New-York tribune., 1918-05-26
Full Text of Colonel's
Letter to Poindexfer
Following is the full text of Colonel
Roosevelt's letter:

Following is the full text of Colonel
Roosevelt's letter:
"May %, 1918.
"My Dear Senator Poindexter:
"The following article from me ap
peared in The Kansas City Star on
May 7, 1918:
'Sedition, a Free Press and Per-
sonal Rule.
"4The legislation now being enacted
by Congress should deal drastlcally
with sedition. 1t should also guar
antee the right Of the press and peo-
their public servants, including the
President, and to criticise them in
the severest terms of truth whenever
they come short in their public duty.
Finally, Congress should grant the
Executive the amplest powers to act
as an Executive and should hold him
to stern accountability for failure so
to act; but it should itself do the
actual lawmaking and should clearly
define the lines and limits of action
and should retain and use the full
est powers OF investigation into and
supervision over such action.
"'Sedition is a form of treason. 1t
is an offence against the country, not
against the President. At this time
to oppose the draft or sending our
armies to Europe, to uphold Ger
many, to attack our Allies, to oppose
carry on the war, are at least forms
of moral sedition, while to act as
German spy or to encourage German
spies, to use money or intrigue in
the corrupt service of Germany, to
tamper with our war manufactures
and to encourage our soldiers to de-
sert or to fail in their duty, and all
similar actions, are forms of un-
doubtedly illegal sedition. For some
of these offences death should be
summarily inflicted. For all the,
punishment should be severe. ).
"'The Administration has been
gravely remiss in dealing with such
acts.
"'Free speech, exercised both in
dividually and through free press,
is necessity III any country where
the people are themselves free.
Our government is the servant of
the people, whereas in Germany it is
the master Of the people. This is be-
cause the American people are free
and the German people are not free.
The President is merely the most i'm
portant among large number of
public servants. He should be sup
ported or opposed exactly to the de-
gree which is warranted by his good
conduct or bad conduct, his efficiency
or ineficiency, in rendering loyal,
able and disinterested service to the
nation as whole. Therefore, it is
absolutely necessary that there
should be full liberty to tell the truth
about his acts, and this means that
it is exactly as necessary to blame
him when he does wrong as to praise
him when he does right. Any other
attitude in an American citizen is
that there must be no criticism of
the President, or that we are to stand
by the President, right or wrong. is
not only unpatriotic and servile, but
is morally reasonable to the Ameri-
can public Nothing but the truth
should be spoken about him. or any
one else. But it is even more i'm
portant to tell the truth, pleasant or
unpleasant, about him than about
any one else.
During the last year the Admin
istration has shown itself anxious to
punish the newspapers which uphold
the war, but which have told the
truth about the Administrations fail.
ure to conduct the war efficiently;
whereas it has failed to proceed
against various powerful newspapers
which opposed the war or attacked
our allies or directly or Indirectly
aided Germany against this country.
as these papers upheld the Admin
istration and defended its inefFi-
cheney. Therefore, no additional
power should be given the Admins
tration to deal with papers for criti-
cising the Administration. And.
moreover. Congress should closely
scrutinize the way the Postmaster
General and the Attorney General
nave already exercised discrimina-
ton between the papers they prose-
prosecute. s" "
Congress should give the Presi-
dent full power for efficient execu-
tive action. 1t should not abrogate
IT'S own power. 1t should define how
ne Is to reorganize the Administra-
ton. 1t should say how large an
army we are to have, and not leave
the decision to the amiable Secre-
tary OF War who has for two wears
shown such inefficiency 1t should
declare for an army of five million
men, and inform the Secretary that
II would give him more the minute
he asks for more