Letter from President Theodore Roosevelt to Secretary of the Interior E. A. Hitchcock

This item is a letter regarding published attacks made by the Department of Interior on Senator Warren with regards to a proposed amendment of the joint statehood bill that would have made New Mexico and Arizona one state.

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7 to attack Senator Warren, if he wes to be attacked at all. Assistent secretary Ryan tells me that the memorandum in question was prepared by Mr. Acker, a clerk in the Interior Department; that it was submitted to Mr. Ryan, who forwarded it to you to find out if you approved of its form and degired to have it published; and that you ro- turned it with your approval, after having, however, struck out a com mendatory allusion which it contained to the action of Governor Frantz of Oklahoma in opposing the amendmente I call your attention to the enclosed clippings from such papers as the Providence Journal, the Denver News, the Erie Horald, the Vin- comms Sun. Thege are of importance because certain officials of the Interior Department, as I understand, have alleged that the published statement did not really contain an attack on Senator Warren. It will be seen, however, that all the papors treated it as a personal attack by you on Senator Warren. The Denver News says that you "roast Senator Warren; that you have characterized his amendment as a deliberate steal; that the amondment was urged by am organized band of land speculators, resembled a raid on the treasury, and so forth and so forth. The Provi- dence Journal says: "Another striking demonstration of the courage of the Secretary of the Interior = a courage most unusual in a public official dealing with the weaknesses of influentia members of his own political party - is afforded by his ungloved attack upon Senator Francis E. Warren of Wyoming. Without mincing words * * and in plain English he names Senator Warren as the power behind the throne, the conspicuous counsel, friend, associate end, inferentielly, beneficiary of the 'combine' of 'looters' and "grafters'. Senator Warren may be innocent,