9
FBBUUAKY S, 1007
The Commoner.
cancy' means one .thing, and a failure of 'the leg
islature to .act Is another thing, the senate may
not accept the executive credentials In such a case
as we are now considering. If there be any doubt,
there is pretty sure to be a reference to a commit
tee which may consume the interval from March
till the regular credentials come up In June. It
is strange that so able a lawyer unci, experienced
a politician as Senator Bacon should be so cir
cumstanced, but probably the truth of the matter
is that he is the victim of some of the experiments
of our Georgia politicians. After going on very
comfortably for a quarter of a century having our
legislature meeting in October, the time was
changed to June. And after going on for over a
century in obedience to the constitution by allow
ing the legislature to elect United States senators,
the project was started of having a primary elec
tion for that position and thus making the legisla
ture not a legislature but a mere board of election
returns canvassers. To the disarrangement inci
dent to these changes, seems due the fact that
froni March to June next Senator Bacon must rus
ticate and Georgia get along with one senator."
O
MR. ROOSEVELT'S apparent victory over re
publican leaders in the senate, according to
the Washington correspondent for the Houston,
Texas, Post, was not real. That correspondent
says: "The senate has simply dodged. The fact
remains that a majority of the senate republicans
do not indorse 'lis Brownsville order and have not
yet indorsed it. The Foraker compromise simply
omits 'questioning' it at this time. If they had in-
tended to indorse the president they would have
adopted the resolution proposed by Penrose at the
outset. Instead of that the anti-administration
republicans have scored a succession of points In
the opposite direction. But for Foraker's resolu
tion the senate might have accepted the situation
and there would have been no Purdy investiga
tion. There would have been no admission on
the president's part that so much of his order of
dismissal as related to the eligibility of the sol
diers to future civil employment under the gov-"
ernment was unauthorized and therefore void.
Besides that the fact remains that the senate bus
ordered an investigation on its own account lu
terms which do not estop the Ohio senator from
again attacking the order when, as he says, 'all
the facts have been established in other than an
ex-partc investigation.' As charged by Senator
Culberson on the floor of the senate, the admin
istration republicans lost their nerve and backed
iimvn. niinv. as well as the president, seemed 10
prefer going back into the camp of the repub
lican majority rather than have the president in
dorsed outright, mainly by democratic votes."
O
TIIE FIGHT made upon the president by repub
lican leaders will go on according to the
Post correspondent Ho says: "Meanwhile the
fight will go on. The president fully understands
what is back of the Foraker attack. He knows
that the Brownsville order is being used by the
anti-Roosevelt republicans to break him down in
popularity with his party. It is another attack
from the reactionary element who regard him aS
dangerous and bis policies unropublican. Aid
rich, Foraker, Kean, Scott and all that element
' of the republicans desire to unhorse Rooseveltism
and regain control of the party. It is true that the
president partially surrendered to them on the
rate bill, also that he has promised not to under
take a revision of the present robber tariff, but
his income tax theory and other squints toward
certain popular reforms make them extremely
distrustful of him. They are afraid he won't
stay put' These considerations suggested them
selves to the mind of the president when lie
agreed to the compromise with Foraker. It was
a dogfall for both sides. The Brownsville incident
will be taken up again by the Ohio senator if it
shall seem to serve his further political purpose.
The fight between the Roosevelt republicans and
the anti-Roosevelt republicans has only just be
gun. From this time forward it will be carried on
in dead earnest for control of the party's course
in the presidential campaign of 190S. At the next
- session of congress, with the presidential election
looming up close ahead, important developments
are expected."
