Taft, Charles Phelps, 1843-1929

President Roosevelt heartily approves of Representative Longworth’s speech and hopes it will be distributed widely. Roosevelt is pleased that his fight for the nomination of New York Governor Charles Evans Hughes paid off, but he is disappointed in the way William H. Taft’s campaign is going, and lists a few of the men he thinks could be responsible. He is anxious to see Taft show more investment and take a swing at Ohio Senator Joseph Benson Foraker, but he does not want to steal the spotlight by interfering too much.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-09-21

President Roosevelt discusses matters relating to the upcoming election with William H. Taft including campaign contributions, a talk he had with Frank H. Hitchcock, and the problem with the renomination of Charles Evans Hughes as governor of New York.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-08-12

President Roosevelt sends Secretary of War Taft a marked editorial and notes that he still has a “patent on certain social, artistic, scientific, literary and other issues.” He also observes in a postscript that there is a campaign prepared against Taft due to the government covering the majority of his travel expenses. Roosevelt believes that they do not have a leg to stand on regarding Taft’s visits to the Philippines or Panama but encourages Taft to pay careful attention to all of his expenses as such accusations could be very detrimental to his campaign.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-09-12

Secretary of War Taft received William Loeb’s letter, and encloses a letter received by his brother Charles Phelps Taft. Taft will see Secretary of the Interior James Rudolph Garfield about the matter the letter mentions, and hopes he can provide more information.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-08-21

Representative Longworth advises President Roosevelt of the political situation in Cincinnati, Ohio. Roosevelt is more favored than Senator Foraker, but it remains to be seen whether this sentiment can be directed successfully toward nominating Secretary of War Taft for president in 1908. Many Republicans who lost their positions in the election of 1906 place much of the blame on a speech Taft gave at Akron. Longworth believes the attempts of Taft’s brother, Charles, to force a quick resolution of the issue are unwise.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-04-18

Secretary of War Taft reports to President Roosevelt from Cuba. Charles E. Magoon is keeping everything under control and Taft plans to inspect the troops soon. Taft discusses his worries about his brother, Charles Phelps Taft, having set him up as an opponent to Senator Joseph Benson Foraker in the upcoming election.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-04-09

Editor of the Ohio State Journal Robert Frederick Wolfe informs President Roosevelt’s secretary that Wolfe met with Charles Phelps Taft, Representative Theodore E. Burton, and Secretary of the Republican National Committee Elmer Dover. Wolfe engaged in these meetings to learn about Taft’s interests and a possible compromise with Senator Joseph B. Foraker, but says that Dover tried to improperly influence Wolfe’s newspaper. Wolfe claims to have uncovered a plot involving William Randolph Hearst to control both the Democratic and Republican national conventions and the presidential election. Wolfe claims that Franklin Rockefeller told him in an off-the-record interview that moneyed interests from New York were planning to create a financial panic to disrupt Roosevelt’s policies. Wolfe says he is coming to Washington, D.C., to discuss this, but asks that Secretary of the Interior James Rudolph Garfield not be told.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-04-08

George Barnsdale Cox hands his card to the “door boy” at the “headquarters of the political big 4.” Cox says, “In order to cause no consternation in that crowd or have any of them die from palpitation of the heart, just present this card as quitely [sic] as possible to the bunch.” Four men sit at a table: Norman G. Kenan, Charles Phelps Taft, Ohio Representative Nicholas Longworth, and Julius Fleischmann. Longworth holds a letter from President Roosevelt that suggests the “Ohio problem” can be solved by electing Fleischmann as governor of Ohio. Fleischmann says, “My, Nick, but how your father-in-law does flatter me.” Meanwhile, Kenan says, “That letter of Teddy’s is music to my ear. We’ll have a ticket this fall that will win sure, and that’s not gas.” Taft replies, “It certainly has a very fine gingle, Norman. Isn’t it nice to be good.”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-09

President Roosevelt informs President-Elect Taft of what he has done about the Ohio senatorship. Taft’s brother Charles Phelps Taft recently remarked to Roosevelt that he nearly believes it would be better for Ohio to continue to have Joseph Benson Foraker as its senator than to have Theodore E. Burton. Roosevelt rebutted this belief, saying it is imperative that Ohio no longer have Foraker as its senator in order for Taft’s upcoming administration to succeed. Roosevelt later told Gustav J. Karger the same thing–that the most important piece of the Ohio senatorial contest was that Foraker lost.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1909-01-01

