SpecialassistantsoftheAttorney-General，suchasMr。FrankKellogg，ofSt。Paul，andvariousfirst-classFederaldistrictattorneysindifferentpartsofthecountrysecurednotableresults：Mr。Stimsonandhisassistants，Messrs。Wise，Denison，andFrankfurter，inNewYork，forinstance，inconnectionwiththeprosecutionoftheSugarTrustandofthebankerMorse，andofagreatmetropolitannewspaperforopeningitscolumnstoobsceneandimmoraladvertisements；andinSt。LouisMessrs。DyerandNortoni，who，amongotherservices，securedtheconvictionandimprisonmentofSenatorBurton，ofKansas；andinChicagoMr。Sims，whoraisedhisofficetothehighestpitchofefficiency，securedtheconvictionofthebankerWalshandoftheBeefTrust，andfirstbrokethroughthearmoroftheStandardOilTrust。Itisnottoomuchtosaythatthesemen，andotherslikethem，workedacompleterevolutionintheenforcementoftheFederallaws，andmadetheirofficesorganizedlegalmachinesfitandreadytoconductsmashingfightsforthepeople’srightsandtoenforcethelawsinaggressivefashion。WhenItookthePresidency，itwasacommonandbittersayingthatabigman，arichman，couldnotbeputinjail。Weputmanybigandrichmeninjail；twoUnitedStatesSenators，forinstance，andamongotherstwogreatbankers，oneinNewYorkandoneinChicago。OneoftheUnitedStatesSenatorsdied，theotherservedhisterm。(OneofthebankerswasreleasedfromprisonbyexecutiveorderafterIleftoffice。)Theseweremerelyindividualcasesamongmanyotherslikethem。Moreover，wewerejustasrelentlessindealingwithcrimesofviolenceamongthedisorderlyandbrutalclassesasindealingwiththecrimesofcunningandfraudofwhichcertainwealthymenandbigpoliticianswereguilty。Mr。SimsinChicagowasparticularlyefficientinsendingtothepenitentiarynumbersoftheinfamousmenwhobattenonthe“whiteslave“traffic，afterJuly，1908，whenbyproclamationIannouncedtheadherenceofourGovernmenttotheinternationalagreementforthesuppressionofthetraffic。
TheviewsIthenheldandnowholdwereexpressedinamemorandummadeinthecaseofaNegroconvictedoftherapeofayoungNegrogirl，practicallyachild。Apetitionforhispardonhadbeensentme。
WHITEHOUSE，WASHINGTON，D。C。，August8，1904。
TheapplicationforthecommutationofsentenceofJohnW。Burleyisdenied。Thismancommittedthemosthideouscrimeknowntoourlaws，andtwicebeforehehascommittedcrimesofasimilar，thoughlesshorrible，character。Inmyjudgmentthereisnojustificationwhateverforpayingheedtotheallegationsthatheisnotofsoundmind，allegationsmadeafterthetrialandconviction。Nobodywouldpretendthattherehaseverbeenanysuchdegreeofmentalunsoundnessshownaswouldmakepeopleevenconsidersendinghimtoanasylumifhehadnotcommittedthiscrime。Undersuchcircumstancesheshouldcertainlybeesteemedsaneenoughtosufferthepenaltyforhismonstrousdeed。Ihavescantsympathywiththepleaofinsanityadvancedtosaveamanfromtheconsequencesofcrime，whenunlessthatcrimehadbeencommitteditwouldhavebeenimpossibletopersuadeanyresponsibleauthoritytocommithimtoanasylumasinsane。Amongthemostdangerouscriminals，andespeciallyamongthosepronetocommitthisparticularkindofoffense，thereareplentyofatempersofiendishorsobrutalastobeincompatiblewithanyotherthanabrutishorderofintelligence；butthesemenareneverthelessresponsiblefortheiracts；andnothingmoretendstoencouragecrimeamongsuchmenthanthebeliefthatthroughthepleaofinsanityoranyothermethoditispossibleforthemtoescapepayingthejustpenaltyoftheircrimes。