to“speaksoftlyandcarryabigstick。”
Aprimeneedforournation，asofcourseforeveryothernation，istomakeupitsminddefinitelywhatitwishes，andnottotrytopursuepathsofconductincompatibleonewiththeother。IfthisnationiscontenttobetheChinaoftheNewWorld，thenandthenonlycanitaffordtodoawaywiththenavyandthearmy。IfitiscontenttoabandonHawaiiandthePanamaCanal，toceasetotalkoftheMonroeDoctrine，andtoadmittherightofanyEuropeanorAsiaticpowertodictatewhatimmigrantsshallbesenttoandreceivedinAmerica，andwhetherornottheyshallbeallowedtobecomecitizensandholdland——why，ofcourse，ifAmericaiscontenttohavenothingtosayonanyofthesemattersandtokeepsilentinthepresenceofarmedoutsiders，thenitcanabandonitsnavyandagreetoarbitrateallquestionsofallkindswitheveryforeignpower。Insucheventitcanaffordtopassitssparetimeinonecontinuousroundofuniversalpeacecelebrations，andofsmugself-satisfactioninhavingearnedthederisionofallthevirilepeoplesofmankind。Thosewhoadvocatesuchapolicydonotoccupyaloftyposition。Butatleasttheirpositionisunderstandable。
Itisentirelyinexcusable，however，totrytocombinetheunreadyhandwiththeunbridledtongue。Itisfollytopermitfreedomofspeechaboutforeignersaswellasourselves——andthepeace-at-any-
pricepersonsaremuchtoofeebleafolktotrytointerferewithfreedomofspeech——andyettotrytoshirktheconsequencesoffreedomofspeech。Itisfollytotrytoabolishournavy，andatthesametimetoinsistthatwehavearighttoenforcetheMonroeDoctrine，thatwehavearighttocontrolthePanamaCanalwhichweourselvesdug，thatwehavearighttoretainHawaiiandpreventforeignnationsfromtakingCuba，andarighttodeterminewhatimmigrants，AsiaticorEuropean，shallcometoourshores，andthetermsonwhichtheyshallbenaturalizedandshallholdlandandexerciseotherprivileges。Wearearichpeople，andanunmilitarypeople。Ininternationalaffairsweareashort-sightedpeople。ButIknowmycountrymen。Downatbottomtheirtemperissuchthattheywillnotpermanentlytolerateinjusticedonetothem。InthelongruntheywillnomorepermitaffrontstotheirNationalhonorthaninjuriestotheirnationalinterest。Suchbeingthecase，theywilldowelltorememberthatthesurestofallwaystoinvitedisasteristobeopulent，aggressiveandunarmed。
ThroughoutthesevenandahalfyearsthatIwasPresident，Ipursuedwithoutfalteringoneconsistentforeignpolicy，apolicyofgenuineinternationalgoodwillandofconsiderationfortherightsofothers，andatthesametimeofsteadypreparedness。Theweakestnationsknewthatthey，nolessthanthestrongest，weresafefrominsultandinjuryatourhands；andthestrongandtheweakalikealsoknewthatwepossessedboththewillandtheabilitytoguardourselvesfromwrongorinsultatthehandsofanyone。
ItwasundermyadministrationthattheHagueCourtwassavedfrombecominganemptyfarce。Ithadbeenestablishedbyjointinternationalagreement，butnoPowerhadbeenwillingtoresorttoit。Thoseestablishingithadgrowntorealizethatitwasindangerofbecomingamerepapercourt，sothatitwouldneverreallycomeintobeingatall。M。d’EstournellesdeConstanthadbeenespeciallyalivetothisdanger。Bycorrespondenceandinpersonalinterviewsheimpresseduponmetheneednotonlyofmakingadvancesbyactuallyapplyingarbitration——notmerelypromisingbytreatytoapplyit——toquestionsthatwereupforsettlement，butofusingtheHaguetribunalforthispurpose。Icordiallysympathizedwiththeseviews。OntherecommendationofJohnHay，IsucceededingettinganagreementwithMexicotolayamatterindisputebetweenthetworepublicsbeforetheHagueCourt。ThiswasthefirstcaseeverbroughtbeforetheHagueCourt。Itwasfollowedbynumerousothers；anditdefinitelyestablishedthatcourtasthegreatinternationalpeacetribunal。BymutualagreementwithGreatBritain，throughthedecisionofajointcommission，ofwhichtheAmericanmemberswereSenatorsLodgeandTurner，andSecretaryRoot，wewereablepeacefullytosettletheAlaskaBoundaryquestion，theonlyquestionremainingbetweenourselvesandtheBritishEmpirewhichitwasnotpossibletosettlebyfriendlyarbitration；thisthereforerepresentedtheremovalofthelastobstacletoabsoluteagreementbetweenthetwopeoples。WewereofsubstantialserviceinbringingtoasatisfactoryconclusionthenegotiationsatAlgecirasconcerningMorocco。