Morton, Paul, 1857-1911

John D. Rockefeller, as Belshazzar, sits on a throne above a group of capitalists and politicians enjoying a feast of such dishes as “Draw Back Bon-Bons, Fruits of Monopoly, [and] Rebate Plums.” The festivities are interrupted by a hand appearing from above holding “The Big Stick” and writing the words “Rate Legislation.” Caption: “And the King saw the part of the hand that wrote. Then the King’s countenance was changed and his thoughts troubled him.” [Daniel 5:5-6]

comments and context

Comments and Context

Belshazzar’s Feast is the account in Daniel about a mysterious hand appearing as if from heaven, writing a moral warning on the wall during a feast of the Babylonian king and a thousand of his followers. The words on the wall were, in Hebrew, “Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin,” roughly interpreted as “God has numbered the days of your kingdom… You have been judged and found wanting;” and “Your kingdom will be divided.”

In this vignette cartoon, President Roosevelt and members of his cabinet appear at the center in a meeting. Each has a signboard advertising a patent medicine or other product on their back. Roosevelt’s says, “Strenoline The Famous Vigor Producer A De-Lightful Stimulant, Nervy Mfg. Co, Royster Bay.” Surrounding the central image are scenes showing men, animals, and statues, all with signboards, including an elephant labeled “G.O.P. The Great Tariff Comedian – Continuous Performances.”

comments and context

Comments and Context

One of cartoonist Samuel Ehrhart’s now-standard vignette cartoons in Puck, a topic of the day with variations on a theme, in this double-spread was quite standard. The single concept of advertisements encroaching on daily life is played, and stretched, most of the humor derived from puns or association with names of celebrities and professions. Since the 1880s, Puck had lampooned advertising signs on elevated trains and commercial billboards, so this cartoon focusing on sandwich boards was a variation. Present-day eyes might require details about long-forgotten issues and personalities, however.

At center, President Roosevelt shows Uncle Sam and Columbia a large plant with flowers showing the members of his cabinet. The surrounding vignettes show a springtime dance of putti, Alton B. Parker shoveling snow at his home in Esopus, an art gallery, Irishmen marching in the rain on Saint Patrick’s Day, a woman cleaning house by sweeping a dust cloud of policemen out the door, and Roosevelt grafting a branch labeled “Indian School Mission,” with blossom of an unidentified bishop of the Catholic Bureau of Indian Missions, onto the “Interior Dept. Tree.”

Collection

Library of Congress Prints and Photographs

Creation Date

1905-03-15

After discussing the matter with Secretary of the Navy Paul Morton, President Roosevelt wants to offer the position of Arbiter to Rear Admiral C. H. Davis. Morton also suggested Rear Admiral French Ensor Chadwick or Rear Admiral Charles D. Sigsbee, but Roosevelt feels that Davis is the best candidate. If Davis refuses, Roosevelt is inclined to favor Sigsbee, pending the opinion of Secretary of State Hay.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-11-30

President Roosevelt would be pleased to have Secretary James Wilson confer with Gifford Pinchot and would like to know Pinchot’s opinion of the bill referred to in the enclosed communications from Paul Morton.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1902-04-12

President Roosevelt received Sir Thomas James Tait’s letter and “beautiful photograph.” People have appreciated the warm reception the Great White Fleet received in Australia.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-10-31

President Roosevelt thanks Robert Mackay, editor of Success Magazine, for the letter. He asks Mackey to give this letter to Paul Morton, who has a good picture of him.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-02-06

President Roosevelt informs James Speyer that there are individuals who are critical of Speyer’s proposed scholarship, which would require that a Jewish scholar would be appointed by everyone. Roosevelt, George B. Cortelyou, Paul Morton, Elihu Root, and William H. Taft all agree with Speyer’s scholarship stipulations.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-05-22

President Roosevelt returns the nice letter written by General Grenville M. Dodge. He will make revisions to his speech based on some of Brown’s suggestions.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-05-09

President Roosevelt is concerned over the accusations made by Edward Henry Harriman, a prominent railroad executive, particularly a “wilful untruth” concerning a request to raise money for the Republican party during the 1904 presidential campaign. Roosevelt tells Representative Sherman that he believes the dispute with Harriman stems from a dissatisfaction with regulations made on interstate commerce, particularly affecting railroads. Harriman is also disappointed that Roosevelt failed to appoint Senator Chauncey M. Depew as Ambassador to France as he had requested, and refuses to support the Republican party as long as Roosevelt’s policies dominate. 

