Theodore Roosevelt came into office as the twenty-sixth president of the United States just before his forty-third birthday birthday He offered Americans the Square Deal and was called the Trust Buster 6 Introduction
Theodore Roosevelt was the youngest youngest president of the United States He had been vice president under William McKinley who was assassinated by an anarchist in 1901 Roosevelt took office as the twenty-sixth president just before his forty-third birthday He was elected in his own right in 1904 Theodore Roosevelt had tremendous energy and high spirits He was not only a statesman but also a cowboy naturalist hunter explorer and soldier No guest was more welcome at the White House than an old friend from the days when he worked on his North Dakota cattle ranch A cowpuncher cowpuncher once appeared just before lunch when another friend British ambassador James Bryce was also to be a guest Roosevelt said to him solemnly Remember Jim that if you shot at the feet of the British ambassador to make him dance it would be likely to cause international complications Jim replied with horror Why Colonel I shouldn’t think of it I shouldn’t think of it He advised everyone to lead the strenuous strenuous life While he was in the White House he rode horseback played tennis or took a rough cross-country walk daily The 7
them companions on these exercises were known as the tennis cabinet In his autobiography Roosevelt wrote that often they would make a point to point walk not turning aside for anything If their route took through Rock Creek Park in Washington they might have to swim Rock Creek and scale the steep walls of cliffs They swam the creek in their clothes when ice was floating thick in it Roosevelt brought the same vigor and determination to his presidency He worked for peaceful relations between businesses and laborers through a program he called the Square Deal He also tirelessly battled groups of big companies called trusts that tried to Roosevelt as a young man is pictured here wearing ranch clothing He always admired frontier living 8 Theodore Roosevelt
Introduction put smaller companies out of business and he became known as a Trust Buster He also asked Congress to pass legislation against the sale of contaminated food and drugs In addition Roosevelt wanted to preserve the country’s natural resources He set aside lands as national forests which then became off-limits to companies looking for lumber minerals and water Congress established the Forest Service in 1905 to oversee and protect the national forests Roosevelt also steered the nation toward an active role in world politics particularly particularly in Europe and Asia One of his boldest acts came in 1903 when he helped Panama gain independence from Colombia and in exchange demanded a piece of land that cut through Panama Roosevelt thus secured the route for construction of the Panama Canal a vital waterway that connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans Furthermore Roosevelt expanded the Monroe Doctrine In 1823 President James Monroe had said that Europe should not become involved in the Americas In 1904 Roosevelt added that the United States would police the countries of Latin America to make sure they fulfilled their agreements with other countries 9
