Harriman, Edward Henry, 1848-1909

Letter from Otto H. Kahn to Theodore Roosevelt

Otto H. Kahn sends Theodore Roosevelt a pamphlet for his information. Several newspapers have misquoted or misinterpreted Kahn’s words where he makes reference to Roosevelt, which he wishes to correct by sending the actual document. Kahn states that while he was a friend of Edward Henry Harriman, he never found trouble reconciling this friendship with his admiration for Roosevelt’s policies and administration, and expresses his sadness that Roosevelt took the view of Harriman that he did.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1911-02-24

Creator(s)

Kahn, Otto H., 1867-1934

Letter from Charles J. Bonaparte to Theodore Roosevelt

Attorney General Bonaparte submits suggestions to President Roosevelt regarding the Interstate Commerce Commission. Legislation will be recommended to Congress because of the recent Supreme Court decision in Harriman vs. the Interstate Commerce Commission. Bonaparte compares a number of judicial opinions from the Supreme Court Justices, and provides a recommendation to amend a portion of the law establishing the Interstate Commerce Commission so that it has more explicit legal authority to conduct investigations.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-12-30

Creator(s)

Bonaparte, Charles J. (Charles Joseph), 1851-1921

Letter from Frank B. Kellogg to Theodore Roosevelt

Frank B. Kellogg shared President Roosevelt’s note with R. S. Lovett, who said he was fully satisfied with Roosevelt’s actions. Kellogg believes that Lovett is satisfied with the attitude of the commission. While the railroads would prefer not to be investigated, Kellogg’s supervision will help ease the process if it has to be done.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-12-13

Creator(s)

Kellogg, Frank B. (Frank Billings), 1856-1937

Letter from Frank B. Kellogg to George Rumsey Sheldon

Frank B. Kellogg, a member of the Republican National Committee, writes to Republican National Committee Treasurer George Rumsey Sheldon protesting the acceptance of money from the trusts and those who run them. In particular he lists the Standard Oil Company, the Union and Southern Pacific railroads, and the Powder Trust, and names the men he knows who are associated with them. He states that it would be wrong for the Republican Party to take money from any trust when these same trusts are violating the law.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-09-21

Creator(s)

Kellogg, Frank B. (Frank Billings), 1856-1937

Letter from William H. Taft to Frank H. Hitchcock

William H. Taft writes to Chairman of the Republican National Committee Hitchcock to ask for the resignations of both Treasurer of the Republican National Committee George Rumsey Sheldon and Head of the Speaker’s Bureau T. Coleman DuPont, on the grounds that Sheldon solicited funds from trust affiliates and DuPont is currently involved in a trust suit. He suggests possible replacements for DuPont, and asks for a system of campaign funding that solicits small subscriptions through western cities.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-09-22

Creator(s)

Taft, William H. (William Howard), 1857-1930

Letter from William Jennings Bryan to Theodore Roosevelt

William Jennings Bryan responds to President Roosevelt’s letter by defending Governor Charles Nathaniel Haskell’s record as a politician, and by critiquing the past campaign contributions for Governor Charles Evans Hughes. Bryan compares the Democratic and Republican party platforms, the attitudes of trust leaders towards the presidential candidates, and the publicity and funding for the two opposing campaigns. Ethically, Bryan believes it is wrong for Roosevelt to use his position as president to influence the choosing of his successor instead of letting the candidate achieve success on merit.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-09-26

Creator(s)

Bryan, William Jennings, 1860-1925

Letter from William H. Taft to William Nelson Cromwell

William H. Taft humbly thanks William Nelson Cromwell for his generous donation to Taft’s election campaign, but cannot accept it. Taft reminds Cromwell that while he has no doubt of Cromwell’s disinterested support, such a large donation would be a liability to the campaign, and would limit the two to only friendly, non-official relations in the future due to the appearance, however unfounded, of impropriety.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-08-06

Creator(s)

Taft, William H. (William Howard), 1857-1930

Letter from Henry Cabot Lodge to Theodore Roosevelt

Senator Lodge discusses legislation and other steps being taken regarding the Boston & Maine Railroad merger to prevent Edward Henry Harriman from gaining control of that railroad and consolidate it with his other holdings. Various other financiers would like to retain their stock in the Boston & Maine. In a handwritten postscript, Lodge says that he may not make it to the Republican National Convention in Chicago because his sister is dying.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-05-27

Creator(s)

Lodge, Henry Cabot, 1850-1924

Letter from Henry Cabot Lodge to Theodore Roosevelt

Senator Lodge asserts his views that Edward Henry Harriman’s attempt to gain control of the Boston & Maine railroad is a real threat, verified independently of Charles S. Mellen and T. E. Byrnes. The legislation introduced would allow the state to maintain control of the railroad. Lodge does not want Attorney General Charles J. Bonaparte to direct District Attorney Asa P. French to stop the dividends of the railroad until it is possible to pass legislation protecting the state.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-05-30

Creator(s)

Lodge, Henry Cabot, 1850-1924

Letter from Seth Bullock to William Loeb

Seth Bullock updates William Loeb on the political situation in South Dakota. Deadwood bankers and businessmen Harris and Nathan E. Franklin are against the President, which is evidence that New York backs the reelection campaign of Governor Charles Evans Hughes. Despite the Franklins’ opposition to Roosevelt, the political situation in the South Dakota is stable, and Bullock expects Republicans in the state to be re-elected.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-02-03

