The Commoner.
9
JANUARY 18, 1907
brought under one management. He'replied that'
in. all probability competition in such a case would
resolve itself into a question of personal rivalry
between the separate managements of the rail
roads. On tho whole, he considered the edge
would be taken off the competition and it would,
all things considered, be as keen as under indi
vidual ownership. Mr. Hiland declared that since
the consolidation of the Union Pacific and South
ern Pacific his roa'd had experienced greater diffi
culty in handling certain classes of freight. On
cross-examination he was asked by John G. Mil
burn, attorney for Mr. Harriman, if the consoli
dation itself was the cause of the increased diffi
culty. He replied very emphatically: "Yes, sir."
'"How does it work against your line?" "The
greater part of the business I have mentioned
goes by the Southern Pacific and is, I presume,
deflected in that direction in order to make a
longer haul than would be the case if it went by
the Union Pacific."
A RESOLUTION SIGNED by twenty-eight
jt members of the Texas legislature was in
troduced in the Texas house of representatives
January 9. The present legislature is to elect a
successor to Senator Bailey whose term expires
March 4. In the resolution Senator Bailey is
charged as follows: "While a representative in
congress, and a candidate for the senate, accept
ed .nioney and favors from tho Waters-Pierce
Oil company (charged to be a subsidiary corpora
tion of- the Standard Oil company and dominated
by it), and from its president, H. Clay Pierce, as
'consideration for his political and official influ
ence in securing the re-admission of said com
pany to do business in Texas after its charter
had been forfeited by legal proceedings and final
judgment rendered therein by the supreme court
of the United States, thus' rendering fruitless and
null said proceedings and judgment." The reso
lution further charges that "Pierce and the
Waters-Pierce Oil company advanced Bailey many
thousands of dollars to be used in speculations,
whereby Bajley became under heavy financial and
personal obligations to Pierce and the Waters
Pierce Oil company, and that in return Bailey
used his influence with the twenty-seventh legis
lature, which was in session in 1901, relative to
senate bill No. 164, an act relating to the fines,
-forfeitures and penalties due the state of Texas;
also house bill No. 422, an act revoking the per
mission granted the Waters-Pierce Oil company
to do business in Texas and directing the Stand
ard Oil company to cancel the permit issued to
that company. The resolution further provides
fer the investigation of Senator Bailey's rela
tions with the Kirby Lumber company, wherein
it is recited that he became under heavy per
sonal obligations to its president."
THE ANTI-BAILEY resolution provides for the
investigation of Senator Bailey's relations
with H. Clay Pierce, in regard to the sale of the
securities of the Tennessee railroad coal proper
ties amounting to $13,000,000 under a power of
attorney. It is recited that Senator Bailey is
charged with drafting a charter for tho Security
Oil company, under employment and for a large
fee from S. G. Bayne of Now York, charged to
be connected with the Standard Oil company,
and that the Security Oil company was char
tered by the state of Texas and is now doing
business in Texas and it was at the time of its
organization and is now a subsidiary company
of the Standard Oil company. It is charged that
Bailey engaged in a transaction with Barnett Gibbs
and D. R. Francis of Missouri, whereby he bought
a ranch and that in this transaction he was
financially aided by D. R. Francis and H. C.
Pierce as part consideration for using his politi
cal and official influence to procure the re-admission
of the Waters-Pierce Oil company to do
business in Texas. The resolution charges that
upon an investigation of Bailey's conduct by the
committee appointed by the twenty-seventh legis
lature he purposely concealed from the commit
tee and legislature all the financial transactions
he had with H. Clay Pierce.
THE SAME RESOLUTION provides for the
investigation of R. V. Davidson, attorney
general, on the ground that it has been charged
in public addresses and through the public press
that Davidson and his assistants are using their
offices and influence for personal and political
purposes outside of their line of duty and have
conspired with the Standard Oil company, and
have used certain documents and papers and have
given to the public, through publication of these
papers, declarations against J. W. Bailey which,
it is charged, were known to be untrue. The
resolution says it is charged that Davidson has
had these papers in his possession for many
months, but did not disclose them to the public
until such time as they would be most injurious
to Bailey.
