Legislative amendments

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Albert J. Beveridge

While President Roosevelt feels it may be better that the packers pay, he does not consider it vital, and certainly not at the cost of losing the amendment. He tells Senator Beveridge that he cannot attend the farmers’ dinner because going to one would oblige him to attend many others. He has written to Secretary of State Elihu Root to see if he can do anything for Hannah.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-05-29

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to James Wolcott Wadsworth

President Roosevelt wishes to speak to Representative Wadsworth about the amendment to the agricultural bill giving effective inspection and control over the meat packing industry, as he believes the situation must be immediately remedied. Roosevelt has determined to withhold the damning report he received as long as he gets the legislation allowing government oversight over the industry because he fears the economic effects it may have, but he will do so if he is unable to secure the means to solve the problem. Roosevelt believes passing the amendment will be good for both people raising cattle and the beef-packers themselves.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-05-26

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Harrison Gray Otis

President Roosevelt responds to an editorial published by the Daily Times, sending Harrison Gray Otis a copy of a letter he wrote to Senator William B. Allison showing that the Hepburn bill is unchanged by the Allison amendment. The editorial in Otis’s paper therefore states “the exact reverse of the facts,” and Roosevelt is troubled to see it go so wrong.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-05-26

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Charles A. Prouty

President Roosevelt has received Interstate Commerce Commissioner Prouty’s letter and hopes that he will look over the bill and discuss it with Representative William Peters Hepburn. He has sent Hepburn Prouty’s letter with the recommendation that the amendment Prouty proposed be inserted into the legislation.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-05-24

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to S. H. Cowan

President Roosevelt agrees with S. H. Cowan that he would have preferred the Long amendment to the Hepburn bill rather than the Allison amendment, but feels that the bill overall is satisfactory and that the amendments have improved it.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-05-21

Letter from William H. Moody to Theodore Roosevelt

Attorney General Moody sends President Roosevelt the account he requested of the conference Moody had with Senators Benjamin R. Tillman and Joseph W. Bailey. Moody recounts the circumstances leading to the conference, and the discussions he had with Roosevelt prior to the conference regarding an amendment to the Hepburn bill and the ability of Congress to limit the ability of courts to issue interlocutory injunctions. Moody told the two senators Roosevelt’s thoughts on the matter and found them to be largely in agreement, leading to the creation of a draft amendment. This amendment had some difficulty in the Senate, and Moody told Tillman and Bailey that it may be difficult for an amendment that the executive branch had a hand in crafting to pass, and suggested that they collaborate with Senator William B. Allison on the creation of a new amendment.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-05-14

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to William B. Allison

President Roosevelt tells Senator Allison of the many discussions he has had about the pending rate bill and its proposed amendments. While Roosevelt approved of many suggested amendments and made suggestions on how to alter others, he has never insisted that any amendment be made to the bill in order for it to be signed into law.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-05-14

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to E. P. Bacon

President Roosevelt feels that E. P. Bacon must not have seen his previous telegram in which he confirmed his stance on rate legislation and clarified that the Allison amendment to the Hepburn bill only clarifies portions of the bill without changing its substance. He chides Bacon for his “concern” about the Allison amendment, which Roosevelt believes shows ignorance about the matter, and which may jeopardize the rate bill.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-05-08

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to William B. Allison

President Roosevelt writes to Senator Allison about the Hepburn bill and the proposed amendments to it. He still approves of Allison’s amendment and would like it to be passed in conjunction with the Long amendment, although he objects to the passage of any broad amendments altering the character of the bill.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-05-05

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Knute Nelson

President Roosevelt writes to Senator Nelson because the actions of Senator Eugene Hale, likely on behalf of Senator Nelson W. Aldrich, referring to Senator Joseph W. Bailey’s amendment have changed the situation enough to warrant a reevaluation of the amendments. Roosevelt was worried at first about the constitutionality of Bailey’s amendment, but feels that if it is put in as a separate clause so that it does not risk the entire bill, it may be all right. He suspects that several ‘railway Senators’ have supported Bailey’s amendment because they believe it will be struck down by the courts and thereby stop the entire legislation. He reiterates that he is fine with Bailey’s amendment, but hopes that Nelson or Senator William B. Allison will be able to insist on separate votes, splitting the amendment into two.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-04-11