O
THE POSTAL COMMISSION, appointed for the
purpose of rearranging the rates and classi
fication of second-class mail matter has made a
report The commission consists of Senators Pen
rose, Carter and Clay, and Representatives Over
street, Gardener and Moon. According to the
New York Herald the commission advises some
very radical ohanges which, if adopted by con
gress, will greatly increase the rate of postage on
newspapers and periodicals and will strike a hard
blow at the Sunday newspapers. All sorts of re
strictions are recommended as to the amount and
position of advertising. From the comment al
ready made by some newspaper publishers
it is likely that strong protests will be made
against any legislation in line with the more radi
cal recommendations, on the ground Unit it will
Injure their legitimate business. The law under
which the commission was appointed was enacted
as a result of the report of the Postmaster Gen
eral for 1905, which showed that the cost of the
postal service was $107,000,000 and the revenue
only $153,000,000. Of the mail matter handled
approximately two-thirds was of the second-class,
but it yielded in revenue only $0,180,017, or about
one twenty-fourth of all the revenue. The com
mission undertook to decide whether the revenue
from second-class matter should bo made com
mensurate with the cost of handling it
0
THE COMMISSION has proceeded on the idea
that the low second-class rate on periodicals,
including newspapers, compared with the high
third-class rate on other printed matter, has ro
, suited in the disguising of many pure advertising
publications as periodicals, with the result that
the mails are overburdened. For this reason it
proposes to raise the rates and also to stiffen the
requirements of admission to 'the second-class. A
bill has been prepared which provides that no
newspaper or other periodical shall be admitted
to the second-class unless in the view of the post
master general it complies with the conditions of
the act. Such newspaper or periodical must be
published for the dissemination of "current" pub
lic information or for "the presentation, discus
sion or treatment of current topics in relation
to literature, the arts, etc." It must not bo
"wholly or substantially fiction," it must "main
tain" a legitimate list of subscribers, it must not
be published primarily for advertising purposes
or free circulation.
O
IT IS FURTHER provided that advertisements
permanently inserted or attached to the news
paper or periodical shall not constitute more than
fifty per cent of the "superficial area of any issue
of the publication." It is permitted that a news
paper or periodical be composed of parts or sec
tions, but that all parts or sections shall be made
of the same size, form and weight of paper.
With regard to supplements of newspapers and
periodicals this provision is recommended for en
actment: "Supplements shall not be printed -m
any other substance than paper nor, except in
the case of maps and plans illustrative of the text,
shall they be of a different form from the main
body of the publication. No supplement shall be
composed of or contain advertisements, but the
same shall' bo confined to matter germane to the
regular issue and supplied in order to complete
matter left incomplete in the main body of the
publication." This is regarded as a hard blow at
the Sunday supplement of practically every news
paper of any importance in the United States,
and especially at those newspapers which Issue
on Sunday a supplement in a smaller form than
their regular issue. Provision is made for the ad
mission to second-class rates of sample copies in
number not to exceed one-tenth of the total reg
ular issue. As to the rates on second-class mat
ter it is provided that newspapers may be carried
free in the counties where they are published m
.whole or substantial part, provided they are not
delivered to a letter carrier ofiice or delivered by
carrier. Tills is a boon to the country press.
THE GRIDIRON CLUB is composed of news
paper corraspondents at the national capital
.and gives an annual dinner to which prominent
men are Invited. At these dinners all formality is
thrown aside, and senators, representatives, su
preme court justices and other men famous in
political and literary life participate freely in the
proceedings which are usually characterized by
good nature, although very blunt jokes are directed
at some of the public men. As a rule the president,
attends these dinners-but it is believed in Wash
ington that in the future the president will absent
himself from these affairs, and thereby hangs a
tale. Every one who attends the Gridiron dinners
is under solemn pledge not to reveal any of the
proceedivgs; but evidently some one broke faith
concerning the latest Gridiron dinner and It leaked
oufthat 'what almost amounted to an altercation
took place between President Roosevelt and Senator
Foraker. A Washington dispatch to the Topeka,
Kansas, Herald, says: "As the facts are grad
ually coining to light regarding the sensational
episode at the Gridiron club dinner Saturday night
in which Mr. Roosevelt and Senator Foraker parti
cipated, it is evident that the affair was of a more
serious character than has been generally sup
posed. It is said that the president in his remarks
on the Brownsville affair and his criticism of the
attitude of certain senators, made plain that ho
was talking particularly to Foraker. The latter
accepted the challenge and replied. He is (juoted
as having said: 'No one in this country ever lovod
the president or fought harder for him than L
when he was right, but wrong, I have opposed him
and shall always do so. That is the way I .see
my duty to my conscience, my constituents and my
country. I am g'.ad I am able to say this in the
presence of our distinguished chief magistrate.
