536 Presidential Addresses 



stealing known as the slave trade; for it is of far 

 blacker infamy than either. It should be so declared 

 by treaties among all civilized powers. Such treaties 

 would give to the Federal Government the power of 

 dealing with the crime. 



A grim commentary upon the folly of the anar- 

 chist position was afforded by the attitude of the law 

 toward this very criminal who had just taken the life 

 of the President. The people would have torn him 

 limb from limb if it had not been that the law he 

 defied was at once invoked in his behalf. So far 

 from his deed being committed on behalf of the peo- 

 ple against the government, the government was 

 obliged at once to exert its full police power to save 

 him from instant death at the hands of the people. 

 Moreover, his deed worked not the slightest dislo- 

 cation in our governmental system, and the danger 

 of a recurrence of such deeds, no matter how great 

 it might grow, would work only in the direction of 

 strengthening and giving harshness to the forces of 

 order. No man will ever be restrained from becom- 

 ing President by any fear as to his personal safety. 

 If the risk to the President's life became great, it 

 would mean that the office would more and more 

 come to be rilled by men of a spirit which would 

 make them resolute and merciless in dealing with 

 every friend of disorder. This great country will 

 not fall into anarchy, and if anarchists should ever 

 become a serious menace to its institutions, they 

 would not merely be stamped out, but would involve 

 in their own ruin every active or passive sympathizer 



