Letter from Victor Howard Metcalf to Theodore Roosevelt
Subject(s): Alien labor, Chinese--Legal status, laws, etc., Arizona, Arizona--Holbrook, Arizona--Kingman, Arizona--Winslow, California--San Francisco, China, Diplomats--Travel, Emigration and immigration, Emigration and immigration--Political aspects, Evarts, William Maxwell, 1818-1901, Exhibitions, Human smuggling, Identification cards, Illinois--Chicago, Immigrants, Locomotives, Louisiana Purchase Exposition, O'Laughlin, John Callan, 1873-1949, Railroad travel, Sin, United States. Consular Service, United States. Department of Commerce and Labor, United States. Dept. of Commerce and Labor
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Victor Howard Metcalf provides President Roosevelt with a series of correspondences regarding an immigration inspector, George C. Triick, who was accused of mistreating Mr. Chow Tszchi, a Chinese dignitary. The department agrees that the Government should provide the utmost courtesy to Chinese people but notes issues in proving citizenship or defining who could be classified as a Chinese laborer. Chinese merchants, teachers, students and bankers are welcome, but not laborers with falsified Chinese papers pretending to be of a higher class. A treaty written in 1904 sought to deal with falsified records but the Chinese thought it was too strict. Metcalf notes any concerns of harshness in the enforcement of exclusionary laws is necessary to combat those trying to skirt the system.
Collection
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
Creation Date
1905-06-07
Creator(s)
Metcalf, Victor Howard, 1853-1936
Recipient
Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919
Language
English
Period
U.S. President – 2nd Term (March 1905-February 1909)
Repository
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
Page Count
19
Production Method
Record Type
Multi-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:
Letter from Victor Howard Metcalf to Theodore Roosevelt. [June 7, 1905]. Library of Congress Manuscript Division. Library of Congress Manuscript Division.
https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o49462. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Metcalf, Victor Howard, 1853-1936. Letter from Victor Howard Metcalf to Theodore Roosevelt. [7 Jun. 1905]. Multi-image.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division. Library of Congress Manuscript Division.
Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. December 11, 2025. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o49462.
APA:
Metcalf, Victor Howard, 1853-1936., [1905, June 7]. Letter from Victor Howard Metcalf to Theodore Roosevelt.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division. Library of Congress Manuscript Division.
Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o49462.
Cite this Collection
Chicago:
Library of Congress Manuscript Division. Library of Congress Manuscript Division.
https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-manuscript-division. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Library of Congress Manuscript Division. Library of Congress Manuscript Division.
Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. December 11, 2025. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-manuscript-division.
APA:
Library of Congress Manuscript Division. Library of Congress Manuscript Division.
Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-manuscript-division.
