Carnegie, Andrew, 1835-1919

Ambassador Reid has forwarded President Roosevelt’s letter to the people of Salisbury, and he is sure it will promote kindly feeling. Reid hopes that they may be able to bring the “slow-moving” Colonial Office to an early agreement, as the only currently contentious issue between the parties is that of purse-nets. Reports of William Jennings Bryan’s speech in Madison Square Garden produced instant revulsion in Great Britain, as the public thought he “dished” himself by proposing government ownership of the railways. Reid has not yet had a chance to discuss Roosevelt’s letter to Andrew Carnegie with Sir Edward Grey, but plans to bring it up at first chance. Frederick Scott Oliver, author of the new book about Hamilton, does not seem to be a prominent literary figure among the Englishmen Reid has asked. Reid has been watching the Cuban situation with great anxiety, as he has always believed the United States made foolish decisions about Cuba at the beginning of the Spanish-American War.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-09-14

Senator Estournelles de Constant of France notifies President Roosevelt of his trip to Pittsburgh for the inauguration of Andrew Carnegie’s Institute pending Roosevelt’s availability to visit with d’Estournelles in Washington. D’Estournelles would like to tell the American people of Roosevelt’s decisive role in the evolution of the policies and morals of the times.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-07-05

Edward S. Curtis asks President Roosevelt for a letter of introduction to Andrew Carnegie and anyone else who might be interested in his work photographing North American Native Americans.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-12-15

Ambassador Reid writes to Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt about events in England following news of the death of Secretary of State John Hay, including the Fourth of July reception held by the embassy there. Reid shares information about the Kings of England and Spain and hopes that she will share the news with President Roosevelt. Reid also expresses some nervousness about speeches being printed verbatim in Europe, and remarks about the volume of speeches he is asked to give. He includes several songs that were sung at gatherings he attended.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-07-10

Serge Ricard studies the attitude of the United States government to arbitration and disarmament proposals put forward by the First and Second Hague Peace Conferences of 1899 and 1907. Ricard notes that the United States approved of the Permanent Court of Arbitration, but he stresses that the nation, especially under the administration of Theodore Roosevelt, did not pursue disarmament proposals. Ricard asserts that Roosevelt always favored preparedness over disarmament as the best means to avoid war, and he notes that the United States’ traditional policies of isolationism and non-interference in European affairs made it unlikely the country would embrace international bodies. Ricard notes that Secretary of State Elihu Root managed America’s participation in the Second Hague Peace Conference of 1907.

Six photographs and one illustration accompany the text.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Nick Salvatore examines the growth of the corporation in the decades after the Civil War, and he also notes the many political movements and parties that emerged during Theodore Roosevelt’s political life to manage these combinations. Salvatore details Roosevelt’s response to industrial concentrations, including the reforms enacted during his second term in office like the Hepburn and Pure Food and Drug Acts. Salvatore asserts that Roosevelt wanted to enact reforms and oversee corporations to forestall revolution, hoping to prevent the rise of Socialism. He concludes his essay with a look at the campaign of 1912, highlighting the policy positions of Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, and Eugene V. Debs. 

In addition to a photograph of Salvatore, the essay features two photographs of Roosevelt in dynamic speaking poses, as well as a photograph of Debs. A text box at the end of the article contains the vision statement of the Theodore Roosevelt Association. 

In his review of J. Lee Thompson’s Theodore Roosevelt Abroad, which studies Theodore Roosevelt’s 1909 to 1910 journey to Africa and Europe, Robert Wexelblatt highlights Thompson’s discussion of Roosevelt’s hunting ethics, his views on imperialism and race, and his commitment to a strong relationship between the United States and Great Britain. Wexelblatt also focuses on Roosevelt’s interactions with Kaiser William II of Germany. Wexelblatt credits Thompson for pointing out shortcomings in Roosevelt’s thoughts and actions, and he employs several block quotes to highlight passages from Thompson and Roosevelt.

The front cover illustration of the book appears at the center of the second page of the review.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

In a letter to George Otto Trevelyan, President Roosevelt provides details of some of the negotiations he undertook with regard to various crises during his presidency. Roosevelt relays his experience dealing with Kaiser William II of Germany in three matters, and he discusses the desire of the Japanese to keep secret their asking Roosevelt to mediate the Russo-Japanese War. Roosevelt underscores the insecure temperament of William II, and he cautions Trevelyan against sharing his letter except with perhaps his sons and Viscount Edward Grey. Roosevelt also discusses a diplomatic dustup with Germany caused by the diplomatic meddling of Andrew Carnegie.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1911-11-09

Art Koch reveals the subject and context of the third “TR-era image” which is a political cartoon showing Theodore Roosevelt shooting holes in a dictionary with two revolvers. Koch reveals that this cartoon from September 1906 pokes fun at Roosevelt’s directive to the Government Printing Office to use a simplified form of spelling in government documents, and he lists some notable Americans who supported Roosevelt’s reforms. The fourth image in the series shows a typical street scene of storefronts, horse drawn wagons, and telephone poles. 