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Knute Nelson

President Roosevelt approves of an amendment that Senator Nelson of Minnesota sent to him, although he suggests a slight change. Roosevelt has considered the petition of a number of people to pardon C. W. Malchow, a doctor who has been convicted for circulating obscene literature; but upon further research into the case feels that “it is a hideous and loathsome book,” and that he “would as soon see poison circulated in the household as see that book put therein,” and therefore feels the man should serve his whole sentence.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-04-10

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Henry M. Duffield

President Roosevelt thinks the scenario that General Henry M. Duffield raises is so unlikely that it can be safely ignored. Roosevelt does not want to complicate the matter with unnecessary amendments.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-04-04

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to John C. Spooner

President Roosevelt takes issue with the amendment supposedly proposed by Senator Henry Cabot Lodge which states in effect that each of the arbitration treaties “have no possible effect until other arbitration treaties are concluded.” Roosevelt tells Senator Spooner he believes the amendment is a “sham” and he refuses to go farther with the treaty as it stands with the amendment, although he does not question the right of the Senate to amend a treaty.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-01-06

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Joseph Bucklin Bishop

President Roosevelt agrees that the Foraker amendment contains good and bad elements. However, it was foolish to introduce the amendment at this time. Roosevelt also condemns the Saturday Evening Post for their dishonesty.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-02-02

Letter from Gifford Pinchot to Theodore Roosevelt

Charles Simon Barrett helped pass the amendment in the Senate, but could not get it passed in the House. Barrett thinks the amendment could have passed in the House if he had more notice. Barrett and Gifford Pinchot will travel through the south and urge farmers to grow more food. Pinchot has applied with Herbert Hoover for a position on the Food Committee.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1917-04-30

Letter from Henry Cabot Lodge to Theodore Roosevelt

Senator Lodge appreciates Senator Dixon’s letter and found Dixon’s views to be sound. He hopes that the Sutherland amendment can be passed regarding the direct election of United States Senators. Lodge is pleased with Henry L. Stimson’s appointment as Secretary of War. He encloses a report from the British Board of Trade on labor conditions and cost of living in American cities.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1911-05-13

Letter from William Emlen Roosevelt to Theodore Roosevelt

William Emlen Roosevelt has received President Roosevelt’s letter, with Secretary of the Treasury Leslie M. Shaw’s enclosure. Emlen believes that in the President’s position he would sign the bill also, but feels it will prevent them getting the bill right in the next session. He believes that the bill needs more work and it is “discouraging to see legislation by people who are ignorant of the results of what they do.”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-06-25

Letter from Martin A. Knapp to Stephen B. Elkins

Chairman Knapp explains the Interstate Commerce Commission’s recommendations for amendments to the act to regulate interstate commerce to Senator Elkins. Knapp writes that amendments are necessary to clarify the meaning of the act. The amendments enlarge the act’s jurisdiction and give the Interstate Commerce Commission greater authority in setting railroad rates.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-11-28

Congressional record

Following a number of legislative items, including voting on an amendment to a bill and a motion to investigate participation in international expositions, Senator Robert M. La Follette delivers a speech beginning with proposed tariff reciprocity with Canada, but quickly turning to his view that President William H. Taft has abandoned his campaign promises to continue the progressive policies of his predecessor Theodore Roosevelt. La Follette excoriates Taft on his stances on taxes and conservation, among other issues.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1911-07-15

Proposed amendment to H. R. 12684

Text of a proposed amendment to H. R. 12684. The bill makes appropriations for the Indian Department and the amendment allows Delaware Indians who have settled and improved land in the Cherokee Nation to first select from these lands for their allotments. This copy includes minor handwritten edits, seemingly in President Roosevelt’s hand.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-03-08