Roosevelt, Theodore (1858-1919) to W. S. Rainsford
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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC06880 Author/Creator: Roosevelt, Theodore (1858-1919) Place Written: New York, New York Type: Typed letter signed Date: 12 December 1914 Pagination: 1 p. ; 24.4 x 19.6 cm Order a Copy
"I am a radical and I could never be anything else; but I am a sane radical and I know we cannot get people to digest too much radicalism..." Corrected in T.R.'s hand. On personal stationery. Some water damage to inks.
December 12, 1914.
My dear [strikeout] Rainsford:
I am very much pleased to get your letter and I am delighted that you liked what I wrote about Mexico. I hope you also approved of what I have written about the European war.
You were absolutely right about radicalism. I am a radical and I never could be anything else; but I am a sane radical and I know [struck: you] [inserted: we] cannot get people to digest too much radicalism and that therefore a surfeit of it is apt to be very dangerous. If a man dies of a surfeit of good food, the fact that a moderate amount of good food would have been essential to his well-being does not prevent his death.
Would you be willing to come out to Oyster Bay some time just for the night so I could tell you about South America and discuss various things?
Faithfully yours,
Theodore Roosevelt
Dr. W. B. Rainsford,
Ridgefield, [struck: V][inserted: C]onn.
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