restrictions on publication.
Citation
Cite this Record
Chicago:
Let ‘er go, Professor!. [November 28, 1906]. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs.
https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o284161. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Glackens, L. M. (Louis M.), 1866-1933. Let ‘er go, Professor!. [28 Nov. 1906]. Image.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. March 5, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o284161.
APA:
Glackens, L. M. (Louis M.), 1866-1933., [1906, November 28]. Let ‘er go, Professor!.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o284161.
Cite this Collection
Chicago:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. March 5, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs.
APA:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs.
