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Charles Gates Dawes writes to clarify his position that he agrees there is some role for government supervision and fair regulation of corporations, but that any laws regulating capitalization should be carefully considered.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1905-02-08
Charles Gates Dawes notifies President Roosevelt that an article Dawes wrote on the attitude of business men towards the current corporation problems will be appearing in the Saturday Evening Post under the editor-selected headline of “Roosevelt & Corporate Reform.”
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1905-01-23
President Roosevelt believes that passing the corporations bill along the Stetson-Morawetz line “would be worse than passing nothing.” While granting improper favors to both the corporations and the labor men might be beneficial for the moment, long term it would be politically ruinous and be a huge setback in the movement for corporation control. He asks Seth Low to get Frank B. Kellogg of Minnesota to fight hard for the bill.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1908-04-09
President Roosevelt has received George Cabot Lee’s letter and the enclosed magazine, although he takes issue with the fact that the article about trusts and stakeholders in it does not account for the facts as the administration has to face them. The stakeholders of a corporation are responsible for the actions of that corporation, and many corporations are owned in large part by their stakeholders. Thus it is the stakeholders’s responsibility to ensure that the corporation’s officials are behaving properly. The problem currently is that corporate organization shields guilty parties from facing responsibility for their actions, with agents being imprisoned for misconduct and the owners “go scot-free” or the corporation gets fined, even though it is their orders that lead to the wrongdoing. He does not believe in “letting bygones be bygones” and wants to abide by the statute of limitations.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1908-01-13
President Roosevelt agrees with Illinois Attorney General Stead regarding government policy toward corporations. Roosevelt thanks Stead and Governor Charles Samuel Deneen for being willing to review corporation and railroad matters with him. He hopes by conferring with several state governors and attorneys general to get a good understanding of the matter.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1907-03-23
President Roosevelt thanks Ray Stannard Baker for sending him the details on John Revelstoke Rathom. He also sends Baker the first proof of his message about corporations.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1905-10-16
On the occasion of his recent inauguration, President Roosevelt sends his reflections on the accomplishments of his first term in office and the challenges of his second term, along with a description of the inauguration itself. Secretary of State John Hay gave Roosevelt a ring with a lock of Abraham Lincoln’s hair in it, which he wore while taking the oath of office, sharing his thoughts about Lincoln and how he tries to live up to Lincoln’s example. Roosevelt describes the various groups of people who participated in the inaugural parade, including cowboys, Indians, veterans of several wars, civic organizations, coal miners, farmers, and more. Roosevelt describes current domestic and international challenges. In the English-speaking countries, Roosevelt finds the divisions between rural and city dwellers to be of concern, as well as the dwindling birth rate.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1905-03-09
President Roosevelt gives permission for Baker to use a paragraph from a previous letter regarding Roosevelt’s views on corporations and trade unions.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1903-11-25
President Roosevelt is impressed with Ray Stannard Baker’s article. Capital and labor howl about each other but never admit their own wrongdoing. Roosevelt believes in corporations and trade unions but when corruption or indifference to the rights of others develops then they must be fought regardless of public sentiment.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1903-10-21
President Roosevelt asks Governor Murphy about a quote that states that Roosevelt knows he will win the Northern Securities case and intends to throw J. Pierpont Morgan and James J. Hill into the street. President Roosevelt believes that General Nelson Appleton Miles was lying and asks for a statement from Murphy on the matter.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1903-10-08
President Roosevelt is pleased to hear from William Sewall and relates that corporate people are upset because of lawsuits like the one against the Northern Securities Company, and labor unions are upset because Roosevelt insists that non-union members receive the same treatment as union members in government employment.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1903-09-22
Attorney General Bonaparte writes to President Roosevelt about several matters he did not have time to speak with him about today. First, he has “serious objections” to Senator William Edgar Borah’s suggestion of a temporary judicial appointment. Until Bonaparte knows more about the situation, he will have “grave misgivings” about Judge Frank Sigel Dietrich and Judge Edward Whitson. However, Bonaparte does believe that N. M. Ruick will not cause a scandal as long as he does not know or suspect that he will lose his position. Second, Bonaparte spoke with Alford Warriner Cooley about Roosevelt’s desire to appoint Samuel L. Williams, a black man, as district attorney in Chicago, per Booker T. Washington’s recommendation. Edwin Walter Sims, the U.S. Attorney in Chicago, reported favorably about Williams to Bonaparte, and he recommends the nomination. Finally, Timothy L. Woodruff spoke with Bonaparte about Wyoming Senator Frank W. Mondell’s draft of a bill that would amend the coal-land-laws. Bonaparte entertains “very grave doubts” about giving amnesty to large corporations that break the law.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1908-03-27
William Emlen Roosevelt does not think the fault is purely to be placed on the Panama Railway Company, as the officials in Panama have not been able to closely follow all correspondence to which he has been privy due to a large change in the heads of the company. Roosevelt believes that the root of the problem comes from an honest desire to make an all-American cable, making the American government obliged to the company. He also updates President Roosevelt on the difficulties in the banking field this winter. The depression has hurt business. While Roosevelt supports some regulation, he urges his cousin to impose more moderate fines on corporations.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1908-01-29
John Campbell Greenway wishes President Roosevelt prosperity and long life on his birthday. Greenway says he is eagerly watching the development of Great Lakes-Gulf waterways, which he thinks will help free up railroad traffic along the Mississippi. Greenway goes on to praise Roosevelt’s business policies and says he is looking forward to a visit from Roosevelt’s son, Ted. Greenway is planning to visit Washington soon and hopes to see Roosevelt for John Avery McIlhenny’s wedding.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1907-10-26
William Wingate Sewall writes President Roosevelt hoping to find out when he is sending Kermit Roosevelt to visit Sewall; he also informs Roosevelt that Emlen Roosevelt is sending his youngest son, Philip James Roosevelt. Sewall says that there will be much hunting and fishing available for the boys throughout the summer and fall. Sewall wishes President Roosevelt could also visit, but understands that Roosevelt’s fight with the “corpulent corporations” takes precedence. Sewall is confident that Roosevelt can win though, as he is the only “man on earth today who has the confidence of the people not only of the U.S. but of the entire world.” Sewall also opines that Senator “Tillman ought to be choked” and he “would like the job” if Roosevelt does not wish to do it himself.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1906-06-10
President Roosevelt discusses what he believes should be the national government’s attitude toward railroads in particular and corporations in general. He advocates for increased regulation of the railways by the federal government, arguing that such supervision will protect the interests of both large and small investors, as well as the public who depends on the railroad’s services. This statement was most likely part of Roosevelt’s campaign to encourage the enactment of the Hepburn Bill.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1906
President Roosevelt takes on “The Trusts” for the “Small Producer.”
Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace National Historic Site
1904-12-30
Newspaper article claiming that President Roosevelt’s attempts to regulate trusts and large corporations has paralyzed the economy.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1903-08-11