Thecrimeinquestionisonetotheexistenceofwhichwelargelyowetheexistenceofthatspiritoflawlessnesswhichtakesforminlynching。Itisacrimesorevoltingthatthecriminalisnotentitledtooneparticleofsympathyfromanyhumanbeing。Itisessentialthatthepunishmentforitshouldbenotonlyascertainbutasswiftaspossible。Thejuryinthiscasedidtheirdutybyrecommendingtheinflictionofthedeathpenalty。Itistoberegrettedthatwedonothavespecialprovisionformoresummarydealingwiththistypeofcase。Themorewedowhatinusliestosecurecertainandswiftjusticeindealingwiththesecases，themoreeffectivelydoweworkagainstthegrowthofthatlynchingspiritwhichissofullofevilomenforthispeople，becauseitseekstoavengeoneinfamouscrimebythecommissionofanotherofequalinfamy。
Theapplicationisdeniedandthesentencewillbecarriedintoeffect。
(Signed)THEODOREROOSEVELT。
OneofthemostcuriousincidentsoflawlessnesswithwhichIhadtodealaffectedanentireState。TheStateofNevadaintheyear1907
wasgraduallydriftingintouttergovernmentalimpotenceanddownrightanarchy。Thepeoplewereatheartallright；buttheforcesofevilhadbeenpermittedtogettheupperhand，andforthetimebeingthedecentcitizenshadbecomehelplesstoassertthemselveseitherbycontrollingthegreedycorporationsontheonehandorrepressingthemurderousviolenceofcertainlawlesslabororganizationsontheotherhand。TheGovernoroftheStatewasaDemocratandaSouthernman，andintheabstractastrongbelieverinthedoctrineofState’sRights。
ButhisexperiencefinallyconvincedhimthathecouldobtainorderonlythroughtheinterventionoftheNationalGovernment；andthenhewentovertoofarandwishedtohavetheNationalGovernmentdohispoliceworkforhim。IntheRockyMountainStatestherehadexistedforyearswhatwaspracticallyaconditionofalmostconstantwarbetweenthewealthymine-ownersandtheWesternFederationofMiners，atwhoseheadstoodMessrs。Haywood，Pettibone，andMoyer，whowereaboutthattimeindictedforthemurderoftheGovernorofIdaho。Muchthatwaslawless，muchthatwasindefensible，hadbeendonebybothsides。TheLegislatureofNevadawasinsympathywith，oratleastwasafraidofnotexpressingsympathyfor，Messrs。Moyer，Haywood，Pettibone，andtheirassociates。TheStatewaspracticallywithoutanypolice，andtheGovernorhadrecommendedtheestablishmentofaStateConstabulary，alongthelinesoftheTexasRangers；buttheLegislaturerejectedhisrequest。TheGovernorreportedtometheconditionsasfollows。During1907theGoldfieldminingdistrictbecamedividedintotwohostilecamps。HalfoftheWesternFederationofMinerswereconstantlyarmed，andarmsandammunitionwerepurchasedandkeptbytheunionasabody，whilethemine-ownersontheirsideretainedlargenumbersofwatchmenandguardswhowerealsoarmedandalwaysonduty。Inadditiontotheseopposingforcestherewas，astheGovernorreported，anunusuallylargenumberoftheviolentandcriminalelement，alwaysattractedtoanewandboomingminingcamp。Undersuchconditionsthecivilauthoritieswerepracticallypowerless，andtheGovernor，beinghelplesstoavertcivilwar，calledonmetokeeporder。IaccordinglythrewinabodyofregulartroopsunderGeneralFunston。Thesekeptordercompletely，andtheGovernorbecamesowellsatisfiedthathethoughthewouldliketohavethemtherepermanently！Thisseemedtomeunhealthy，andonDecember28，1907，InotifiedhimthatwhileIwoulddomyduty，thefirstneedwasthattheStateauthoritiesshoulddotheirs，andthatthefirststeptowardsthiswastheassemblingoftheLegislature。I
