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onco. And why mid how? Bocauso this one
man and his few companions went to tho fow
powerful individuals who controlled the rail
roads and conspirod with them, and got thorn to
carry thoir oil to market for, say $1 a barrel,
while ovoryono olso was charged $2 and more
a harrel. Of courso, this favoritism in freight
rates onablod them to undersell by that much,
and destroy all thoir rivals.
"Just think of a debate being got up, even
by ministers of tho gospel, whether money thus
acquired is tainted! This same thing has been
done in all our principal products. And lot no
one bo under the delusion that it is to cease.
You can't stop an evil by morely passing a law
against it. Every wook, oven now, reveals' a
now case of this railroad favoritism and dis
crimination. Some have come to the conclusion
that tho government should tako tho railroads
and run them, in order to' end tho abuse. For
my part, I would not see the government do it.
Private enterprise Js too valuablo to bo eliminat
ed from railroad building and management, if
it can bo avoided. .
"My own viow is that it is only necessary
for tho government to appoint tho general
freight agent of every railroad, for he could
stop all ruto favoritism at once. It would not
bo for his office to fix tko schedulo of rates, .
but only to seo that ovoryono paid the schedule
rate, no more and no less. Tho actual payments
of rebates back to shippers is now seldom done,
but favoritism is dono in many ways. One way
is to give favoritism in freight rates by billing
goods at one-half their weight. Anothor way is
by means of the private switches or tracks
which connect many business places with the
railroads. One of these little railroads a quar
ter of a mile long may get 25, or even 50. per
cent of tho freight monoy charged by the rail
road it connects, and which carries the freight
hundreds of thousands of miles. Private freight
cars leased to the railroad at exorbitant rates
are another means, and still another is tho giv
ing of large commissions to a go-between for
gottlng the freight.
"This favoritism in freight rates is also
used to defeat the national tariff by giving for-
I olgn goods a freight rate low enough to enable
, them to come in. and be sold at a profit, in spite
of the protootive tariff. Goods are carried from
England and Gormany to Denver, for example,
for a less rate than the same domestic goods
have to pay from Chicago to Denver. This
favoritism in freight rates and passenger rates
is also a wrong to the railroad stockholders.
There are roads now paying three or four per
cent dividends which would be paying nearer
ten per cent if the favoritism in freight rates
was .stopped.
"No wonder a growing number of people
.want the government to take the railroads."
OOOO
STRANGE ADVISORS
A Chanute, Kansas reader of The Com
moner writes: "I write you to request that you
print in The Commoner a brief summary of
President Roosevelt's cabinet' appointments,
commenting on each as to his former business
affiliations and environment. My memory is
not very good, but my recollection is that prac-
tically all his cabinet appointees, including the
present cabinet, especially those who have di
rectly to do with the enforcement of law against
trusts, railroads, etc., are, men who have been
for years previous to thoir appointment engaged
in and upon the pay role of trusts, railroads,
etc., and that the same is very largely true of
his appointees for district attorneys and judges.
If he is as sincere in his desires to compel
trusts, railroads, etc., to treat the people fairly
as he seems to be upon the surface, and as many
people believe him to be, he should cease ap
pointing that class of men to office. I have read
in The Commoner from time to time, comments
upon individual appointees along this line., but
it occurs to .me that if a column or two in The
Commoner was devoted to the subject as a
whole, it would, serve a good purpose for the
enlightenment of the people,"
Mr. Roosevelt has not been particularly
fortunate, so far as an anti-monopoly program
is concerned, in the selection of his official ad
visors. It will bo remembered that Senator Cul
berson of Texas objected to Mr. Bonaparte's
confirmation as attorney generalT)ecause of "a
speech delivered soveral years ago at Chicago
wherein ho plainly showed that he had no preju
dices against the trust system. Ellhu Root, sec
retary of state, was for years one of the most
1 successful of the great corporation lawyers
and is believed to stand very close to some of the
representatives of special interests. Mr. Straus
the secretary of commerce and labor, is identi
fied with New York business interests, having
been connected with a mercantile firm there, In
recent years most of his time has been spent In
public office. Mr. Metcalf, secretary of the navy,
was a California lawyer and a member of con
gress. Ho was not particularly noted for any
strong, anti-monopoly tendency. Mr. Meyer, tho
postmaster general, has since 1900 held office
in the diplomatic service. He is identified with
the business interests of Boston, being a direc
tor In a large number of local corporations and
banks. Mr. Garfield, the secretary of the inter
ior, practiced law afe Cleveland, Ohio. Ho it
was who gave tho beef trust the famous immu
nity bath. Mr. Taft, secretary of war, has held .
