President Roosevelt would like to have Cecil Spring Rice visit him, but advises him to not leave a run in diplomatic service unless necessary. Roosevelt has fundamentally the same philosophy as Spring Rice, and hopes to avoid a race conflict such as Spring Rice worries about in the Pacific. Australia’s population is growing slowly, which worries Roosevelt, but the United States and Canadian populations are growing quickly enough that Roosevelt does not fear the threat of Asian dominance in North America. He does worry, however, about ongoing racial tensions and the weakening of the United States’ navy, which could threaten peace. While European civilization has spread over the globe in the past, it is impossible to say what will happen in the future. Domestically, Roosevelt is having a difficult time with the panic and the resulting depression and stagnation. Roosevelt believes that while the movement against corruption will ultimately succeed, even while those who lead it may seem to fail at present. He sends a copy of his message so Spring Rice might read his thoughts on the army and navy. Roosevelt feels it is abhorrent that many in Spring Rice’s country, and his own, have internalized an idea of peace in which good men should not make war, and in which advancement means a weakening of the fighting spirit.
Collection
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
Creation Date
1907-12-21
Creator(s)
Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919