AN ASSOCIATED PRESS dispatch from Wash
ington throws some Jight on a much dis
cussed topic. Tho dispatch follows: "Natural
ization authorities here say the question
of whether Japanese subjects can become citi
zens of the United States already has been set
tled adversely by the circuit courts in the United
States, which have declared that not being either
white persons or persons of African nativity they
are not entitled to that privilege. The ques-'
tion, it is said, has never been taken to the su
preme court of the United States. The decisions
of the circuit courts in construing the law on this
subject have been accepted by the naturalization
officials as final."
THE DEBATE IN the senate on Foraker's reso
lution to investigate tho discharge of tho
negro troops grew very bitter when Senator For
aker criticised the president, and Senator Lodge
defended him. The Washington correspondent
for the St. Louis Globe-Democrat says that if a
vote had been taken at the conclusion of the de
bate between Foraker and Lodge, the resolution
of investigation would have been adopted. This
correspondent adds: "Of almost as much signifi
cance and ultimate effect was the fact that the
president today summoned to the White House
some of his personal friends in the senate and
his strongest backers, and openly solicited their
aid. Included in the number were Senators Hop
kins of Illinois, Hemenway of Indiana, and Hans
brough of North Dakota. To these men the presi
dent did not hesitate to express his keen interest
in the situation, and let it be known that he
would expect the members of his party and his
personal friends to support him. It is not known
what pledges were made at the White House con
ference, which was secret, but it is known that
at least one of his callers mo.de it clear to him that
opposition to the passage of the Foraker resolu
tion could not be effective, nor could it be made a
party or administration matter. To this particu
lar senator the president indicated his wish that
If that was tho situation the resolution should be
passed at once without further debate."
VARIOUS RUMORS concerning W. E. Corey,
president of the steel trust, have been
afloat, and in order to set these at rest a friend
of the family and one whom the New York World
says "stands high in the counsels of the steel
corporation," makes this statement: "William
Ellis Corey, president of the United States steel
corporation, will marry Mabelle Gilman, the act
ress, now at her chateau near Versailles, France.
Ho "will not resign the presidency of the steel
corporation and ho will visit his old home and
his parents in North Braddock, where he was
born, where ho lived until shortly after attaining
his majority and where his former wife, Mrs.
Laura Cook Corey, who divorced him last fall
at Reno, Nev., is also residing."
SPEAKING OF THE Philippine Islands, Dr.
Lewis L. Seamon, in. a lecture before the
National Geographic society at Washington, says:
"Of the hundreds of millions sunk in that pest
hole of treachery and savagery it is doubtful
whether America will ever reap the benefit of
the price of the homeward passage for its army.
Was it as a stepping stone for the trade of the
Orient that we sought possession? The oldest
and most respected American merchant in China,
one who has spent over forty years in the Orient
and has represented his government in various
important capacities, said to me: 'As well might
America regard Bermuda and the Canary Isles
at a stepping stone for the English, French and
German trade of Europe as to require the Phil
ippines for the advancement of trade In the east.
Instead of a help they are a direct menace, re
quiring protection and causing international jeal
ousies, and in case of war they would be a con
stant source of gravest danger because of their
great distance from our base.' Is it for gold that
our 3,000 school teachers are now drawing sal
aries to educate these semi-savage, deceitful Ma
lays, tainted with Spanish cross, who for cen
turies will be unable to eradicate the treacherous
and cowardly instincts of their degenerate race?
