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JUNE JI, 1807
Commoner.
9
courts will not bo argd by any federal iudgo,
but will be conceded. Those courts are as high
minded and as learned as aro the federal courts,
but that is not the question. It is a question of
jurisdiction, and this court has jurisdiction and
will maintain its jurisdiction. That the states
have the right to manage their own local affairs
will even he maintained. But' it is too lato to
talk about states dictating to the government or
riding down its courts. This is a nation. Its
commerce will not be Interfered with by any
state, because for that almost alone we adopted
our constitution. The commerce clause will al
ways be upheld and the rights of the citizen, in
cluding corporations, will ever be protected in
their just rights under the fourteenth amend
ment. These are national questions, and the
supreme court will hold the scales of justice
with the evidence before them. I do not know,
and of course do not state, that "the state legis
lature has wronged these railways. That is the
case on its merits. But the railways say ,they
( are being wronged, and-they must have a hear
ing, and a hearing on the evidence, and that
. evidence carried with the record to the supreme
court. And if, upon the evidence, they are being
compelled to transact business at a loss, no one
need doubt that the supreme court will nullify
the statute. Tentatively, subject to argument
and subject to change of opinion, if I should
hear the cases, mypresent view is that the two
cent passenger fare statute should be put in
force and kept in force for some months at
leasjt, with the right of the railways later on
to review their motions to enjoin the enforce
ment of the statute. One class of people claim
that with a two-cent fare travel will so increase
as to make it remunerative. Others deny this.
The Wisconsin commission but lately declared
after months of investigation that in that state
a two-cent fare would be confiscatory, and Gov
ernor Hughes, by a recent veto message, so de
clared in the populous state of New York. How
is this question to be determined? Is it not all
speculation and' guess work? Of what value
-will be the testimony of an ordinary .business
man? And of what value will be the testimony
of railway experts?"
0 . I
IN THE WESTERN land convention- held in
Denver the land policy of the,- Roosevelt
administration was vigorously discussed. The
firstMay's proceedings are described by the Den
ver News in this way: "The voice of the west
was lifted yesterday in a demand for those
things '"which the west regards as its rights.
As if from one strong man, so great was the
unanimity, came the protest in the land con
vention against the public land policies of the
federal government. Governor Buchtel called
the gathering to order. Senator Thomas H.
Carter of Montana was made temporary chair
man and delivered a strong speech. The position
he outlined was that there were many details
in the federal policy which must be eradicated
or modified. Henry M. Teller, Colorado's senior
United States senator, delivered the greats speech
of the day, hauling the government over the
coals. Teller demanded that the federal govern
ment go out 6f the business of becoming a
gigantic landlord of citizen tenants. He ac
cused the administration of ignoring the laws
and setting up its own rules in defiance of law.
James R. Garfield, secretary of the interior, and
R. A. Ballinger, commissioner of the general
land office, presented the Roosjsvelt side of the
questions in issue. Dih J. M. 'Wilson of Doug
las, Wyo., was chosen permanent chairman of
the convention. Fred P. Johnson of Denver was
named permanent secretary. Having been one
of the Wyoming presidential electors, and voted
as such for Roosevelt, Dr. Wilson created a
profound sensation by declaring Roosevelt's
western policies wrong, and promising that the
west would vote so as to secure its demands.
The "same ground for the government was gone
over at a real estate exchange banquet at the
Savoy hotel in the evening, Carfleld' making the
-principal talk.'-'
THE BIG LAND coTtvention at Denver ad
journed June 20. The resolutions adopt
ed -were not i so rdica.1 'against the Roosevelt;
JLand policy as was expected An Associated
Press dispatch says: "A letter from President
Roosevelt was a. feature qf toddy's session. The
resolution over which, was the most dispute
read: 'We,pjypose any change in the existing
laws and customs as to grazing live stock upon
the public domain, outside of forest reserves.'
The resolutions say that experience has demon
strated the wisdom of the policy of treating the
-lanjls of the nation as a public trust to be dis
posed, of in all cases and whenever possible to
actual settlors. The people of the west aro .un
alterably opposed to any change in this whole
some and beneficial policy. Forest reserves
should only bo created where they do not in
fringe thfci policy. In cases the rights of tho
states and tho people of tho states tojtho free
and unhampered use of all waters within forest
reservations should be not "only permitted, but
encouraged, and no charge should bo imposed
thereon. Tho necessity of forest reservation is
recognized, anl reasonable regulations by tho
government commended. The resolutions, how
ever, favor the prompt elimination from forest
reservations of all lands not timbered or suitable
for reforestation or reasonable use necessary to
conserve the flow of streams used for irriga
tion. It is especially urged that the reports of
the special and secret service agents of land de
partment and of the department of agriculture
shall be made under oath. A modification of
any existing drders which provent bona fide fil
ings on any of the public coal lands is demanded.'
