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February 28, 190a
The Commoner.
9
Gage's Rockefeller Deal.
Early in the year; ..the World once
again demonstrated, the moral force,
the power for good, of a great, free,
and fearless newspaper in the smash
ing of the secret compact between the
administration at Washington and the
Standard Oil crowd, by which rJl the
government receipts from internal rev
enue taxes were to bo "pooled" in
the vaults of the National City bank
of New York, known as the Standard
Oil bank, for distribution to the gov
ernment depositories.
Under the contract more than $1,
000,000 a day would flow into the fav
ored bank, to be distributed as only
it and a very few United States treas
ury officials would know, the bank en
joying the use of the money mean
time. Secretary Gage announced this con
tract for pooling the enormous re
ceipts and their distribution by secret
arrangement just before congress ad
journed for the holidays. The next
day the World attacked the scheme,
turning the broad beams of the search
light of publicity on the transaction,
and showing that upward of $10,000,
0.00 of the government's money had
been on deposit and bearing no inter
est in the Standard Oil bank steadily
tor six months. When the year 1900
opened, the press of the entire coun
try was spreading the World's infor
mation and arousing the people. Mr.
Gage fled from the! storm that was
raging about him. He rescinded the
order to banks in western cities to
ship the money deposited by the gov
ernment collectors to the fav6red
'poof," the policy of secrecy was
abandoned, and Treasurer Roberts
was ordered to announce that he
-would give out the facts of the distri
bution. The World showed that the Stand
ard Oil crowd had been favored so
palpably as to arouse suspicion of the
motives impelling the administration.
This "pull" had brought to the Stand
ard Oil bank $24,000,000 of the money
'received by the government in set
tlement of the Union Pacmc dent, in
cluding the $14,751,223 saved to the
people on that settlement by the
World's energetic fight in 1898 against
the consummation of the "private ar
rangement" between the government
ana the Wall street blind pool known
as the Union Pacific reorganization
committee, and forced the govern
ment to put the indebted roads up at
public sale, in which the syndicate bid
nearly $15,000,000 more than the ad
ministration had agreed by "private
arrangement" to accept for the prop
erty. Both houses of congress acted
promptly, and with practical unanim
ity, beginning an investigation of the
relations of the treasury department
and the National City bank. This
brought a 9,000-word defense from.
Secretary Gage, and revealed three
highly explanatory letters, the first
from Vice President Hepburn of the
bank, to Secretary Gage in 1897, re
questing that the bank remain a
United States depository, and saying:
"If you will take pains to look at
our list of directors you will see that
we also have Very great political
claims, in view of what was done dur-
iiig me canvass mat jrcai.
The second was from
Senator
A CURE FOR ASTHMA.
Asthma Bufforora noedno lontror loavo bomo and
business In, ordor to bo cured. Nature i tins Ducca
a. vogotablo remedy that will permanently euro ABthma
and all dlsoasoa ot tho lunafl and bronchial tuoefl.
Hnvlnjr toatod Its wondorful curative powers in tnou
wndB of caBea (with a record or 00 per contponnj
nontly cured, and desiring to relievo human suirorinff j
I will send f roo or chargo to nil sufforors from ABthma,
Consumption, Catarrh, nronchltls, and nervous cm
CAsoa. this recipe In, Gorman, JTronch or EnRliBU wHli
full directions lor preparing sad using. Sent by jnau.
Andreus with stamp naming this papor, W. A. Noyos,
81 Pqwer liUc, Hochwter, Nw York.
Thomas C. Piatt to Mr. Gage, indors
ing a letter from James Stillman,
president of the bank, asking for a
deposit of postofflce funds, and say
ing: "It is unnecessary for me to say that
It would be very gratifying to me if
his wishes could be respected. You
know, without my mentioning it, how
reliable and important a banking in
stitution the National City bank Is.
