Remarks from Indianapolis

A variety of fingers point at Edward Henry Harriman with signs that read “improper multiplication of securities,” “stop crimes of cunning,” “evils in railroad management,” “punish every dishonest man,” “punish any criminal,” “predatory man of wealth,” “wherever evildoers can be, they shall be brought to justice,” “clever gamblers,” “any man who by clever swindling devices robs investors,” and “great railroad wrecker.”

comments and context

Comments and Context

The background of this cartoon by C. R. Macauley is not what it might first seem to be — quotations of President Roosevelt’s long-running animosity and feuds with railroad titan Edward Henry Harriman. The vivid disagreements — a two-way street, to be sure — were familiar to the public, and came to a head in 1907 when Harriman leaked private letters from 1904 (letters, supplemented by others from Roosevelt’s files, that failed to attract support for his side of disputes).

The immediate context is a speech the president had just delivered in Indianapolis about the railroad “problem” and all its aspects — monopolistic practices, corruption, collusion, rate-fixing, the need for regulation. Harriman was a focus, but the entire industry, railroad trusts and combinations, were addressed.

Macauley joined in the focus on Harriman, however, and the quotations on the signs are all from the speech, on which Roosevelt had worked a long time and discussed with many confidants. In addition to his Memorial day speech, the president’s article “Railroad Investments” appeared in the June 1907 issue of Review of Reviews magazine.

A surprising aspect of the cartoon is that it ran in the New York World, the nation’s leading Democratic paper, very seldom a partisan of Roosevelt. But, in addressing the issue, publisher Joseph Pulitzer and cartoonist Macauley chose Harriman as their preferred target.

Roosevelt had planned to deliver the speech as part of a Memorial Day address during a brief Midwest swing that featured a rare private discussion on a two-man stroll with Vice President Charles W. Fairbanks. The trip’s itinerary was adjusted somewhat to accommodate the funeral of Ida Saxton McKinley, widow of Roosevelt’s predecessor.

Roosevelt wrote a lengthy account of the trip, with interesting asides about people he met, towns he visited, and policies he was formulating, to his son Kermit. Roosevelt frequently treated his children as confidants and writing substantive letters (this one also featuring affectionate words and suggestions for a hunting trip).

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-06-01

Creator(s)

Macauley, C. R. (Charles Raymond), 1871-1934

Language

English

Period

U.S. President – 2nd Term (March 1905-February 1909)

Page Count

1

Production Method

Printed

Record Type

Image

Resource Type

Cartoon

Rights

These images are presented through a cooperative effort between the Library of Congress and Dickinson State University. No known restrictions on publication.

Citation