Your TR Source
John A. Rea is of the opinion that the recent articles by Theodore Roosevelt on the judiciary are some of the best he has ever written.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1911-03-17
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1911-03-05
Henry L. Stimson clarifies his views on recall elections for governors. He believes that they should be optional after two years, and difficult to initiate. Before Theodore Roosevelt writes his article on the judiciary, Stimson would like to speak with him. He thinks it would be a bad time to raise issues that the Supreme Court appears to be avoiding.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1911-02-04
Richard J. Donovan sends Theodore Roosevelt an opinion from the United States District Court that supports Roosevelt’s position in the controversy with Governor Simeon E. Baldwin.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1911-01-31
Bernard Shandon Rodey sends Theodore Roosevelt a consideration and commentary on a court of commission to fix maximum prices on trust-controlled products.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1911-01-30
John Carter Rose comments that the men “with a large stake in the community can now sleep quietly” because the legislative branch and the courts “are safe.”
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1911-01-23
Royal Meeker was impressed by Theodore Roosevelt’s speech to the National Civic Federation. He provides information that gives weight to Roosevelt’s criticisms of the Fellow Servant Doctrine and discusses cases invoking it.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1911-01-16
Edward S. Watts sends Theodore Roosevelt a copy of his argument in the case of Bailey v. Alabama.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1911-01-09
William Allen White was pleased by what President Roosevelt told him about Associate Justice William H. Moody’s views. White believes that the courts should have some veto power over the legislature, but that this power should also be restricted. He believes that lower federal courts should not have the ability to to invalidate federal laws, and similarly lower state courts should not be able to invalidate state laws–rather, only the supreme courts of such bodies should be able to rule on these. In lower courts, laws are often objected to without proper investigation.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1908-12-15
This memorandum provides a brief overview of the history of the United States Court for China, which was established in 1906. One major accomplishment of the court was the closing of a number of brothels, which were run by Americans or Europeans purporting to be Americans. This action, along with the high standards for admitting lawyers to the bar in this court, have worked to improve the image of Americans in China, although the court still lacks appropriate facilities. There are presently some charges against the Court, which the memorandum outlines as having primarily originated from Lorrin A. Andrews who, while admitted to the bar, has behaved unprofessionally.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1908-02-25
Senator Lodge tells President Roosevelt he believes it is a wise policy to hold off on general seizures of blended whiskeys before a test case of the new Pure Food and Drug Act as applied to blended whiskey works its way through the courts. Lodge believes Assistant Secretary of State Huntington Wilson approves, and knows that Secretary of Agriculture James Wilson has already applied this policy to other products.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1907-11-01
Secretary of War Taft acknowledges that the United States has not always properly administered justice within its sphere of influence in China, but celebrates the creation of a United States Circuit Court for China to fix this. He praises the work of Judge Lebbeus R. Wilfley on this court, where he has combined the common law of the United States with the traditions of China to great success. Taft hopes this court will be a positive influence on the Chinese and encourage good relations between the two countries. He encourages the construction of a great building to house the court and the American consulate in Shanghai.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1907-10-08
Sam P. Davis acknowledges the recent letter from William Loeb stating that President Roosevelt would be unable to attend the unveiling of a statue of John William Mackay. He had not mentioned the prospective invitation to anyone, so there will not be any criticism of his inability to attend. Davis says that someday when Roosevelt is out of the White House, he and Governor Sparks of Nevada will try to give him a chance to hunt grizzly bears. Many people in Nevada commend Roosevelt’s stance on the Moyer, Haywood, and Pettibone cases, and Davis says that they have recently been having trouble with the Industrial Workers of the World (I.W.W.), who sympathize with the three men. Davis encloses newspaper articles giving an idea of the situation in Nevada.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1907-04-26
William P. Metcalf criticizes President Roosevelt’s public statement about Charles H. Moyer and Big Bill Haywood. Moyer and Haywood are being caught up in a drag net that has also caught their prosecutor, William Edgar Borah, yet in the latter case the administration has demanded an explanation from the district attorney who brought the indictment. The methods of the administration are unjust and unfair.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1907-04-24
Alford Warriner Cooley writes to fulfill President Roosevelt’s request for a statement of Cooley’s legal experience for use in his confirmation hearing with the Senate Judiciary Committee. Cooley details his educational background, his legal experience in New York, and his work as Civil Service Commissioner and the Commissioner of Immigration at the port of New York.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1906-12-06
Albert Bushnell Hart praises President Roosevelt’s decision to disband the three companies of African American troops after the events of Brownsville. Hart believes that in this particular case, the “usual and often genuine excuse that to reveal the name of the supposed Negro criminal is to deliver him up to lynching without examination into his guilt,” does not have a place, and that every man in the companies knew that those responsible would have been given a fair trial and protection from mob violence.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1906-11-26
John Allison, Chancellor of the Davidson Chancery Court in Tennessee, notes that the African American churches and organizations protesting President Roosevelt’s dismissal of a battalion of African American soldiers have not made any resolutions condemning the soldiers that he believes are responsible for killing innocent civilians in Brownsville, Texas, nor have they expressed any sympathy for those victims or regret at the conduct of the battalion whom he believes are protecting the murderers. Allison tells President Roosevelt’s secretary, William Loeb, that this is typical behavior for African Americans, and he urges Roosevelt not to countermand his order of dismissal because it might embolden the “worst elements of their race.”
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1906-11-21
Secretary of the Interstate Commerce Commission Moseley informs Attorney General William H. Moody that Judge Horace A. Lurton has, with one exception, decided against the government in every case under the interstate commerce law. Lurton was involved with the Geddes case, along with Judges Henry Franklin Severens and John K. Richards.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1906-10-22
Attorney General Moody reports that charges have been filed against B. F. Oneal, United States Marshall for the western district of Louisiana. Moody recommends that he be removed from office.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1906-10-02
Police Commissioner O’Meara explains to President Roosevelt that he felt it was necessary for his son to have a formal trial in order to avoid any appearance of favoritism and to quell rumors in the press. Ted was declared innocent of the charge of assaulting a police officer, but he withheld the name of a friend whom police believed to be the culprit. O’Meara denies allegations that Ted was assaulted by a member of the Boston police force.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1906-10-03