Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1912-03-06
nail ROOSEVELT
WITH A LETTER
Missive Denying He Was a
Candidate Written to Editor
of Philadelphia Paper.
MANY OF FRIENDS TOLD
"No Intention of Taking Any Part in
Nomination for or Against
Any One"

Washington, March 6.-The Wash |
ington Star prints under New York |
date what purports to be the full text !
of the letter written by Colonel Theo- |
dore Roosevelt saying that he would
not be candidate for the presiden-
tial nomination in 1912. The letter,
addressed to E. A Van Valkenburg,
president and editor of the Philadel-
phia North American, reads as fol-
lows:
June q, 1911-My Dear Mr.. Van
Valkenburg: I am really obliged to
you. Now will you not give Mr. Nc
Clatchey for me a copy of this letter
that l am writing to you, and also
send a copy of the letter to Frank B.
Noyes? Mr. McClatchy states that
Mr.. Noyes informed him, anent the
story sent out by the "A. p that Mr..
Roosevelt had pledged himself to sup
port Taft for a second term, that he
(Mr Noyes) had the same informa-
ton from sources entirely independ-
ent of those from which the Associ-
ated Press received the story.
DENIES TAFT SUPPORT.
"Mr. Noyes states that he under
stood that l did so express myself to
member of the cabinet and also to
an insurgent senator and says that
he believes that President Taft thinks
that he has assurances of support
| from me. Mr.. Noyes adds that he eX-
plains my denial on the theory that
l had explained my attitude confiden-
TALLY and felt entitled to deny it when
it was given publicity.
will you tell Mr. McClatchy and
Mr.. Moves from me (or send them
copies of this letter., that Mr.. Moves
is absolutely and completely misin-
formed and that there is not one par
ticle of truth in the statements made
to him which he thus repeated to Mr..
McClatchy? The only two members
of the cabinet to whom l have recent
ly spoken are Messrs. Meyer and
Stimson.
CALLS INFORMANTS MYTHS.
THE former wrote me and the lat
ter informed me verbally, what in each
case | knew already, that neither of
them had made any. such statement
to Mr.. Taft, or any one else, and that
both of them understood perfectly
clearly that l was not going to support
any man for the nomination in 1912
neither Mr.. Taft nor any one else.
The insurgent senator of whom Mr.
Noyes speaks is as wholly mythica
character as the cabinet minister Of
whom he speaks.
HE cannot give the name of tina
insurgent senator or find it out, FOL
he will find that his informant viii
not give it. l made no such statemen
to any insurgent senator or to an!
cabinet minister or to any other hu
man being
NO BASIS IN FACT.
. THE simple fact is that thes
4 stories are not misunderstanding
they are deliberate inventions. Nj
Noyes is entirely in error in stating
! that President Taft thinks he has as
! surances of support from me.
, "Mr. Taft thinks nothing of tn
,. kind He knows he has no assuranc
@ of support from me, and neither MI
Noyes nor anyone else has one leas
:. little particle of ground for the opir
c ion thus expressed. | at first though
:. that the story in question was give
out from the White house, but l al
now assured that it was gotten up an
given out by the Associated Press rel
@ resentative at the White house, an
+. from Mr.. Noyes' statement | woul
J. gather that this was true.
J. Il wish Mr. Noyes, as president c
h the Associated Press, to know that tn
O story was not misunderstanding, wa
J. not based upon misinformation, bu
O was a deliberate invention, made OF
II Of whole cloth, without one particl
of basis beyond the imagination of tn
man who made it.
NOT A CANDIDATE.
Il have expressed myself perfect
freely to a large number of men in TIL
matter, always to the same effect
telling you, for instance, PERSONAL,
and those who were with you at LUNG
at my house, and telling Giffor
Pinchot, Jim Garfield and Represent
tive Madison and Billy Loeb and Sc
rotary Meyer and Secretary Stimso
all alike, just exactly what have sal
always, that | would not be cand
date in 1912 myself and that l had r
intention of taking any part in II
nomination for or against any canC
date. Sincerely yours,