I will be pleased to hear from you at
your convenience regarding the mat
ter." The other letter was from President
Stillman to Secretary Gage. He wrote:
"As you have doubtless noticed In
the press, the money market here has
been quite unsettled during the latter
part of the week. We have loaned
very liberally to allay apprehension,
but at such rates as would tend to
force a liquidation in highly specula
tive securities. I think this has been
accomplished, and the declines which
have taken place will have a whole
some check."
This was a cold-blooded statement
of how the Standard Oil crowd used
the people's money on deposit in the
.National City bank, and for which the
government got no interest, to
"squeeze" tho market and bring on the
memorable "blue Friday" of April 7,
1899, In Wall street, during which the
"forced liquidation in speculatives"
caused a shrinkage of $138,394,935 in
stock values, for the benefit of a ring
of speculative bankers and stock
gamblers.
The World in January revealed that
the administration, having sold the
old custom house to the National City
bank, better known as the Standard
Oil bank, instead of collecting the pur
chase price, $3,265,000, and depositing
it in the United States treasury, ac
cording to law, had "directed" the
Standard Oil bank to "credit" the
United States with $3,215,000. This
actually left the purchase price in the
hands of the purchasers to loan out at
the prevailing rate of 4 per cent, wnne
the government paid rent to the bank
as owners of the old building as the
new one is building. In other words,
the government, under the terms of
the bargain, had the unprecedented
privilege of paying rent for its own.
property and, in euect, paymis mut
est to the purchasers of the property,
the Standard Oil bank, on $3,215,000
of its own money.
The balance of the purchase price,
$50,000, was left unpaid, even by
crediting it as a deposit, simply to en
able the Standard Oil bank to say to
the- local tax-gatherers that it did not
own the property, and thus escape
just taxation. .
The exposure of this remarkable
piece of financial jugglery by the
World. resulted in a visit from Presi
dent Feitner, of the city department
of taxes, and, on the confirmation of
tho World's testimony that the gov
ernment was only a tenant ot luc
Lank, a levy of $60,000 taxes was made
on the property.
But the rent from-the date of the
transfer, July 3, 1899, could not be
naid without authority from congress,
and when Secretary Gage asked for au
thority to pay $109,000 for the .use s of
the old custom house since that date,
a republican senate committee, with
.,. i. " hoforfi ft. under the
flood ght of publicity thrown upon It
Sylhe World, curtly declined to re
rmrt in favor of a free gift of $109,
000 to the bank.-From New York
World Almanac, 1901.
What to do With the Philippines.
Tho more the Philippine question
Is discussed the stronger becomes the
feeling among the American people
that e do not want them-either for
any advantage to our own country or
to advance the Filipinos. No one be
lieves in the idea of "scuttle" put for
ward by somo ill informed as to tho
purpose of the anti-imperialists, and
meaning their abandonment at once
and without arrangement as to their
future better government In tho di
rection of homo rule and independence
We have incurred too many obligations
for that policy, but wo do believe that
a great majority of tho Americans aro
opposed to their permanent annexa
tion, to be administered in tho ono
way possible, as a military colony,
which the president will rule over
on the same plan as tho czar rules
Russian provinces or tho sultan Turk
ish subdivisions. That is antagonitic
to the American principle. Wo can
never admit tho Philippines as states
or as territories on the American plan.
We can only govern them as military
colonies, possibly with somo sembl
ance of civil rule, which goes to pieces
under stress.
Harper's Weekly notes tho change
In American sentiment on the Philip
pine question, since the imperialists
first became noisy over their plans.
It admits that tho Philippine problem
has never been put fairly and directly
to the American people, and it is im
possible to guess what Is the prevail
ing sentiment, but there is no doubt
that "the number of us who really do
covet the Philippines as a national
possession is comparatively small."
It thinks that four-fifths of our peo
ple "earnestly desire to unload the
Philippines." There is substantial
ground work for this guess. Why,
then, should we retain them? No one
doubts our power to do so if convinced
that it is our interest, to say nothing
of what the Filipinos desire. We can
leave them out of the question; but of
course we will not do so. Our duty Is
to start them fairly on the way to
self-government and independence,
precisely as we did Cuba. Pittsburg
Post. '
A Great Teacher.
