Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1912-10-03
LINCOLN MISQJOTED
SON OF MARTYRED PRESIDENT
SHOWS ROOSEVELT ALTERED
HIS LANGUAGE.
WRITES EMPHATIC LETTER
Robert T. Lincoln Makes 1t Plain
That the Colonel Has Nothing in
Common With the Patriotic EXEC
utive of War Time.

/ Theodore Roosevelt is fond Of as
( sertirg his own resemblance to Abra-
ham Lincoln and of quoting from the
words Of the martyred president in
! support Of the radical RooseVeItian
! theories.
But Robert T.LincoIn, in a letter to
Chairman H:Iles OF. the Republican na-
tional committee, points out that Mr..
Roosevelt has deliberately altered
the words of Lincoln and has found
/ ed arguments upon the misquotation.
The letter is & complete expose of
! Nr. Roos6velt's method of seeking
votes. It shows that Abraham Lin
/ coin had nothing in common with
Roosevelt, and that the latter, in at
tempting to iuggle with the name OF
the martyred president, is imposing
upon the American people.
Mr.. Roosevelt has never yet ex-
plained why he deliberately altered
the words of President Lincoln to suit
his own purposes, nor has he apollo
gized for his misrepresentation. On
the contrary, he has ignored the grave
charges contained in Mr.. Lincoln's let
ter, which is as follows:
Manchester, Vermont. April 81, 1912.
My Dear Mr. Hilles: You ask what
I think of the repeated assertions by
Mr.. Roosevelt. that his attitude on
certain radical doctrines is supported
by the recorded views of my father
The proper answer to your inquiry
cannot be made in a few words. The
government under which my father
| lived was, as it is now, republic, or
representative democracy, checked by
the Constitution, which can be
changed by the people, but only when
acting by methods. which compel DELHI
Grafton and exclude so far as is pos
sible the effect of passionate and
short-sighted impulse. A government
in which the checks of an establish ed
Constitution are actually, or practical
ly, Omitted-One in which the people
act in mass directly on all questions
and not through their chosen repre-
sentatiYes-is an unchecked democ-
racy, form of government so full Of
danger, as shown by history, that it
has ceased to exist except in communi
ties small and concentrated as to
space. A New England town meet
ing may be good, but such government
in a large city, or state, would be
chaos.
CAS- I understand it, the essence of
Mr.. RooseveIt's proposals is that we
shall adopt the latter form of govern
ment in place of the existing form.
This, in simple words, is a proposed
revolution, peaceful perhaps, but
revolution. In support of these revo-
lutionary doctrines, which, if success
full, would abolish the form and the
spirit Of our existing government, and
surely, | think, lead to attempted die
tatorships.- resort is had to what is
claimed to be the words and teachings
of President Lincoln. It must be as
sumed that, though he has been dead
nearly fifty years, his influence is still
felt as being that Of a wise and pa
triotic citizen. If that is true, we are
all interested in having his opinions
and sayings truthfully stated, and my
interest is naturally peculiar.
President Lincoln wrote many let