concludedmytelegram：“IfwithinfivedaysfromreceiptofthistelegramyoushallhaveissuedthenecessarynoticetoconvenetheLegislatureofNevada，Ishallcontinuethetroopsduringaperiodofthreeweeks。Ifwhenthetermoffivedayshaselapsedthenoticehasnotbeenissued，thetroopswillbeimmediatelyreturnedtotheirformerstations。”Ihadalreadyinvestigatedthesituationthroughacommittee，composedoftheChiefoftheBureauofCorporations，Mr。H。
K。Smith，theChiefoftheBureauofLabor，Mr。C。P。Neill，andtheComptrolleroftheTreasury，Mr。LawrenceMurray。ThesemenIcouldthoroughlytrust，andtheirreport，whichwasnotover-favorabletoeitherside，hadconvincedmethattheonlypermanentwaytogetgoodresultswastoinsistonthepeopleoftheStatethemselvesgrapplingwithandsolvingtheirowntroubles。TheGovernorsummonedtheLegislature，itmet，andtheconstabularybillwaspassed。ThetroopsremainedinNevadauntiltimehadbeengivenfortheStateauthoritiestoorganizetheirforcesothatviolencecouldatoncebechecked。
Thentheywerewithdrawn。
NorwasitonlyasregardstheirowninternalaffairsthatIsometimeshadtogetintoactivecommunicationwiththeStateauthorities。TherehasalwaysbeenastrongfeelinginCaliforniaagainsttheimmigrationofAsiaticlaborers，whetherthesearewage-workersormenwhooccupyandtillthesoil。Ibelievethistobefundamentallyasoundandproperattitude，anattitudewhichmustbeinsistedupon，andyetwhichcanbeinsisteduponinsuchamannerandwithsuchcourtesyandsuchsenseofmutualfairnessandreciprocalobligationandrespectasnottogiveanyjustcauseofoffensetoAsiaticpeoples。Inthepresentstateoftheworld’sprogressitishighlyinadvisablethatpeoplesinwhollydifferentstagesofcivilization，orofwhollydifferenttypesofcivilizationevenalthoughbothequallyhigh，shallbethrownintointimatecontact。Thisisespeciallyundesirablewhenthereisadifferenceofbothraceandstandardofliving。InCaliforniathequestionbecameacuteinconnectionwiththeadmissionoftheJapanese。IthenhadandnowhaveaheartyadmirationfortheJapanesepeople。Ibelieveinthem；Irespecttheirgreatqualities；I
wishthatourAmericanpeoplehadmanyofthesequalities。JapaneseandAmericanstudents，travelers，scientificandliterarymen，merchantsengagedininternationaltrade，andthelikecanmeetontermsofentireequalityandshouldbegiventhefreestaccesseachtothecountryoftheother。ButtheJapanesethemselveswouldnottoleratetheintrusionintotheircountryofamassofAmericanswhowoulddisplaceJapaneseinthebusinessoftheland。Ithinktheyareentirelyrightinthisposition。IwouldbethefirsttoadmitthatJapanhastheabsoluterighttodeclareonwhattermsforeignersshallbeadmittedtoworkinhercountry，ortoownlandinhercountry，ortobecomecitizensofhercountry。Americahasandmustinsistuponthesameright。ThepeopleofCaliforniawererightininsistingthattheJapaneseshouldnotcomethitherinmass，thatthereshouldbenoinfluxoflaborers，ofagriculturalworkers，orsmalltradesmen——inshort，nomasssettlementorimmigration。
Unfortunately，duringthelatterpartofmytermasPresidentcertainunwiseanddemagogicagitatorsinCalifornia，toshowtheirdisapprovaloftheJapanesecomingintotheState，adoptedtheveryfoolishprocedureoftryingtoprovidebylawthattheJapanesechildrenshouldnotbeallowedtoattendtheschoolswiththewhitechildren，andoffensiveandinjuriouslanguagewasusedinconnectionwiththeproposal。TheFederalAdministrationpromptlytookupthematterwiththeCaliforniaauthorities，andIgotintopersonaltouchwiththem。AtmyrequesttheMayorofSanFranciscoandotherleadersinthemovementcameontoseeme。IexplainedthatthedutyoftheNationalGovernmentwastwofold：inthefirstplace，tomeeteveryreasonablewishandeveryrealneedofthepeopleofCaliforniaoranyotherStateindealingwiththepeopleofaforeignpower；and，inthenextplace，itselfexclusivelyandfullytoexercisetherightofdealingwiththisforeignpower。