Creator(s)

Bullock, Seth, 1849-1919

Letter from Thomas E. Watson to Theodore Roosevelt

Thomas E. Watson thanks President Roosevelt for the invitation to the White House, the gift of the photograph, and his friendship. Given the incomplete term of William McKinley, he urges Roosevelt to consider if it would really be breaking tradition to seek another term as president. Given the current threat to the financial policies Roosevelt has fought for, and the impending financial troubles he envisions unfolding with the lesser banks, he urges Roosevelt to hold his position and promises to support him fiercely should he run again.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-12-18

Creator(s)

Watson, Thomas E. (Thomas Edward), 1856-1922

Letter from Douglas Robinson to Theodore Roosevelt

Douglas Robinson discusses factors exacerbating the financial crisis and congratulates President Roosevelt for his response. Robinson considers institutions and individuals hoarding wealth to be a cause of both immediate financial concern and the general public’s lack of trust in the economy, and mentions that he would have sold his stocks if he had not been Roosevelt’s brother-in-law.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-11-18

Creator(s)

Robinson, Douglas, 1855-1918

Letter from George C. Pardee to Arthur I. Vorys

George C. Pardee, former Governor of California, warns that Secretary of War William H. Taft should not trust Edward Henry Harriman when he says he supports Taft’s nomination. Harriman and the Southern Pacific Railroad Company’s Political Bureau consider Taft too similar to President Roosevelt and, in the likely case they are involved with the California delegation to the Republican National Convention, would break from supporting him if the opportunity presents itself.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-11-13

Creator(s)

Pardee, George C., 1857-1941

Letter from Benjamin B. Hampton to Lindsay Denison

Benjamin B. Hampton explains to Lindsay Denison his recent remarks in further detail. Hampton believes it would be better for President Roosevelt to deal with the tobacco companies directly, rather than through the courts, since it would be faster and potentially more beneficial for both parties. Hampton stresses that he is not well-versed in law or in a position to speak on behalf of the tobacco industry, although he is an advertiser for the American Tobacco Company. Hampton invites Denison to consider the shortcomings of his proposal and to enlighten him as to why it might be ill-conceived.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-10-24

Creator(s)

Hampton, Benjamin B. (Benjamin Bowles), 1875-1932

Letter from Timothy L. Woodruff to William Loeb

Timothy L. Woodruff needs to speak to William Loeb on the phone and potentially visit him and President Roosevelt on August 22 to discuss and settle matters. He hears Benjamin B. Odell is trying to control the delegates of Kings County and that Edward Henry Harriman is financially backing Michael J. Dady and Robert A. Sharkey. Woodruff argues that if Sharkey wins the upcoming primaries of September 24, he will control two delegates in the spring elections. With assistance, Woodruff guarantees to win the twelve delegates from Kings.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-08-18

Creator(s)

Woodruff, Timothy L. (Timothy Lester), 1858-1913

Letter from Charles J. Bonaparte to Theodore Roosevelt

Attorney General Bonaparte reviews “several matter of importance and delicacy” with President Roosevelt, including Special Assistant Attorney General Ormsby McHarg’s handling of the New Mexico situation, Senator William Edgar Borah’s trial, and the progress of the Republican Convention. He shares how the press attacks him.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-08-15

Creator(s)

Bonaparte, Charles J. (Charles Joseph), 1851-1921

Letter from William H. Taft to Theodore Roosevelt

Secretary of War Taft updates President Roosevelt with his thoughts about various topics: who to nominate for postmasterships in New York; Senator Borah’s land fraud case; the proposed constitution for Oklahoma in preparation for admittance to the union; the schedule and itinerary for a series of campaign speeches through the Midwest and West; and the address he is preparing concerning the Brownsville Affair. Taft lays out his thoughts concerning the differences between Roosevelt and the likely Democratic nominee William Jennings Bryan’s political philosophies, in particular how they view the accumulation of wealth by individuals and interstate corporations, especially railroads.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-07-16

Creator(s)

Taft, William H. (William Howard), 1857-1930

Letter from Marcus Braun to William Loeb

Marcus Braun updates William Loeb on the political situation in New York after a discussion the two men recently had. Braun believes Public Service Commissioner Frederick C. Stevens may be planning some kind of political scheme to “get the old gang back into power.” The situation is so upsetting to Braun that he has resigned from the Hungarian Republican Club, but he can rally his associates if the need arises. Braun shares a commendation he received for his work, but says a raise or promotion would have been more welcome to him and his family.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-06-17

Creator(s)

Braun, Marcus, 1865-1921

Letter from John Willis to Theodore Roosevelt

John Willis sends President Roosevelt a prospectus of his ranch company to show his progress over the past six years. In recognition of all Roosevelt has done for him, Willis wants to present a small number of stocks in his company. He wants to return to Missouri next year. Willis invites Roosevelt and his sons out to his current Montana ranch for hunting.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-05-09

Creator(s)

Willis, John, 1857-1944

Letter from John J. Cushing to William Loeb

John J. Cushing, an attorney for Mining Law Corporations, tells William Loeb that he approves of how President Theodore Roosevelt handled the mine union dispute in the West. He is satisfied with the Presidents comments on Big Bill Haywood, Charles H. Moyer, Edward Henry Harriman, and Eugene V. Debs.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-04-26

Creator(s)

Cushing, John J. (John Jenckes), 1854-1933