Your TR Source
Theodore Roosevelt thanks M.F. Gates for his letter and believes that the National Committee will not stand for the threats made by his opponents.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1912-06-03
President Roosevelt chastises Charles E. Bodkin for attempting to coerce him and other elected officials into buying the Catholic Encyclopedia so close to the election. He notes that it was especially inappropriate to send it on letterhead for Fordham University’s The Messenger, and wishes he would show this letter to the editors.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1908-11-01
President Roosevelt says that E. G. Lewis is attempting to threaten and blackmail himself and George B. Cortelyou by claiming he has information on Judge Goodwin. Roosevelt will be ordering an investigation into Judge Russell P. Goodwin, but will not reconsider the order that Lewis’s publications be revoked. He is indifferent to Lewis’s threat.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1907-03-15
President Roosevelt asks Senator McComas to inform Mr. Warfield that Roosevelt is looking into the case and if Warfield is wise he will let the case stand on its merits.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1903-09-18
Ambassador Lay warns Viceroy Cen that the threats posed to those who refuse to boycott American goods is a violation of the Treaty of 1844 between China and America.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1905-07-24
Ambassador Lay explains that the Chinese boycott of American goods has not affected the American oil industry. He describes threats to those who continue buying American goods or working for American businesses, their violation of the treaty, and the possible dangers to American missionaries.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1905-07-24
John A. Sleicher sends William Loeb a letter received at his office. Sleicher suggests that Loeb either hand the letter to the Secret Service or destroy it because of its content.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1904-07-14
Silver miner William M. “Stewart” strangles Uncle Sam who is holding a walking stick labeled “Public Opinion.” They are at the top of a cliff near the entrance to the “Stewart, Jones & Co. Silver Miners (Unlimited).” Caption: “Take my silver or I’ll take your life!”
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1893-10-04
Thomas C. “Boss Platt,” adorned with a ribbon of “Patronage Deals,” holds back a hungry tiger labeled “Tammany,” threatening a female figure holding a shield labeled “Greater New York.”
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1897-06-02
William S. Holman holds up a page from “The Sun” newspaper that shows his portrait above the caption “Our Candidate for President – W. S. Holman.” His hat and coat are on a chair and he is rolling up his shirt sleeves. He is armed with guns and knives, and a large club is leaning against a desk. He is threatening to kill Charles A. Dana. Dana kneels before him, pleading for mercy. On the desk is another page of the newspaper that states “Holman – the Peoples Choice.” A display cabinet behind the desk contains Samuel J. Tilden beneath a sign “The Sun’s Candidate in 1876” and Winfield Scott Hancock labeled “A Good Man 250 lbs” beneath a sign “The Sun’s Candidate in 1880.” Caption: W. S. Holman–“This portrait settles it, Mr. Dana! I am forced to kill you in self-defense!”
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1883-10-24
An employer and a group of laborers stand outside the entrance to a factory. The employer is directing the laborers’ attention toward a notice posted on the wall that states “Notice to Workers. If the Tariff Bill is Passed, Your Wages will be Cut.” Behind them, coming down the sidewalk, is a large, angry green “goblin” labeled “Redfield” carrying a paper that states “Notice to Employers. Department of Commerce will Investigate all Wage Reductions said to be Necessitated by the New Tariff.”
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1913-06-04
A dastardly figure peers from behind a bush in the background, as a matronly woman pushes a young woman, looking starry-eyed and carrying a suitcase bursting with cash and stocks, out the front door, in response to a note which shows a pink handprint and states “Put ze girl and ze money on ze doorstep or I will slap you on ze wrist. Ze Pink Hand.”
L. M. Glackens’s cartoon presumably is a cartoon reference to a crime wave that existed throughout America cities starting in the 1890s and having a peak of activity in 1908 — extortion of innocent people through letters signed by a Black Hand. The activity was most active in the Italian immigrant enclaves of New York City, Chicago, and coal-mining regions of northern Pennsylvania. That, as well as internal evidence of the notes and confessions of blackmailers, confirmed the Southern Italian component of the movement.
James Francis Smith writes to President Roosevelt in receipt of his letter and those of Bishop McFaul, Father James T. Reilly, and Father O’Mahoney. Smith discusses grievances reported by Catholic officials about poor relations between the Catholic Church and Philippine government. Referencing the Spanish-American War and American colonization in the Philippines, Smith discusses the Cavite uprising of 1872, the Pact of Biac Na Bato, and Filipino blood pacts inspired by European secret societies.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1903-10-24