The Montgomery advertiser. [volume] (Montgomery, Ala.) 1885-1982, 1907-04-24
ROOSEVELT'S
HOT REPLY
Reiterates His Former
Statement.
TRIAL WAS NOT CONSIDERED
Meyer and Haywood Undesirable
from Every Viewpoint.
The President says Railroad Magnates
might ~ Wen say He Was At
tempsins to Inauence Har-
riman Suits.

washington. April 23--In a letter
addressed to Honore Jackson of Chi
cago. Chairman Of the Cook County
Meyer Haywood Conference" made
| public today, President Roosevelt re-
| piled to the criticism of his recent let
| ter In which he referred to Meyer and
| Haywood officials of the Western Fed
Grafton of Miners, charged with impii-
cation in the murder of former Cover
| nor Steunenberg of Idaho as "undesir-
| able citizens"
| The President says he regrets any
body of men should so far forget their
! duty to their country as to by forma-
| ton OF societies and In other ways en-
! deavor to influence justice or coerce
court or jury; that they. not he. are
| trying to influence justice and he con-
dennis what he calls their fragrant i'm
| propriety in the matter.
| He says that he indicated no opinion
| as to their guilt of the Steunenberg
| murder but that 1t was a simple alb
| surdity to suppose that because a man
| is on trial he is free from criticism as
| to his manner of life. He said he
| might as we'll be accused of trying to
| influence the suits against Hartman,
| some of whose friends had also criti-
| cised him.
! He said that Meyer and Haywood
stand as representatives of those who
| habitually appear as guilty of incite-
ment to or apologizers for bloodshed
and violence. He added that he was
| profoundly Indifferent TO the condem-
nation of him for his criticisms of the
undesirable types of citizens, regard
less of the power of either labor or
| capital
! Letter In Full.
| The letter follows.
April 20. 1907.
Dear Sir:
1 have received your letter OF the
| 18th instant In which you enclose the
draft of the formal letter which is to
| follow. ] have been notified that sew
eral delegations bearing similar re-
| quests are on the way hither. In the
| letter you, on behalf of the Cook Coun-
ty Meyer Haywood Conference. protest
agaiifss certain language ] used in a
| recent iettef which you assert to be
designed to influence the course of JUS
tice in the case OF the trial for murder
/ of Messrs.. Meyer and Haywood.
| 'T entirely agree with you that II is
| improper to endeavor TO influence the
course OF justice, whether by threats or
| in any similar manner. For this rea-
SON / have regretted most deeply the
action of such organizations as your
own in undertaking to accomplish this
very result in the very case of which
| you speak. For instance your letter Is
headed Cook County Meyer Haywood
| Pettibone Conference with the head
lines, Death cannot will not, and shall
not claim our brothers. This shows
that you and your associates are not
demanding a fair trial or working for
| a fair trial, but are announcing in adj
vance that the verdict shall only be one
way. and that you will not tolerate any
other verdict Such action is fragrant
| in it's improperly and / Join heartily
| in condemning ii.
Subject to Criticism.
But II is a simple absurdity to
suppose that because any man is on
trial for a given offense, he IS, there
fore, to be freed from all criticisms
upon his general conduct or manner of
life. In my letter to which you object
I referred to certain prominent IL
| nancier, Mr.. Hartman, on the one hand
and to Messrs. Meyer Haywood and
| Debs on the other as being equally
| undesirable citizens. 1t is as foolish
to assert that this was designed to in
| fluence the trial of Meyer and Hay
wood as to assert that 1t was designed
to influence the suits that have been
brought against Mr.. Hartman. I
neither expressed nor indicated any
opinion as to whether Messrs. Meyer
and Haywood were guilty of the muir
der of Governor Steunenberg. If
they gre guilty. they ought to be pun
| ished.' If they are not guilty they GER
tainly ought not to be punished.
But no possible outcome. either of
| the trial of the suits can affect my
judgment as to the undesirability of
the type of citizenship of those whom
1 mentioned. Messrs. Meyer, Haywood
and Debs stand as representatives of
those men who have done Is much to
discredit the labor movement as the
worst speculative financiers or most
INSCRIPTIONS employers of labor and
debauchers of Legislatures have done
to discredt honest capitalists and fair
dealing business men.
They stand as the representatives
of those men who by their public Ut
terances and manifestoes, by the utter
ances of the papers they control or
inspire and by the words and deeds
of those associated with or subordina-
ted to them. habitually appear as gull
ty of Indictment to or palogy for blood
shed and violence.
Are Undesirable Citizens.
IF this does not constitute undesir-
able citizenship, then there can newer
be any undesirable citizens. The men
whom / denounce represent the men
who have abandoned that legitimate
movement for the uplifting of labor,
with which I have the most hearty
sympathy; they have adopted practices
| which cut tham off from those who
lead this legitimate movement. In
every way I shall support the law
abiding and upright representatives of
labor and in no way can ] better sup
port them than by drawing the sharp
est possible line between them on the
one hand and on other hand those
preachers of violence who are them
selves the worst foes of honest labor
ing men.
Let me repeat my deep regret that
any body of men should so far forget
their duty to their country as to en-
deavor by the formulation of societies
and In other ways influence the course
OF Justice in this matter. / have re-
ceived many such letters as yours.
Accompanying them were newspaper
clippings announcing demonstrations,
parades and mass meetings designed
to show that the representatives of
labor without regard to the facts de
mand the acquittal of Messrs. Haywood
and Meyer Such meetings can of
course be designed only to coarce court
or jury in rendering a verdict. and
! they. therefore, deserve all the con-