-rywywwR.K u j.muj, ,'. . ."".,7 iwSg
V
Jan. a, 1903,
to tho reform a majority o nearly 375,000 of
those who voted on tho question at all. It Is evi
dent that the sontiment in favor of tho direct
election of senators is overwhelming among re
publicans as well as democrats, and yet in spite
of this well recognized demand that tho govern
ment ho brought nearer to the people, men like
Senator Depew and other representatives of tho
corporations still obstruct tho submission of the
amendment
It is time that the legislatures were' joining
in a call for a constitutional convention to adopt
this amendment It requires three-fourths of tho
states to call such a convention, but by the time
two-thirds of them asked for it the senate will be
forced to act and then the convention will be
unnecessary.
JJJ
Take Your Choice.
The attention of the editor of The Commoner
lias just been called to an item which appeared in
tho Philadelphia Record some time ago. The Com
moner published a letter written by William J.
Longenberger, which appeared in the Morning
News of Danville, Pa. The Record reports that
Mr. Longenberger, who is still a member of com
pany A, Fifteenth infantry, has written a letter to
his commanding officer saying that the published
letter written by him gives "a mistaken impres
sion;" that ho had heard tho story from another
enlisted man, and that he never witnessed the
death of a native in the islands. Ho further be
lieves that the story told him "was only idle
boasting." The Commoner calls attention to this
correction and leaves its readers to decide between
tho testimony given by the soldier when he wrote
'to his mother and his testimony to a commanding
oiflcer when ho was confronted with the letter.
Publicity Then and Now.
The only remedy for trusts which Mr. Roose
velt directly pointed to ill his message to congress
was publicity. Republican newspapers have warm
ly commended this suggestion and some of them
have actually treated it as though it were a new
proposition, and one on which the republican par
ty through its representatives had not already
gone on record.
On February 15, 1902, the bill to provide for a
permanent census bureau was before the United
States senate. Senator DuBois of Idaho offered
to amend section 9 of the bill by adding thereto
tho followin
t
"To enable tho director of the census to
perform the duties prescribed by this section,
true and accurate reports shall be made to
him annually by all corporations engaged in
manufacturing, which reports shall state in
detail the nature of the business or different
lines of business, if there be more than one
conducted by such corporation; the number
of factories or establishments owned or con
trolled by it, the precise character of tho
business conducted at each factory or estab
lishment, and the gross receipts of such busi
ness; the amount of the capital stock, and tho
proportion of which has been fully paid up;
the surplus, the operating expenses, wages,
taxes, both national and state, together with
detailed statements as to the quantity of its
product or products sold for export, the prices
per unit obtained therefor, tho rebates, if
any, allowed upon products sold for export,
v and the prices charged to dealers, in tho
"United States; any and all agreements with
other .corporations, companies, or individuals
engaged in manufacturing the same or sim
ilar productsfor the maintenance of uniform
prices, tho limiting of production or with ref
erence to the wages of labor and' all arrange
ments with transportation companies for spe
cially advantageous freight rates.
- "Such reports shall ue verified by the
, president, manager, or chief officer of th,e cor
" poration, who, upon the demand of the direc
tor, shall furnish such additional details as
said director may deem necessary to apprise
The Commoner.
him fully of tho naturo and extent of tho busi
ness and the methods applied in its manage
ment. The failuro by the presidont, manager,
or chief officer of any manufacturing corpora
tion to make tho reports neroin provided for,
or any intentionally false statements concern
ing any matters set forth in a report which
ho does make, shall for ev,ery such offense bo
punished by a fino of not less than $1,000 or
more than ?5,000, or Imprisonment for not less
than one month or more than ono year, or by
both such fine and imprisonment.
"All information thus obtained by the di
rector of the census bvl1 be permanently filed
in his office in convenient and accessible form,
be classified and published annually."
Now, It would seem that Mr. DuBois' amend
ment complied with tho "publicity" suggestion.
After the DeBois amondment had been read the
senator from Idaho called upon tho secretary to
read what President Roosevelt said in his mess
age for December, 1901. In that message Mr.
Roosevelt insisted that publicity was tho first es
sential in determining how to deal with the trusts.
Mr. DuBois urged that the president's recommen
dation be complied with in this respect. Ho said
that there would bo no better time or place in
which to start this publicity machinery than at the
moment they were providing for the establish
ment of a pern -nent census bureau.
"What was the result?
The DuBois amendment Was defeated.
Seventeen democrats voted in favor of it and
thirty-one republicans voted against It
Can it bo .possible that in the republi
can view there can be too much publicity to suit
the interests of tho trust magnates?
JJJ
The Great Moneyed Interests.