President Roosevelt sends Lyman Abbott, editor-in-chief of The Outlook, two more articles on which he would like feedback, and which he expects will be the last ones he sends. Roosevelt will do his best to have criminal libel suits brought against the New York World and the Indianapolis News. While Douglas Robinson or Charles P. Taft had clear cases for libel suits, it is difficult for private individuals to proceed against newspapers, which is why he is taking the lead.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-12-15

President Roosevelt believes the statements made by Delevan Smith in the Indianapolis News are patently false, and that refuting them will bring them undue attention. Because William Dudley Foulke insists that a reply be made, however, Roosevelt writes to refute the charges of a scandal involved in the purchasing of the Panama Canal zone from France. Roosevelt particularly refutes the charge that the affair has not been transparent, as documents related to it have been freely available. Roosevelt has refuted other false charges leveled against his administration, but the newspapers continue to print them, so he doubts whether his denial will be effective.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-12-01

President Roosevelt responds to Secretary of War Taft regarding a recent letter from Charles Phelps Taft. Roosevelt appointed Bernhard Bettmann to the position of Ohio Collector of Internal Revenue, first district, on the suggestions of Charles and Ohio Insurance Commissioner Arthur I. Vorys, against the wishes of Ohio Senators Joseph Benson Foraker and Charles Dick. If the Taft people cannot control Bettmann, then actions against Commissioner of Internal Revenue John G. Capers will not solve it. Roosevelt admired Taft’s speech, even if it could not reach the crowd affiliated with the morning’s editorial in The Sun.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-12-31

President Roosevelt believes Representative Longworth’s arguments are strong. Longworth ought to take no action until William H. Taft returns, because the latter’s support has to come from popular sentiment. Roosevelt will ask Taft to talk the situation over with Longworth and his supporters before taking any overt action. Roosevelt tells Longworth he can share this letter with Charles Phelps Taft.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-04-20

W. S. Scarborough, president of Wilberforce University, sends an appeal for financial contributions to the school for buildings and scholarships.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1911-10-31

Robert S. Waddell shares his low opinion of President William H. Taft with Theodore Roosevelt, especially in relation to Taft’s stance on Powder Trust cases. He believes, from talking with many people across the United States, that if Taft is nominated as the Republican presidential candidate, he will be defeated, and urges Roosevelt to not tie his support too tightly to Taft.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1911-06-07

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1910-02-17

Creator(s)

Swift, Lucius B. (Lucius Burrie), 1844-1929

Recipient

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

Whitelaw Reid encloses a copy of the letter he wrote to President-elect William H. Taft in which he explains why he believes he should maintain his post longer than currently planned. The King of England appreciated President Roosevelt’s speech on British rule in India and mentioned as well that he hoped Reid would remain Ambassador. Reid updates Roosevelt on diplomatic work he has been doing concerning the Panama Canal and Newfoundland.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1909-01-22

President-Elect Taft tells President Roosevelt about the Ohio senatorship, saying that “all’s well that ends well.” Although Taft’s brother, Charles Phelps Taft, will not be the senator, Taft’s main concern was the exclusion of Joseph Benson Foraker, who he believes would greatly interfere with his administration if he were to be in the Senate. Taft is not completely satisfied with the selection of Theodore E. Burton as senator, but accepts the result. Senator Henry Cabot Lodge has visited Taft recently, and has discussed Massachusetts politics. Taft once again reassures Roosevelt that while his wife, Helen Herron Taft, did receive a message from a group of Serbian women, she declined to offer her support and was judicious about her reply.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1909-01-04

John Revelstoke Rathom, managing editor of the Providence Journal, asks Douglas Robinson if he is currently, or has ever been, a stockholder in the new or old Panama Canal Company. Rathom has also put the question to Charles Phelps Taft, who has issued an explicit denial which will be printed by the Providence Journal.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-12-15

John Revelstoke Rathom, managing editor of the Providence Journal, asks Douglas Robinson if he is or was a shareholder of the New or Old Canal Companies. Rathom has asked Charles Phelps Taft the same questions. Robinson acknowledges receipt of Rathom’s question, and denies that he was ever a shareholder.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-12-15