Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1919-12-12
WHY ROOSEVELT
OBJECTED To USE
OF PIOUS PHRASE
Biographer Tells How Rough
Rider President Had '1n
God We Trust" Kept Off of
~~HIninc

isY MORNING JouEHN- SPECIAL LEASED wiRGl
New York, Dec. 11.--A new and in
teresting explanation of Colonel
Roosevelts objection to the use Of
the phrase In God We Trust on
! United States coins, is afforded in an
article in the December Scribner's BY
Joseph Buckliu Bishop, the former
presidents biographer.
A letter written by Mr.. Roosevelt
on November II, 1907, to clergyman
who had differed with him about
placing the motto on the coins read:
when the question of the new
coinage came up we looked into the
law and found there was no warrant
/ therein for putting In God We Trust
on the coins. AS the custom although
without legal warrant, had grown up.
! however, / might have felt at liberty
to keep the inscription had l approved
| OF its being on the coinage. But as
l did not approve of it, did not di-
rect that it should again be put on.
OF course the matter Of the law is
absolutely in the hands of congress,
and any direction of congress in the
matter will be Immediately obeyed.
At present as | have said, there is no
warrant in law for the inscription
My own feeling in the matter is
due to my very firm conviction that
to put such a motto on coins, or to
use it in any kindred manner not
only does no good hut does positive
harm, and is in effect irreverence
which comes dangerously close to sac
rilege.
"A beautiful and solemn sentence
such as the one in question should be
treated and uttered only with that
fine reverence which necessarily i'm
plies certain eXaltation of spirit
Any use which tends to cheaper 1t,
and above all, any use which tends TO
secure its being treated in a spirit of
levity, is from every standpoint pro-
foundly to be regretted.
1T is a motto which II is indeed
we'll to have inscribed on our great
national monuments, in our temples
of justice, in our legislative halls, and
In buildings such as those at West
Point and Annapolis--in short,
wherever it will tend to arouse and
inspire a lofty emotion in those who
look thereon. But 1t seems to me
eminently unwise to cheaper such a
motto by use on coins, just as 1t would
stamps, or In advertisements.
Among the 10000 letters written
by Colonel Roosevelt during his pub
lie career, Mr.. Bishop said lie found
a number from Rudyard Kipling.
written in that famous authors char
acteristic way that is, in the tiniest
chirography.
In a letter written in 1908 the
colonel said: "'Great- Heart is my
favorite character in allegory, just as
Pilgrim Progress is to my mind one
of the greatest books that was ever
written and l think that Abraham
Lincoln Is the ideal Great Heart of
public life He returned to this idea
about Lincoln from time to time,
fact which explains the origin OF
KiplnEs memorial poem entitled
"Great-Hcart," written when the col
onel died.
Colonel Roosevelts admiration for
the Great Emancipator was also
shown in letter which he wrote on
March 3, 1905, a few days after his
to Sir George Trevelyan,
the English historian and nephew OF
In which the colonel said.
ut has been peculiarly pleasant 10
me to find that my supporters are to
be found among the overwhelming
whom Abraham Lincoln
called the plain people, As I sup
pose you know, Lincoln is my hero
He was a man of the people who al
ways felt with and for the people. but
who had not the slightest touch of
the demagogue in him.