PRESIDENT WILLIAM H. TAFT - NAVAL APPOINTMENT SIGNED 05/14/1909 CO-SIGNED BY: BEEKMAN WINTHROP - HFSID 32793

WILLIAM HOWARD TAFT
As President, he signed this appointment of a Marine Corps captain (1909), also signed by Acting Navy Secretary Beekman Winthrop.
Naval Appointment signed: "W. H. Taft" as President, "Beekman Winthrop" as Acting Secretary of the Navy. 15x19, Washington, D.C., 1909 May 14. Appointment of Thomas H. Brown as a Captain in the Marine Corps, effective May 18, 1909. WILLIAM HOWARD TAFT (1857-1930), the only man to serve as both U.S. President (1909-1913) and Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (1921-1930), was handpicked by Theodore Roosevelt to be his successor. Unhappy in the White House, Roosevelt's former Secretary of War nevertheless proved to be a better "trust buster" than his mentor. Taft attempted to reduce Republican-supported tariffs and empowered the Interstate Commerce Commission to end railroad abuses. He started the process leading to a federal budget, sponsored a bill requiring candidates to reveal campaign expenses and initiated the postal savings system. Taft's decisions, reflecting the conservative rather than progressive Republican platform, led to a parting with Roosevelt, and Taft lost his bid for a second term, finishing third behind Democratic candidate Woodrow Wilson and Roosevelt. Reaching the pinnacle of his career as Chief Justice, Taft supported the Judiciary Act of 1925, which gave the overburdened Court greater ability to determine the number and type of cases it would hear. He was also instrumental in obtaining congressional funds for a new Supreme Court building. WINTHROP BEEKMAN (1874-1946), a New York lawyer, was Governor of Puerto Rico (1904-1907). He was Assistant Secretary of the Treasury under President Theodore Roosevelt (1907-1909) and Assistant Secretary of the Navy under President Taft (1909-1913). Horizontal and vertical folds - affecting entire signature. Edges chipped and soiled. Creased.