Inasmuchasinthelastresort，includingthatlastofallresorts，war，thedealingofnecessityhadtobebetweentheforeignpowerandtheNationalGovernment，itwasimpossibletoadmitthatthedoctrineofStatesovereigntycouldbeinvokedinsuchamatter。AssoonaslegislativeorotheractioninanyStateaffectsaforeignnation，thentheaffairbecomesonefortheNation，andtheStateshoulddealwiththeforeignpowerpurelythroughtheNation。
IexplainedthatIwasinentiresympathywiththepeopleofCaliforniaastothesubjectofimmigrationoftheJapaneseinmass；
butthatofcourseIwishedtoaccomplishtheobjecttheyhadinviewinthewaythatwouldbemostcourteousandmostagreeabletothefeelingsoftheJapanese；thatallrelationsbetweenthetwopeoplesmustbethoseofreciprocaljustice，andthatitwasanintolerableoutrageonthepartofnewspapersandpublicmentouseoffensiveandinsultinglanguageaboutahigh-spirited，sensitive，andfriendlypeople；andthatsuchactionaswasproposedabouttheschoolscouldonlyhavebadeffects，andwouldinnoshapeorwayachievethepurposethattheCalifornianshadinmind。IalsoexplainedthatI
woulduseeveryresourceoftheNationalGovernmenttoprotecttheJapaneseintheirtreatyrights，andwouldcountupontheStateauthoritiesbackingmeuptothelimitinsuchaction。Inshort，I
insisteduponthetwopoints(1)thattheNationandnottheindividualStatesmustdealwithmattersofsuchinternationalsignificanceandmusttreatforeignnationswithentirecourtesyandrespect；and(2)thattheNationwouldatonce，andinefficientandsatisfactorymanner，takeactionthatwouldmeettheneedsofCalifornia。IbothassertedthepoweroftheNationandofferedafullremedyfortheneedsoftheState。Thisistheright，andtheonlyright，course。TheworstpossiblecourseinsuchacaseistofailtoinsistontherightoftheNation，tooffernoactionoftheNationtoremedywhatiswrong，andyettotrytocoaxtheStatenottodowhatitismistakenlyencouragedtobelieveithasthepowertodo，whennootheralternativeisoffered。
Afteragooddealofdiscussion，wecametoanentirelysatisfactoryconclusion。Theobnoxiousschoollegislationwasabandoned，andI
securedanarrangementwithJapanunderwhichtheJapanesethemselvespreventedanyimmigrationtoourcountryoftheirlaboringpeople，itbeingdistinctlyunderstoodthatiftherewassuchemigrationtheUnitedStateswouldatoncepassanexclusionlaw。ItwasofcourseinfinitelybetterthattheJapaneseshouldstoptheirownpeoplefromcomingratherthanthatweshouldhavetostopthem；butitwasnecessaryforustoholdthispowerinreserve。
Unfortunately，afterIleftoffice，amostmistakenandill-advisedpolicywaspursuedtowardsJapan，combiningirritationandinefficiency，whichculminatedinatreatyunderwhichwesurrenderedthisimportantandnecessaryright。Itwasallegedinexcusethatthetreatyprovidedforitsownabrogation；butofcourseitisinfinitelybettertohaveatreatyunderwhichthepowertoexerciseanecessaryrightisexplicitlyretainedratherthanatreatysodrawnthatrecoursemustbehadtotheextremestepofabrogatingifiteverbecomesnecessarytoexercisetherightinquestion。