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-10-08

President Roosevelt sincerely thanks Rear Admiral Harris for his continued active service as Paymaster General of the Navy. As per Roosevelt’s order and following Harris’s input, Secretary of the Navy Charles J. Bonaparte recommended Eustace Barron Rogers as a suitable replacement. Roosevelt wanted to inform Harris of Roger’s selection before making it public and expresses satisfaction with Harris’s administration of duties. While Harris’s resignation is effective on November 1, Roosevelt asks he remain on active duty as president of the board representing the Naval Pay Corps regarding the pending legislative inquiry affecting commissioned personnel.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-09-10

A recent court ruling in the case against the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway Company proves that Attorney General Moody and President Roosevelt were correct not to proceed with charges against individual officers of the company. Although former Secretary of the Navy Paul Morton was vice president of the company, Roosevelt clarifies that this would not shield him from prosecution if his actions had been improper.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-12-15

President Roosevelt takes issue with the way that certain newspapers, including the New York Times, New York Evening Post, and New York World, report on the issue of campaign funds in the last election. Roosevelt assures Elbert F. Baldwin that he has never offered favors to those who have given large sums of money to his campaigns, and that he was unaware that several corporations had donated. He also discusses whom he can trust regarding the situation between Russia and Japan. He encloses a very rough draft of his upcoming message and asks Baldwin and Lyman Abbott to make suggestions.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-09-20

President Roosevelt thinks Hamlin Garland is performing a valuable service by agitating for a national park in Western Colorado, and will back it however he can. He is sorry if Paul Morton’s former place in his cabinet hurts his administration, but not because of anything Morton did–rather because of how people can be foolish and misled. Morton was one of Roosevelt’s best cabinet officers as Secretary of the Navy. Roosevelt also responds to criticism of Secretary of State Elihu Root’s career as a corporation lawyer, saying that that is the biggest business for lawyers, and that what matters is that they act properly and honorably as such. Former Attorney General and current Senator Philander C. Knox was also a corporation lawyer.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-08-09

President Roosevelt tells Secretary of the Navy Bonaparte that he feels Franck Taylor Evans is the best commander to ever serve on the Sylph, and that he would object to his transfer. He shared the same opinion with former Secretary of the Navy Paul Morton, with whom he previously spoke on the topic. He is glad the boilers of the various presidential yachts will be investigated.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-07-29

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-06-24

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919

Recipient

Cowles, Anna Roosevelt, 1855-1931

President Roosevelt sends Elihu Root a draft of his letter to Secretary of the Navy Paul Morton, and asks him to copy edit it for him.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-06-14

President Roosevelt agrees with Attorney General Moody that individual proceedings should not be brought up against officers of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway unless there is evidence linking them to guilty conduct. Roosevelt compares the Atchison case with the case of the western railroads and the International Harvester Company. Unlawful practices were abandoned in both cases, and no individual proceedings were brought against the officers of the western railroads. The president believes the Atchison railroad officers should be treated the same way. Roosevelt details why there is not “one shadow of testimony” against former Secretary of the Navy Paul Morton and believes how the government handled the Northern Securities case in not prosecuting the principal directors is how the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway case should be handled.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-06-12

President Roosevelt thanks John Davis Long for bring Cole’s case to his attention. He plans to speak with Secretary of the Navy Paul Morton about Cole. Roosevelt also tells Long about Ethel Roosevelt playing the song, “The Brushwood Boy.”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-06-03

President Roosevelt congratulates Baron Kentarō Kaneko on Japan’s naval success.  

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-05-31