appointive office nearly all of his life. Until he
entered the cabinet he owed his political prefer
ment to the Foraker influence in Ohio. He has
never been particularly demonstrative against
the special Interests. Mr. Cortelyou began his
public life as a stenographer under the Cleve
land administration and with the details of his
rapid rise everyone is familiar.
Mr. Roosevelt certainly is not greatly aided
in his fight against monopoly by the fact that
there is not a member of his cabinet from whom,
judged by his record and early environment, the
president could expect cordial sympathy and en
thusiastic aid in a real fight against monopoly,
oooo
TAFT MUST SPEAK
The Sioux Falls, S. D., Press, a republican
paper of the Roosevelt orand, appears not to be
satisfied with Mr. Roosevelt's O. K. ori the Taft
boom. The Press says: "In view of the fact
that Mr. Taft is Mr. Roosevelt's candidate for
president in 1908, and in view cf the fact that
Mr. Roosevelt is making an effort to secure
Taft's nomination, on the ground that he will
carry out his (Roosevelt's) policies, it would
be of great interest to the public to know what
Mr. Taft's views are on those questions which
have made Mr. Roosevelt popular.
On these questions Mr. Taft has been silent and
there Is a belief in some quarters that l)e is sat
isfactory to trusts and combinations, ' to rail
roads, and to the very rich, and that he really
stands for .nothing that the president is popular
ly supposed to stand for."
Why should there be any doubt .concerning
a public man's position upon the' pressing ques
tions" of the day? When a man is urged for
the presidency on the theory that he is an antl- '
monopolist, why should he hesitate to say some
thing by way of reassuring the people whose
support he seeks? It is evident that Mr. Taft
will find it difficult in the year of 1908 to pose
as the champion of anti-monopoly while leaving
his followers in doubt as to his own views con
cerning questions pertaining to monopoly.
OOOO
FORAKER NOT UNHAPPY
"Political sentiment is the Bame in Ohio
as it Is in Pennsylvania," says the Philadelphia
Inquirer, republican, "and itifinds expression in
the endorsement of the policies of President
Roosevelt. No candidate who does not recog
nize these policies and who can not be depended
upon to' carry them out can be nominated at
the republican national conyention. It is be
cause Senator Foraker is regarded as represent
ing the opposition to the principles for which
President Roosevelt stanas that he is .having
such a hard, time in his own state."
But Senator Foraker is not having "such
a hard time" inOhio so far as his senatorial
aspirations are concerned. He seems to be get
ting on very well and it is noticeable that Sec
retary Taft's friends show no disposition to in
terfere with Foraker's re-election to the senate.
What is there about republican reform pre
tensions that they permit the reformer to up
hold the Roosevelt policies on the one hand and
to acquiesce in the election to the senate of
men who, like Foraker, according to the re
former's testimony, are "regarded as represent
ing the opposition to the principles for which
President Roosevelt stands?"
OOOO
LICENSING INTERSTATE CORPORATIONS
A few democrats have expressed alarm lejt
the exercise of the powers vested in congress to
control interstate commerce may result in in
justice to corporations organized under state
laws. The license system advocatea" by Mr
Bryan is just now being vigorously attacked
by these gentlemen. It may not be out of placo
to remind these that the license plan was en
dorsed in the democratic national convention
of 1900 and that no fight was made upon it
in the convention and no opposition was mani
fested by democrats during the campaign. Tho
plank reads as follows:
"We pledge the democratic party to an un
ceasing warfare in nation, state and city against;
VOjSUMB 7. NUMBER 21
private monopoly in every form. Existing lawn
against trusts must be enforced, and more . s h!
