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Obe Jeffersonian
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A Weekly Paper 'Edited by THOS. E. WATSON t D. WATSON
VOLUME THREE
NUMBER FIFTY-ONE
Summary of Ebents as They Happen
By Tom Dolan
"" ' .
On re-assembling nf Congress, Mr.
Rainey dropped a bombshell in the
nature of a resolution demandin'* an
investigation into the charges of
fraud on the part of the administra
tion relative to the Panama Canal,
which charges involve Mr. Roosevelt
and Mr. Taft and certain of their
relatives, Mr. Cromwell and others.
The New r York World and -Sun and
Indianapolis News have editorially
accused the President of making
statements which he must have
known were untrue, and he has hot
ly replied.
The President’s message to Con
gress was exceedingly voluminous, a
summary of the chief points being
as follows:
Admits our currency system to be
imperfect, but offers no suggestion
for its remedy.
As to corporations, states that it is
“worse than folly” to prohibit all
combinations as is done by the Sher
man anti-trust law. He would have
them subject to the “complete and
paramount” control of the United
States. Demands that railroads be
put completely under the interstate
commerce commission and desires
the central authority strengthened in
the hands of the Chief Executive.
Wants telephone and telegraph com
panies put under the control of the
same interstate commerce commis
sion.
Under the head of Labor, Mr.
Roosevelt recommends the immediate
passage of a model Employers’ Lia
bility Act for the District of Colum
bia; endorses postal savings banks
and advocates a progressive inheri
tance tax that will equalize the bur
den of taxation. Declares for abol
ition of child, and diminution of
woman, labor, the general adoption
of the eight-hour day, and half-holi
days for government employes during
the summer months.
Apropos of the Courts, he urges
doubling of Judges’ salaries and
adoption of some method that will do
away with the long delays the ad
ministration of justice. Recommends
that provision be made against the
abuse of the injunction.
The preservation of national for
ests and improvement of waterways
are cited as matters needing the
immediate attention of Congress
and the whole people. Approves the
Pure Food Law and all measures for
promoting the public health. Desires
adequate appropriations for the edu
cational bureaus, wants the census
force put under the civil service
rules and asks that the government
printing office* be put under the juris-
eq
Atlanta, Ga., Thursday, December i/, *1.908
diction of the department of Com
merce and Labor. (Relative to this
department, it is well to remark that
Nathan Straus, head thereof, has just
recommended the division of this de
partment into two —separating that
of Commerce from Labor—the crea
tion, in fact, of a Department of La
bor.)
Mr. Roosevelt embodies the view
of Postmaster General William L.
von Meyer favoring the Parcels Post.
Wants all soldiers’ homes to be
placed under management of the war
department, advocated that all exist
ing independent bureaus be placed
under the jurisdiction of appropriate
executive departments. Recommends
admission of New Mexico and Arizo
na as separate States.
Avers that our foreign relations
are in excellent shape, that the Pana
ma Canal will prove “a model for
all future constructive work.” States
that Hawaii is making good progress,
recommends that American citizen
ship be conferred upon people of Por
to Rico, but holds out little hope for
the Philippines and gives warning to
Cuba to behave itself or Uncle Sam
will get her. Urges the ship subsidy
bill for ocean mail lines on the Pa
cific. Pays high homage to Japan.
Objects to the seniority system of
promotion in the army, recommends
organization of a great body of vol
unteers behind the regular army, and
national guards, when war has come
and approves a steady increase in the
navy.
That part of his message which has
stirred up a hornets ’ nest is this:
“I do not believe that it is in the
public interest to protect criminals
in any branch of the public service,
and exactly as we have again and
again during the past seven years
prosecuted and convicted such crimi
nals who were in the executive branch
of the government, so in my belief
we should be given ample means to
prosecute them if found in the legis
lative branch. But if this is not con
sidered desirable a special exception
could be made in the law prohibiting
the use of the secret service force in
investigating members of the con
gress. It would be far better to do
this than to do what actually was
done, and strive to prevent or at least
to hamper effective action against
criminals of the executive branch of
the government.”
Members of both houses are
wrought up over the insinuation con
veyed by these remarks and Demo
crats and Republicans alike are de
manding action. The text of this
part of the message may be ordered
expunged from the official records.
Cuba is much incensed over that
part of Roosevelt’s message which
specifically warns that country that
“the only way for a nation not desir
ing foreign domination is to show its
ability to conduct self-government.”
Mr. Roosevelt should have been en
tirely honest and inserted the word
“little” before nation. Large and
strong nations may trample upon ev
ery vestige of law and order without
fear. Russia has for generations sim
ply reveled in bloodshed, but who
threatens her with subjugation? The
United States gives gross instances
of failure of the people to govern
themselves, but that, of course, is
“another story.”
Secretary Wilson, of the Depart
ment of Agriculture, has ruled that
flour, bleached with nitrogen peroxide,
is an adulterated product, and as
such cannot legally be sold in the Dis
trict of Columbia, or in the territo
ries, or be transported in interstate
commerce. As immense quantities of
bleached flour are now on hand, deal
ers will be given six months in which
to sell it before any effort is made to
prosecute, anyone for handling the
product.
There seems to be evident an inten
tion to get results from the appro
priations made to improve the water
ways of this country. Heretofore,
for all the benefit derived, the money
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might almost as well have been thrown
into the rivers and harbors outright.
No country in the world has so fine
a network of waterways that, wisely
used, could cheapen travel and trans
portation of freight. In addressing
the Waterways Congress in Washing
ton on December 9, Vice President
Fairbanks that the improvement of
the waterways had not kept abreast
of our industrial needs and urged the
dissemination of accurate information
and the arousing of general public in
terest on the subject.
In a notable address at the tubercu
losis exhibition in New York City, Dr.
Woods Hutchinson, eminent special
ist who is devoting himself to stamp
ing out this plague, remarked:
“What is killing the people of this
city may be stated as overwork, un
der-feeding and over-crowding, and
two of these may be included under
the one word ‘under-paid.’ ” The
message of the church to the commu
nity is not “give to the poor,” but
“don’t take so much away from
them.”
Noble words. What is needed not on
ly in the cities but everywhere is Jus
tice, not Charity.
A disaster has befallen the great
Gatun dam, part of the engineering
work in connection with the Panama
canal. The extent of the damage,
due to the heavy rainfall, is not yet
known.
Price Five Cents