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Brander Matthews wishes a happy New Year to President Roosevelt and asks if he has seen certain recent articles and papers. Matthews also suggests the appointment of someone with a “German name would produce a bad effect on the French.”
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1905-01-01
A Jewish man dressed as Mars, the Roman god of war, and decorated with symbols of money, stands in the doorway of a munitions store labeled “Marsheim Bellonaberg & Co.” and “Ordnance Dept.” A notice posted on the side states “War Loans a Speciality” and a sign reads “By Appointment to H.I.M. the Czar & Mikado – Cash Vobiscum.”
Ehrhart’s cartoon smacks of anti-Semitism to contemporary eyes, but it uses the age-old stereotype of Jewish money-lenders as a stick with which to beat England and English banks. As Russia and Japan bled each other dry in their war, the English, as money-lenders to “the Czar and the Mikado” respectively, profited off both. The British made loans at high interest, and sold munitions similarly.
Two Irishmen talk in the street of a rural community. The son of one is taking music lessons, to the annoyance of the other, as well as the neighbors. Caption: Hogan — I suppose ye’ve heard me lad, Terry? He do be takin’ lissons on th’ clary-o-nit. / Ryan — He might betther be takin’ lissons on the sthame-dhrill. It’ud be more useful t’ him an’ a dom sight more soothin’ t’ the neighbors.
Walter Gallaway was one of Puck‘s cartoonists who virtually never drew a political cartoon or a caricature of a person in the news; he devoted himself to humor cartoons, mostly single-panel, and many with ethnic figures. He also moonlighted during the first years of the century, drawing cartoons and strips (one-shots, not recurring characters) for the Sunday color comic supplement of the New York Herald.
Theodore Roosevelt’s secretary explains to Carolyn A. Smith that there are cow-punchers of different nationalities besides American and English, including Mexican, German, and French.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1911-04-19
Theodore Roosevelt does not think of Fraser Metzger as a German American any more than he thinks of himself as a Dutch American. He believes that, as a whole, German immigrants were better but compares Germany under Prussian militarism to the Southern slave-holding regime before the Civil War. Roosevelt enjoyed Agnes Repplier’s article and plans to send Metzger’s letter to her.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1915-01-09
Theodore Roosevelt argues that Americans who view international relations from the standpoint of their “ancestral blood” are damaging the country’s “common American citizenship.” Roosevelt has used the case of Belgium to show what could happen to the United States after a German victory. However, he has other reasons, which he does not want to put on paper, to fear a showdown with a victorious Germany. The wrongs of the war were perpetrated by Germany against Belgium, and it is impossible not to think that wrongs could be committed against you if there is “sufficient interest to make it desirable.” There is no doubt that the German people believe in the righteousness of their cause and have responded accordingly. However, Southerners during the American Civil War felt the same. Roosevelt would like the United States to introduce universal military service and guarantee Germany against invasion and subjugation. Afterwards, the country could guarantee the borders of small states, such as Belgium.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1915-01-29
President Roosevelt cannot accept William Ridgeway’s invitation to speak; he only intends to make the Oxford Romanes Lecture and an informal talk at the Royal Geographical Society when he is in England. Roosevelt disagrees with the pamphlet Ridgeway recently sent him, which identifies races and languages with each other. He points out that in the United States and Caribbean Islands, many people speak European languages but do not have European blood.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1908-11-09
President Roosevelt would like to have the report before Congress is in session. Roosevelt asks Eugene Philbin to communicate with Emil von Schleinitz, who has facts on the Ellis Island matter. Schleinitz is naturally favorable to German immigration and President Roosevelt wants to “leave the door open” to people who will make good citizens no matter their race or creed. However, Roosevelt also favors excluding immigrants who are “physically, mentally, or morally unfit to be a good citizen.”
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1903-10-01
President Roosevelt agrees with Murat Halstead that there is no Philippine people, but rather around 40 Philippine tribes.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1902-06-03
Hosea Ballou Morse believes the war has been a success for Japan and that Port Arthur will soon fall. He argues that there are three salient points to consider about Japan, including Japan’s ties to the feudal system and the nature of the Japanese people. Morse discusses “the yellow peril,” speculating about the motives of Japan and what will happen after the war.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1904-08-07
President Roosevelt’s speech at the Exposition Building in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He thanks the citizens, mayor, and government officials of the city for setting an example for the country. He discusses the mixing of races and ethnicities in American history and the importance of learning from the past. Roosevelt also discusses the lessons of the Civil War and the virtues of citizenship.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1903-04-03
Print shows Uncle Sam using “Congressional Mortar” and building blocks carried by ethnic workers to construct a wall with the stones. The stones are labeled “Law against Race, Prejudice, Jealousy, Competition, Fear, Anti Low Wages, Non-Reciprocity, [and] Congressional Blunders.” Across a river, in the background, Chinese workers work with picks to dismantle the Great Wall, as China opens its doors to trading with the West. Caption: The American wall goes up as the Chinese original goes down.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1882-03-29
A blind man labeled “Democracy,” with the features of an Irishman, walks toward an abyss labeled “Defeat,” carrying a cane labeled “Vacillation,” and holding on to a leash tied to a dog with the face of, and labeled, “Carlisle.” The man has a large bass fiddle strapped to his back and, in a bag, lyrics to the “Standard Oil Co. Melody.” On the ground at his feet is sheet music for the song “Turn the Rascals Out.” Behind him, pointing in the opposite direction, is a sign for the “Road to Tariff Reform,” which leads to the United States Capitol.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1884-01-16