Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1904-09-21
.R00SEVELTS OUTLINE
OF CAMPAIGN ISSUES
His Letter of Acceptance is Given the Public, Covering
the Accomplishments of the Republican Party and
Its Pledges for Future Peace and Prosperity

The full text Of President Roose.
velt's letter of acceptance contains
nearly $4,000 words. The letter dis
cusses at length the record of the
present administration, dwelling at
length upon the foreign policy and
treatment of trusts. From the letter
whose extreme length precludes the
possibility of publication in its entire.
ty, the following extracts are taken,
which present the main points advan.
ced by Mr.. Roosevelt:
Hon. ]. G. Cannon, Chairman of the
Notification Committee-My Dear Sir:
accept the nomination for the pres
idency rendered me by the Republican
national convention, and cordially ap-
prove the platform adopted by it. In
writing this letter there are certain
points upon which | desire to lay es-
special stress.
1t is difficult to find out from the
utterances of our opponents what are
the real issues upon which they pro
pose to wage this campaign. 1t is
not unfair to say that, having aban-
doned most of the Principles upon
which they have insisted during the
last eight years, they now seem at
a loss, both as to what It is that they
really believe, and as to how firmly
they shall assert their belief in any
thing. In fact, it is doubtful if they
venture resolutely to press a single
issue; as soon as they raise one they
shrink. from IL and seek to explain It
away. Such an attitude Is the prob
ably inevitable result Ul the effort to
improvise conviction; Ior. when thus
improvised, ii is natural that they
should be held in tentative manner.
The party now in control of the
government is troubled by no such
difficulties. We do not have to guess
at our own convictions, and then cor
rect the guess il IL seems unpopular.
The principles we profess are those
in which we believe with heart and
soul and strength. Men may differ
from us; but they cannot accuse us
of stiffness or insincerity. The poll.
cies We have pursued are those which
we earnestly hold as essential to the
national welfare and repute. Our aC
tions speak even louder than our
words for the faith that is in us. We
base our appeal upon what We have
done and are doing. upon our record
of administration aud legislation dur
ing the last seven years, In which We
have had complete control of the gov
eminent in the same way that we
have carried it on in the past.
Panama.
Panama offers an instance In point.
Our opponents can criticise what we
did in Panama only on condition of
mis-stating what was done. The ad-
ministration behaved throughout not
only with good faith. but with extra
ordinary patience and large generos-
ity toward those with whom II dealt.
II was also mindful of American in
terests. 1t acted in strict compliance
with the law passed by congress.
Had not Panama been promptly rec
ognized, and the transit across the
isthmus kept open, in accordance with
our treaty rights and obligations.
there would have ensueu endless guer-
rilla warfare and possibly foreign
complications; while all chance of
building the canal would have been
deferred. certainly for years. perhaps
for a generation or more. The SER
vice rendered this country in secur'
ing the perpetual right TO construct,
maintain, operate and defend the ca
nal was so great that our opponents
do not venture to rais- the issue in
straightforward fashion; for If so rails
ed there would be no issue. The de-
cisive action which brought about this
beneficent result was the exercise by
the president of the powers vested in
him, and in him alone, by the consti'
tuition; the power to recognize foreign
governments by entering into dipo
matte relations with them. and the
power to make treaties, when ratified
by the senate, become under the con-
stitution part of the supreme law OF
the land. Neither in this nor in any
other matter has there been the slight
est failure TO live up to the constitu-
tion in letter and In spirit. But the
constitution must be observed posi-
lively as well as negatively. The pres
idents duty is to serve the country
in accordance with the constitution,
and should be derelict in my duty If
I used a false construction of the
constitution as shield for weakness
and timidity. or as an excuse for gov.
ernmental impotence.
The Foreign Policy.
Our foreign policy has not only
been highly advantageous to the Unit
ed States, but hardly less advantage
GUS to the world as a whole. Peace
and good will have followed in its
footsteps. The government has shown
itself no less anxious to respect the
rights OF others than insistent that
the rights of Americans be respected
in return. AS for the navy IL has been
and is now the most potent guaran-
tee OF peace and II is such chiefly be.
cause Il is formidable and ready for
use.
The Constitution.
When our opponents speak OF EN-
croachments" by the executive upon
the authority of congress and the ju-
dietary, apparently the act they ordi'
narily have in view is pension order
No. rs, issued under the authority OF
existing law. This order directed that
hereafter any veteran OF the civil war
who had reached the age Of 62 should