The Now York Times has published a letter
from one of its readers declaring that "the imme
diate cause of the recent slump in tho slock market
is the premeditated and joint action of the great
moneyed interests for tho purpose of averting a
very serious break in the prjees of securities,
which would be ruinous to all concerned market
wise." Mr. Alexander Del Mar, once connected
with tho treasury department and for many years
an expert on matters of finance, w.'ote the fol
lowing reply to the Times' letter:
Editor Times: Tho statement of your cor
respondent, R. E. A., that "the immediate
cause of the recent slump in liie sty.l: ma -ket
is the premeditated and joint action of the
great moneyed interests" is too remarkable to
pass without comment
The entire capital of the country, Increases
at the rate of about 3 per cent per annum com
pounded; a proof ihat In the Jong run and all
things considered. cap'Val annot ani any
more. This conclusion is corroborated by the
common use of 3 per cent tab'es tor com
pounding the capital earnings of lite insurance
companies.
Yet wo find good 4 per cent and 5 per cent
securities one of the latter having paid such
dividends without Interruption for more than
twenty years depressed on tho stock market
below par.
If such depression is duo to the "joint ac
tion" of any set of men, then tho investing
public is under tho thumb of a conspiracy;
and so far as fair play is concerned, tho stock
exchange may as well bo closed. '
ALEX. DEL MAR.
Occasionally tho truth in regard to the manip
ulation of the market will crop out and then the
ordinary people have a chance to see' what is be
ing done by the extraordinary people who make
money by the influence which they can exert over
other people's property.
1 ' JJJ
Roosevelt vs. Roosevelt. ;
In his recent message to congress Mr.' Roose
velt r6ferred to "the triumph of our' principles"
in, the Philippines.1 Assuming that l Mr. Roose
velt meant American principles it will be Inter-
3
cBting to obBcrvo tho viow Mr. Roosevelt cntor
tained, boforo ho became president, of policies like
those adopted in tho P-lllppincs by tho republican
party. Mr. Roosovolt is tho author of a
book entitled "Tho Winning of tho West" In
one chapter of that Interesting volumo ho drow
an interesting contrast between American expan
sion and European colonialism. Referring to tho
Louisiana purchase Author Roosovolt said:
"In ono respect tho ordinattco marked a
new departure of tho most radical kind. Tho
adoption of tho policy tnerein outlined has.
worked a complete revolution in tho way of
looking at new communities formed by col
onization from tho paront country. Yet tho
very completeness of this revolution to a cor
taln extent veils from us Its Importance. Wo
cannot realize tho greatness of tho change
becauso of tho fact that tho change was so
great, for wo cannot now put ourselves In the
menial attitude which regarded tho old courso
as natural. . . . Each Roman colony that Bot
tled In Gaul or Iberia founded a city or es
tablished a province which was tributary to
Rome, instead of standing on a footing of
equality In tho samo nation wl.'i Rome. . . .
Tho modern European nations had followed
the Roman system. Until tho United States
sprang into being, every great colonizing peo
ple followed one systom or tho other. Tho
American republic, taking advantago of Us
fortunate federal features and of Its strong
central government, boldly struck out on a
now path, which secured tho freedom-giving
properties of tho Greek method, while pre
serving national union as carefully as it was
preserved by tho Ronnu empire. Now states
were created, which stood on exactly tho samo
footing as tho old; rid yot these new states
formed Integral and inseparable parts of a
great and rapidly growing nation. This
. movement was original with tho American
republic. Sho was dealing with now condi
tions, and on this point tho history of Eng
land merely taught her what to avoid."
.And yet, referring to our policy in tho Philip
pines, Mr. Roosevelt says that It marks "the tri
umph of our principles."
-.As an author Mr. Roosevelt told us that in
the. Louisiana purchaso tho American republic
."boldly struck out on a new path which secured
tho freedom-giving properties of th Greek meth
od, while preserving national union as carefully
as it was preserved by the Roman empire." Ho
pointed out that while now states were created they
stood on exactly the samo footing as tho old
states and yet these new states formed, and, ac
cording to Author Roosevelt, very properly so,
integral and inseparable parts of a great and rap
idly growing nation; and while claiming that this
movement was original with tho American repub
, lie Author Roosevelt told his readers that on this
-, .poin,t the history of England merely taught tho
American republic what to avoid.
'" Is it not strange, then, now that this author
basr become presldt of tho United States, that
he should point to tho policy of imperialism and
colonialism as being representative of the triumph
of. t American principles?
A Pertinent Question.
. A reader of The Commoner manes a pertinent
Inqury In reference to tho question of Incomes.
Tho mine owners Insist that the coal miners are
.getting enough wages. Tho aforesaid reader calls
attention to the fact that a largo number of the
working people receive less on an average than
$350 a year and are never retired, but must continue-their
work to the end of life, while federal
' supreme judges with an income of ten thousand a
year are retired after a certain ago, but continue
to draw their pay for tho remainder of their life..
He asks why it is that ordinary people with small
incomes are expected to lay up enough for old ago,
while this is not required of those with large In
comes. The question is ono capable of being an
swered in a' number of ways in ways enough for
each- one td ifcave an answer of his own. "
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