Every democrat ir. the land, and ev
ery man in the land who bejleves that
principles aro dearer than victory won
by fraud, should bo a reader of The
Commoner. It Is a great teacher.
From Its columns there weekly Issue
words of wisdom, which, If rightly and
reasonably interpreted and digested,
will build up in the readers a desire to
strive to uplift politics from the mire
into which it now 'Is. Men aro be
coming clearer-headed and more rea
sonable than they used to be, and there
is hope that the day will come when
the people will look for honest and
courageous men to vote for in prefer
ence to those whose ability to pull
wires, etc., are their best and only
qualifications. A constant reading of
The Commoner will help to lead men
into a right way of thinking on pub
lic questions. Nebraska State Demo
crat. 'm
Are They Afraid of the Light? .
So It Is President Schurman who Is
now guilty of inflaming the Filipino
mind by his recent Insistence that the
only honorable course for this coun
try Is to give Independence to the isl
anders! Hitherto it has been Mr.
Bryan, or Mr. Hoar, or the Boston
Anti-Imperialists, or the independent
newspapers who did such deadly work
by standing up for the rights of the
Filipinos. But now Mr. Schurman.
president of the first Philippine com
mission, and versed in Philippine af
fairs, is really undoing all the splendid
service of the troops and inciting tho
natives to fresh resistance by his doc
trine that, if we went to war for any
other than an altruistic purpose, we
laid ourselves open to the charge of
manslaughter. Of this tenor are the
dispatches from Manila this morning,
and how enlightening they are! Could
anything reveal more clearly the un
holy character of the American under
taking in the Philippines than this con
fession of General Wheaton, the act
ing commander in the Islands, that the
plea of the president of a great uni
versity for national honor and right
eousness ought not to bo published in
Manila? What kind of a cause Is that
upon which tho light of day cannot bo
thrown and about which thero may not
bo tho fullest discussion by all con
corned? Is It tho true American kind?
Now York Evening Post.
Conciliation.
"Conciliation" being in tho air just
now, tho following lines from Hood's
"Ode to Rao Wilson" aro worth recall
ing. The earlier Btanzas describe tho
vain efforts of a Whitechapel butcher
to drive a flock of frightened sheep
through tho entrance to tho slaughter
house. Tho narrativo ends:
At last thero came a pause of brutal
force,
Tho cur was silent, for his jaws wero
full
Of tangled locks and tarry wool;
Tho plan had whooped and halloed till
dead hoarso,
The time was ripe for mild oxpostular
tion,
And thus It stamnlered from a stander-
by:
"Zounds my good" fellow it qulto
makes me why
It really my dear follow do just try
Conciliation."
Stringing his nerves like flint,
The sturdy butcher seized upon tho
hint
At least ho seized upon the foremost
wether,
And hugged and lugged and tugged
him neck and crop
Just nolens volens thro the open shop;
If tails came off ho didn't care a
feather.
Then walking to tho door and smiling
grim,
He rubbed his. forehead and his sleeve
together
"There, I've conciliated him!"
This, I take it, Is the way that some
of our countrymen would conciliate
De Wet or Botha. From London
Truth, Feb. 21, 1901.
4
IMimeIRl F for you to enjoy
llvla VUOIULL) the happiness of
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scription. Many times the
hindrances to mother
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womanly diseases or
weaknesses, which
are perfectly and
permanently
cured by "Fa
vorite Pre
scription."
This
great
medi- JRiMiWua JHW cmo
for
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rMA HHT
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l fl hvvBrn
a. a' mm
1 ll 1
women
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regularity
and dries
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I wish to' odd my testimony
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writes Mrs. Ida M. De Ford, of Interna, Hubbard
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The Common Sense Medical Adviser,
1008 large pages, in paper covers, is sent
free on receipt of 21 one-cent stamps to
pay expense of mailing only. Adores
Dr, R. V. Pierce, Buffalo, N. Y.
,aijwUaaMiL(
&&.&. .