WeconcludedwithGreatBritain，andwithmostoftheothergreatnations，arbitrationtreatiesspecificallyagreeingtoarbitrateallmatters，andespeciallytheinterpretationoftreaties，saveonlyasregardsquestionsaffectingterritorialintegrity，nationalhonorandvitalnationalinterest。WemadewithGreatBritainatreatyguaranteeingthefreeuseofthePanamaCanalonequaltermstotheshipsofallnations，whilereservingtoourselvestherighttopoliceandfortifythecanal，andthereforetocontrolitintimeofwar。UnderthistreatyweareinhonorboundtoarbitratethequestionofcanaltollsforcoastwisetrafficbetweentheWesternandEasterncoastsoftheUnitedStates。IbelievethattheAmericanpositionasregardsthismatterisright；butIalsobelievethatunderthearbitrationtreatyweareinhonorboundtosubmitthemattertoarbitrationinviewofGreatBritain’scontention——althoughIholdittobeanunwisecontention——thatourpositionisunsound。Iemphaticallydisbelieveinmakinguniversalarbitrationtreatieswhichneitherthemakersnoranyoneelsewouldforamomentdreamofkeeping。Inolessemphaticallyinsistthatitisourdutytokeepthelimitedandsensiblearbitrationtreatieswhichwehavealreadymade。Theimportanceofapromiseliesnotinmakingit，butinkeepingit；andthepoorestofallpositionsforanationtooccupyinsuchamatterisreadinesstomakeimpossiblepromisesatthesametimethatthereisfailuretokeeppromiseswhichhavebeenmade，whichcanbekept，andwhichitisdiscreditabletobreak。
Duringtheearlypartoftheyear1905，thestrainonthecivilizedworldcausedbytheRusso-JapaneseWarbecameserious。Thelossesoflifeandoftreasurewerefrightful。Fromallthesourcesofinformationathand，IgrewmoststronglytobelievethatafurthercontinuationofthestrugglewouldbeaverybadthingforJapan，andanevenworsethingforRussia。Japanwasalreadysufferingterriblyfromthedrainuponhermen，andespeciallyuponherresources，andhadnothingfurthertogainfromcontinuanceofthestruggle；itscontinuancemeanttohermorelossthangain，evenifshewerevictorious。Russia，inspiteofhergiganticstrength，was，inmyjudgment，apttoloseevenmorethanshehadalreadylostifthestrugglecontinued。IdeemeditprobablethatshewouldnomorebeablesuccessfullytodefendEasternSiberiaandNorthernManchuriathanshehadbeenabletodefendSouthernManchuriaandKorea。Ifthewarwenton，Ithoughtit，onthewhole，likelythatRussiawouldbedrivenwestofLakeBaikal。Butitwasveryfarfromcertain。Thereisnocertaintyinsuchawar。Japanmighthavemetdefeat，anddefeattoherwouldhavespeltoverwhelmingdisaster；andevenifshehadcontinuedtowin，whatshethuswonwouldhavebeenofnovaluetoher，andthecostinbloodandmoneywouldhaveleftherdrainedwhite。Ibelieved，therefore，thatthetimehadcomewhenitwasgreatlytotheinterestofbothcombatantstohavepeace，andwhenthereforeitwaspossibletogetbothtoagreetopeace。
Ifirstsatisfiedmyselfthateachsidewishedmetoact，butthat，naturallyandproperly，eachsidewasexceedinglyanxiousthattheothershouldnotbelievethattheactionwastakenonitsinitiative。
Ithensentanidenticalnotetothetwopowersproposingthattheyshouldmeet，throughtheirrepresentatives，toseeifpeacecouldnotbemadedirectlybetweenthem，andofferedtoactasanintermediaryinbringingaboutsuchameeting，butnotforanyotherpurpose。Eachassentedtomyproposalinprinciple。Therewasdifficultyingettingthemtoagreeonacommonmeetingplace；buteachfinallyabandoneditsoriginalcontentioninthematter，andtherepresentativesofthetwonationsfinallymetatPortsmouth，inNewHampshire。IpreviouslyreceivedthetwodelegationsatOysterBayontheU。S。S。Mayflower，which，togetherwithanothernavalvessel，Iputattheirdisposal，onbehalfoftheUnitedStatesGovernment，totakethemfromOysterBaytoPortsmouth。
Asiscustomary——butbothunwiseandundesirable——insuchcases，eachsideadvancedclaimswhichtheothercouldnotgrant。ThechiefdifficultycamebecauseofJapan’sdemandforamoneyindemnity。I
feltthatitwouldbebetterforRussiatopaysomeindemnitythantogoonwiththewar，fortherewaslittlechance，inmyjudgment，ofthewarturningoutfavorablyforRussia，andtherevolutionarymovementalreadyunderwaybadefairtooverthrowthenegotiationsentirely。IadvisedtheRussianGovernmenttothiseffect，atthesametimeurgingthemtoabandontheirpretensionsoncertainotherpoints，notablyconcerningthesouthernhalfofSaghalien，whichtheJapanesehadtaken。Ialso，however，andequallystrongly，advisedtheJapanesethatinmyjudgmentitwouldbethegravestmistakeontheirparttoinsistoncontinuingthewarforthesakeofamoneyindemnity；forRussiawasabsolutelyfirminrefusingtogivethemanindemnity，andthelongerthewarcontinuedthelessableshewouldbetopay。I