gent ones must be enacted providing for m h
licity as to the affairs of corporations engarud
in interstate commerce, requiring all con ora
tions to show, before doing business outSL
the state of their origin, that they have no t
ter in their stock, and that they have not nt
tempted, and are not attempting, to mononolin
any hranch of business or the production of anv
articles of merchandise, and the Whole consti
tutional power of congress over interstate com
merce, the mails and all modes of intersHto
communication shall be 'exercised by the enict
SetniSte."01nf rflhenBlVe laWS UPn the sube(
Can it be that any who call themselves
democrats are not willing to go as far now on tho
trust question as the party went in 1900?
i,N0t Jly 7aB Se license sy8tem endorsed
ln HV3 n5tIonal Platform but it was advocated
rb-i?ryiK ef0ipe .any of the cventions
were held which selected delegates to the na
tional convention. The fact that our. Brvan
was endorsed for the nomination by nearlv
every state and territory after he had advocated
the license system in all parts of the union
ought to be evidence that this system is not
considered undemocratic by those who are in
the habit of voting the democratic ticket.
OOOO
WATOH THE FRONTIER
The Washington correspondent for the Chi
cago Tribune sends to his newspaper an inter
esting story to the effect that thousands of Japa
nese coolies are being smuggled, into the United
States oyer the frontiers of Canada and Mexico.
ie Tri.bune correspondent says: "At the timo
when the Japanese ambassador was protesting
against the treatment of his fellow countrymen
in San Francisco, and while the Japanese them
selves at the Golden Gate were passing resolu
tions demanding protection from the authorities,
other Japanese in defiance of law and the
proclamation of the president were sneaking
over the border by the scopes, and by hundreds,
and probably by thousands. It is a curious con
tradiction that after congress had passedvan ex
clusion law intended to keep the Japanese out
of the country, and after those already here had
been made the victim of race prejudice in Siuv
Francisco, the little brown men should resort
to such extraordinary means to get into a coun
try where they are not wanted and where at
best their lot is anything but a happy one. Tho
frontier is like a sieve, and the Japanese are
streaming in at eyery hole, now under one pre
text, and now under another. They are, coming
secretly from Mexico and from Canada, and
openly with forged papers through Seattle and
San Francisco. The Japanese government is not
to blame, but it is none the less true that while
the Japanese Embassador here is calling the at
tention of President Roosevelt and Secretary
Root to the treatment of his countrymen in San
Francisco, others equally his countrymen are
sneaking into the 'country in defiance of its laws,
and in spite of the unfriendly attitude of the
people upon whom they aeem determined to
precipitate themselves."
. It,wi11 oc,cu.r to a great many people that
the welfare of American citizens is entitled to
some consideration. Many have believed that
the administration has exceeded the limit in
catering to the whims of Japanese politicians.
Accepting the Tribune's story as true, a little
activity along the Canadian and Mexico fron
tiers would be decidedly appropriate.
OOOO
ATTORNEY GENERAL BONAPARTE
When the name of Charles J. Bonaparte was
presented to the senate as the president's nomi
nee for attorney general, Senator Culberson, of
Texas, raised objection to his confirmation and
based his objection upon a speech, made by Mr.
??58!itrt , J8 ChIcago ahti-truft 'conference
m 1899. In that speech he said, speaking of the
tendency of combination: "I m not, however,
prepared to say that this tendency is harmful;
it has a good side and a bad side, and there is
the less reason to make up our minds as to its
merits, because, whatever we may think, we can
i i,?'66114..1' excePfc at the price of liberty and
civilization." He concluded his speech with this
language: "Emphatically no legislative action
in regulation or restraint of combinations,
Whether by congress or state legislature, is de
sirable. Our public men (with I need not say,
some honorable exceptions) are wholly unfit to
deal with any such matters. The attempt will
be highly demoralizing to all concerned, the
practical results (except in the -levy of black-
mail) altogether nugatory." He also expressed
himself in favor of the consolidation of the rail-
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