To suppose that from a low-bred animal of the
Filipino type there could be evolved in a single
generation one worthy or competent to exercise
self-government, is to defy every law of anthro-
pology and natural selection arid to indulge in
tho wildest optimism. The AngibSaxon .Of tem
perate olimo has required many centuries of, nat
ural selection to evolve froiri his "savagery. Is
this rich inheritance, this self-governing ability,
which is not yet over-developed among us, as
the residents of any great American city must
confess, is this to bo hypodorniioiilly Injected In
concentrated ossrncc into tho ignorant, treacher
ous, low-bred Filipino by bullets or prayer-book,
or school housos in a single generation to qualify
him for beneficent assimilation? The suggestion
is preposterous."
FREDERICK LAWRENCE, correspondent ' for
Ridgway's Magazine, interviewed Simon
Guggenheim, republican candidate for United
States senator from Colorado. Following I an
extract from Mr. Lawrence's report: "It is stat
ed, Mr. Guggenheim," I said, "that, in plain lan
guage, you have bought your election, that you
have paid into the campaign fund to elect mem
bers of the legislature the amount of their ex
penses. Does it not seem to you wrong to use
money with the understanding that in considera
tion of it you arc to receive the vote of the man
in whoso interest it is spent?" "There is noth
ing wrong about it," replied Mr. Guggenheim.
"It is merely conducting political campaigns' as
they arc conducted in these drtys. Tho money I
havo contributed bus helped to elect these men,
and naturally they feel under obligation to vote
for me. It is done all over the United States
today. I do not consider that it is wrong, and
neither do I think that it can in any sense be
called bribery." "Do you think," I asked, "that
these men would vote for you if you had not paid
their expenses? Do you think that you could be
elected if you were a poor man?" "I would have
the same chance of being elected that any other
poor man would have," was Mr. Guggenheim's
answer. "Because I am wealthy and because I
have contributed to republican campaign funds
1 have more prominence than I would have had,
had I been poor. I suppose if I had been a poor
man I would not have stood as good a chance to
be elected as my wealth gave me." Mr. Guggen
heim denied that he told Lawrence that he had
paid the expenses of candidates for the legisla
ture, but Lawrence insists that his report is cor
rect, citing a prominent citizen of Denver as a
witness to the accuracy of the statement.
SENATOR LAFOLLETTE'S bill providing
shorter hours for railroad men, has passed
the senate. Endorsing this bill the Washington
Herald says: "Senator LaPollette's bill proposes
to limit the number of hours of continuous labor
to sixteen. Surely no man ought to be compelled
to work longer than sixteen hours on a stretch,
especially in an occupation whore so much of
human life and property is dependent upon abso
lute fidelity and attention. It is impossible to
expect men to have all their senses alert and re
sponsive if they have been subjected to a pro
longed and exhaustive strain. In fact, an innu
merable series of accidents have been unquestion
ably due to the fact that an engineer or a brake
man or an operator has been in a condition where
it was physically impossible for him to be re
sponsible for his actions. Human nature can
staiid only a certain amount of fatigue. When
that limit has been reached, rest is absolutely
necessary. This is a fact so potent that it seems
surprising that any one, especially men who are
entrusted with authority to legislate, should re
gard the convenience of the railroads as para
mount to the safety of the traveling public. Ex
perience has shown that this safety, which ought
to be the principal concern of the railroad com
panies, is too often sacrificed in a desire to econo
mize. Men are made to work and work aud work,
under continuous strain and with loss of sleep,
until they can not remember the orders upon
which so much depends. If the railroads will not
remedy this condition voluntarily, they should bo
compelled by law to restrict the hours of labor.
A humane regard for others would suggest the
wisdom of the proposed law. It need not rest,
however, upon this sentimental consideration. It
is a necessary step toward removing every pos
sible jeopardy of travel."
THIS IS 'A GOOD story told by Washington
City correspondents. "So this is the house
of representatives," an elderly man said with awe
as he walked up to the main door of the house.
"This is the place we are represented." "This
ain't any house of representatives," a page boy
said. "This is 'Uncle Joe' Cannon's office. There
ain!t no house of representatives no more."
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