pointedoutthattherewasnopossibleanalogybetweentheircaseandthatofGermanyinthewarwithFrance，whichtheywerefondofquoting。TheGermansheldParisandhalfofFrance，andgaveupmuchterritoryinlieuoftheindemnity，whereastheJapanesewerestillmanythousandmilesfromMoscow，andhadnoterritorywhateverwhichtheywishedtogiveup。IalsopointedoutthatinmyjudgmentwhereastheJapanesehadenjoyedthesympathyofmostofthecivilizedpowersattheoutsetofandduringthecontinuanceofthewar，theywouldforfeititiftheyturnedthewarintoonemerelyforgettingmoney——
and，moreover，theywouldalmostcertainlyfailtogetthemoney，andwouldsimplyfindthemselvesattheendofayear，evenifthingsprosperedwiththem，inpossessionofterritorytheydidnotwant，havingspentenormousadditionalsumsofmoney，andlostenormousadditionalnumbersofmen，andyetwithoutapennyofremuneration。
Thetreatyofpeacewasfinallysigned。
Asisinevitableundersuchcircumstances，eachsidefeltthatitoughttohavegotbetterterms；andwhenthedangerwaswellpasteachsidefeltthatithadbeenover-reachedbytheother，andthatifthewarhadgoneonitwouldhavegottenmorethanitactuallydidget。
TheJapaneseGovernmenthadbeenwisethroughout，exceptinthematterofannouncingthatitwouldinsistonamoneyindemnity。Neitherinnationalnorinprivateaffairsisitordinarilyadvisabletomakeabluffwhichcannotbeputthrough——personally，Ineverbelieveindoingitunderanycircumstances。TheJapanesepeoplehadbeenmisledbythisbluffoftheirGovernment；andtheunwisdomoftheGovernment’sactioninthematterwasshownbythegreatresentmentthetreatyarousedinJapan，althoughitwassobeneficialtoJapan。
Therewerevariousmoboutbreaks，especiallyintheJapanesecities；
thepolicewereroughlyhandled，andseveralChristianchurcheswereburned，asreportedtomebytheAmericanMinister。InbothRussiaandJapanIbelievethatthenetresultasregardsmyselfwasafeelingofinjury，andofdislikeofme，amongthepeopleatlarge。Ihadexpectedthis；Iregardeditasentirelynatural；andIdidnotresentitintheleast。TheGovernmentsofbothnationsbehavedtowardmenotonlywithcorrectandentirepropriety，butwithmuchcourtesyandthefullestacknowledgmentofthegoodeffectofwhatIhaddone；andinJapan，atleast，IbelievethattheleadingmensincerelyfeltthatI
hadbeentheirfriend。IhadcertainlytriedmybesttobethefriendnotonlyoftheJapanesepeoplebutoftheRussianpeople，andI
believethatwhatIdidwasforthebestinterestsofbothandoftheworldatlarge。
DuringthecourseofthenegotiationsItriedtoenlisttheaidoftheGovernmentsofonenationwhichwasfriendlytoRussia，andofanothernationwhichwasfriendlytoJapan，inhelpingbringaboutpeace。I
gotnoaidfromeither。Idid，however，receiveaidfromtheEmperorofGermany。HisAmbassadoratSt。PetersburgwastheoneAmbassadorwhohelpedtheAmericanAmbassador，Mr。Meyer，atdelicateanddoubtfulpointsofthenegotiations。Mr。Meyer，whowas，withtheexceptionofMr。White，themostusefuldiplomatintheAmericanservice，renderedliterallyinvaluableaidbyinsistinguponhimselfseeingtheCzaratcriticalperiodsofthetransaction，whenitwasnolongerpossibleformetoactsuccessfullythroughtherepresentativesoftheCzar，whowereoftenatcrosspurposeswithoneanother。
AsaresultofthePortsmouthpeace，IwasgiventheNobelPeacePrize。Thisconsistedofamedal，whichIkept，andasumof$40，000，whichIturnedoverasafoundationofindustrialpeacetoaboardoftrusteeswhichincludedOscarStraus，SethLowandJohnMitchell。Inthepresentstateoftheworld’sdevelopmentindustrialpeaceisevenmoreessentialthaninternationalpeace；anditwasfittingandappropriatetodevotethepeaceprizetosuchapurpose。In1910，whileinEurope，oneofmymostpleasantexperienceswasmyvisittoNorway，whereIaddressedtheNobelCommittee，andsetforthinfulltheprinciplesuponwhichIhadacted，notonlyinthisparticularcasebutthroughoutmyadministration。
IreceivedanothergiftwhichIdeeplyappreciated，anoriginalcopyofSully’s“Memoires“of“HenryleGrand。”sentmewiththefollowinginscriptionItranslateitroughly：
PARIS，January，1906。