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1906

John W. Furlow asserts that Gifford’s Pinchot later career as a politician, most notably as Governor of Pennsylvania, is often overlooked in favor of focusing on the time when he was ascendant in the American conservation movement. Furlow closely examines Pinchot’s time as Governor, and he stresses the role of his wife, Cornelia Bryce Pinchot, as an important influence on Pinchot. Pinchot favored prohibition and the building of farm to market roads as Governor, and Furlow argues that Pinchot’s political career focused on the preservation of human resources. Though he supported President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal, Pinchot remained active in Republican politics, but he never held elective office again after 1935.

A photograph of Gifford Pinchot on horseback in 1925 and two photographs of Cornelia Bryce Pinchot appear in the article. In addition to endnotes, the article also features a paragraph that lists a number of studies and biographies of the Pinchots and their home, Grey Towers.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Newspaper clipping of cartoon showing Andrew Carnegie carrying a gun with a barrel shaped like a dollar sign talking to Theodore Roosevelt who is carrying “The Big Stick.” Carnegie offers Roosevelt the use of his gun to shoot a bear “Wall Street” on “Nomination Trail.”

Collection

Library of Congress Prints and Photographs

Creation Date

1912

John H. Vivian examines the controversy that swirled around President Theodore Roosevelt’s executive order of August 1906 mandating a simplified form of spelling in certain government documents. He looks at the reaction of newspapers from around the country, and says that their initial reactions were overdone but were later tempered. He also examines the reaction from some agencies of the federal government, and notes  opposition to the plan in Congress that centered less on concerns about spelling and more on Roosevelt’s use of executive power.

This article is also noteworthy as it is the first article in the Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal to have endnotes.

Clerin T. Zumwalt sends Theodore Roosevelt a prospectus outlining a temperance organization built on a wider basis than just the liquor question. He asks Roosevelt for a letter of introduction to Andrew Carnegie or another financier to help launch the movement.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1911-08-11

Carter H. Fitz-Hugh asks if Theodore Roosevelt has seen the article “War” in the London Spectator, which confuses him. He mentions A. T. Mahan’s article, making a similar point. Fitz-Hugh wonders if Roosevelt saw the correspondence between Andrew Carnegie and J. M. Dickinson regarding the recommendation to fortify and police the Panama Canal.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1911-10-27

A program listing the January, February, and March dates and speakers for the Saturday Discussions lecture series sponsored by the Republican Club of the City of New York.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1911-04-11

Henry E. Huck briefly outlines three options for implementing his Proclamation for countries to remove their unwanted populations. The plans include means of granting land concessions to the United States and England, reimbursements, possible forms of governance, and international arbitration.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1911-04-03

E. O. Vaile was unexpectedly named as chairman of the nearly-defunct Simplified Spelling Committee of the Illinois State Teachers’ Association, and is trying to raise funds to return the committee to operational status. He outlines his plans for the organization and asks the recipient to spread the request for funds to philanthropists who may be interested in the cause of simplified spelling.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1911-03-09

Theodore Roosevelt explains to Clerin T. Zumwalt why he cannot give a letter to Andrew Carnegie or any other capitalist for any cause.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1911-08-15

An article about British actor William Faversham recounts an incident in his career when he was in financial distress. While taking a walk through Central Park, he was approached by an elderly man and handed an envelope. The envelope contained a check for 100 dollars and a note explaining that the man’s son had been befriended by a British soldier stationed at Manchester before he died. The monetary gift was the tenth the elderly man had given away since it may have been Faversham who befriended his son. Another article discusses Andrew Carnegie’s philanthropic gifts to libraries. Many of the institutions which received his gifts have been suffering diminished attendance, and local businesses have been petitioning to use the buildings for other things. Carnegie is reported to have refused all requests.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-09

President Roosevelt holds his big stick pen and a book opened to the pages: “The Outlook” and “The ‘Awakening’ by T. R.” Beside him John D. Rockefeller has a “fountain pen” behind his ear and holds a book: “Random Reminiscences of Men and Events by John D. Vol. 1.” while Andrew Carnegie has a “steel pen” and a book that reads “”The Problems of Today’ by Andy Carnegie Dedicated to T. R. Millionaires who laugh are rare/It’s as hard to keep a fortune as to accumulate one.” On the ground is an oil can of “ink” and “red ink” that have spilled.

comments and context

Comments and Context

When political cartoonist Edward Joseph McBride hit the mark, he was able to combine humor, caricature, commentary, and — as here — a passel of relevant references that enriched the point of a cartoon.