TLS signed “T. Roosevelt,” one page, 5 x 7.75, Pullman Private Car - Pilgrim letterhead, April 16, 1912. Letter to Martin P. Lynch in Brooklyn, New York, in full: "It does not seem to me that the facts you set forth alter the position that I took. I desire to have rape cases treated as on par with cases of murder of the first degree. In neither case should there be admission to bail. In both cases a speedy trial should be provided. Personally I should apply the death penalty in both cases." He adds a clarifying handwritten postscript to the last line, "where the man is guilty." In fine condition. Accompanied by the original mailing envelope and a fine custom-made quarter-leather slipcase.
In this letter, Roosevelt expresses a long-held stance on the proper punishment for rapists. He made a similar argument in his 1906 State of the Union address, calling rape 'the most abominable in all the category of crimes, even worse than murder,' continuing: 'In my judgment, the crime of rape should always be punished with death, as is the case with murder; assault with intent to commit rape should be made a capital crime, at least in the discretion of the court; and provision should be made by which the punishment may follow immediately upon the heels of the offense; while the trial should be so conducted that the victim need not be wantonly shamed while giving testimony, and that the least possible publicity shall be given to the details.'
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