Tcople hi my state know I do my duty and they
know as I told them that they can retire mo when
ever they believe I have a misconception of it.'
According to one present Foraker's president lec
ture is one which will long live in the memory of
those there."
A
o
TTORNEY WILL IT. THOMPSON, the poet,
brother of Maurice Thompson, novelist, ad
dressed a Jury in the criminal court at Taeonui,
Washington, in behalf of his son Chester who
was on trial charged with murder. An Associated
Press dispatch says: "His address was an ora
torical effort of great strength, and brought tears
to the eyes of the judge and Jury. Even the at
torneys for the state were overcome. The aged
attorney recited from his own poem, 'The High
Tide at Gettysburg,' and commented on the fa'rt
that he had been a confederate soldier, lie de
clared that ho loved his boy and that lie loved the
law alike, and tiiat ho would not make an appeal
for the son that was not within the law."
O
SOME INTERESTING testimony was brought
out before Interstate Commerce Commis
sioner Franklin K. Lane at San Francisco. It was
shown that E. II. Ilarriman paid an extraordinary
price for the Coos Bay property in order to drive
out competition. Attorney Severance, represent
ing the commission, maintained that in this pur
chase Mr. Ilarriman was not buying coal mines
but was really buying monopoly. An Associated
Tress dispatch says: "E. A. Graham, who sup
plied tills testimony created another sensation be
fore he left tile stand. As a result of these
methods Graham's line went out of business.
Graham was called to the stand for a continuation
of the story he related yesterday, showing how
Ilarriman forced his company, the Oregon &
Oriental, out of business. He stated that the
Oregon Railroad & Navigation company, owned
by Ilarriman, routed his inward freights and that
he was required by contract to give the Oregon
Railway & Navigation bills of lading over that
road and its connections."
SO STRINGENT were the conditions of this
contract that Mr. Graham desired to give
some of his freight to the Chicago, Milwaukee &
St. Paul road, the oliicials, particularly Campbell,
of the Oregon Railroad & Navigation company,
would not permit him, but compelled him to ship
'over the Chicago & Northwestern and Illinois
Central."
AN ASSOCIATED PRESS dispatch says: "At
torney Severance, for the commission, went
carefully into the terms of the contract, drawing
attention among other things, to the fact that there
was a proviso showing careful regard for the in
terstate commerce commission. When the Coos
bay, Roseberg & Eastern Railway was built, Gra
ham testified, lie, in his capacity of railroad con
tractor, was asked to take the work. Meeting
John D. Spreckels at Coronado, he induced him
to come into the enterprise. The investment
looked promising to Spreckels, so lie agreed to buy
thirty miles of rails, payment to be made to him
after the bonds were sold and the subsidy paid.
It was shown that the entire property in Coos bay
cost Sprecekls considerably less than a million
dollars. When Harrlnian came along and bought
the property he was willing to pay $3,300,000
for it."
6 ROVER CLEVELAND has been elected chair
man of the association of life insurance
presidents. An Associated Press dispatch from
New York says: "Mr. Cleveland's election was
unanimous and he has accepted the position. The
association of life insurance presidents, which
was recently organized, is composed of the ex
ecutives of the principal li-e insurance companies
of this country. The object of the organization
is to co-operate for all kinds of reform which, die
members claim, will increase dividends to policy
holders. Mr. Cleveland also will act as chief
counsel for the association. In addition to thre
duties, Mr. Cleveland will act as referee in cases
of disputes between companies; For these ser
vices he will receive from the association the sal
ary of $25,000 a year. It was announced that
Mr. Cleveland will remain a trustee of the ma
jority stock of the Equitable Life Assurance so
ciety, but for these services he will receive no
compensation from any source."
I.
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