Tho national irrigation law is heartily endorsed.
It is asked that congress legislate appropriately
with respect to school lands in reservations so
that each state deprived of these lands may re-,
ceive its full quota of lands or its equivalent for
the. purpose for which they were originally in
tended It is finally demanded that in states
wherein forest reserves are situated and not de
sired and are excessive, . the reservation should
be reduced to reasonable limits,- whether the
land restored contains timber or not."
SENATOR THOMAS M. PATTERSON is op
posed to the administration's land policy
and in an editorial printed in tho Denver News,
says: "The west is opposed to government
landlordism. On that there will be no compro
mise. We object to the leasing system, both
because it is a visible sign of the landlordism
we are fighting and because it tends to perpet
uate the evil from which it springs. We want
the land filled with homes. And we know that
homemaking is hindered by red tape; hindered
by anything which grants a title, even though
temporary, to the big cattle and sheep compa
nies whose interests lie in a sparse population.
We have no objection to the conservation of the
forests. We do not deny that the lack of regu
lation of public lands has resulted in some un
lovely things. But wo know, too, that the worst
of these are trifles compared' to what may spring
from a landlord who is backed by all the powers
of the national government, and we have no
disposition to mend bad with worse. The free
settlement of the vacant lands has done more
to build up the country than all other factors
put together, We' see no reason why the pres
ent administration should be allowed to put an
end to the period of home expansion. When
the land is really used up we shall know it
without any information from Washington; and,
until that time comes, we object to having a
liinit arbitrarily set to our growth and
prosperity."
IN THE HAYWOOD trial at Bofso, Idaho, the
prosecution Introduced Supreme Justice
Goddard of the Colorado supreme court as a
witness to corroborate, in part, Orchard's testi
mony. The Associated Tress report says: "To
Justice Luther "M. Goddard himself fell the task
of telling the story of the finding and preseva
tion for use as evidence' of the bomb with which
Orchard tried to kill him. His appearance on
the stand- added another to the many dramatic
scenes and situations that have characterized
the trial, and his- testimony was clear and min
utely circumstantial. The veteran Colorado
jurist testified that the first information that
he received about the bomb came to him from
Orchard's confession, which was shown to him
at Denver on February 13, 1906, by Detective
McParland. He at once returned to his home
and in his gate discovered tho screw-eye which
Orchard said he placed there. It was rusted
and corroded by ten months' exposure. The wit
ness said he examined the ground outside the
gate where Orchard said he placed the bomb and
found a slight depression with the soil packed
very hard around it. The bomb, was dug up
the next day by General Bulkeley Wells, who
used his pocket knife to out the soil away and
raise the pine box containing the bomb. There
was a small phiaj on top of tho box, and at
tached to the rubber cork of the phial was a
piece of rusted wire. The bomb and its attach
ments wercr. at once taken to the office of the
Pinkerton detective agency and carefully sealed
in wrappers and envelopes that were signed
by half a dozen witnesses, including Justice
Goddard, and after that the"y were placed in a
vault to the door of which five seals, Including
that of a notary public, wore attched. There
they rested until tho following May 22, when
'bolloving tho Haywood case was to come to trial
thoy.woro rcnovod in tho prdsenco of tho samo
witnesses and all save throo of tho forty sticks
of giant powder contained in the bomb wero
exploded. Tho explosions occurred In the pres
ence of tho witnesses at a point in tho suburbs
of Denver, and of the bomb itself twelve, giant
caps and two wrappers torn from sticks of giant
powder wore saved as ovldenco."
o
IT HAS BEEN announced that President
RooBovelt.wIll ask congress to remit a largo
popt of tho huge indemnity exacted from China
after the boxer uprising, The Washington cor
respondent for the Chicago Record-Herald says:
"Tho president long ago -conceive! this plan" as
an act of justlco to an oppressed nation, and
steps have been taken, unsuccessfully, to have
other powers do tho samo thing. It is pre
sumed, however, that the action of America In
taking the initiative may result In other pow
ers following suit and relieving tho Chinese
government from a debt totaling nearly a billion
dollars. President Roosevelt's intention was
made public, Informally, long ago, but today,
the Chinese minister said ho received an ofllclal
note from Secretary Root saying that the presi
dent would ask congress to remit all of tho in
demnity In excess of tho actual expense tho
United .States government wns put to because
of tho rebellion in China. 'This shows better
than anything else,' ho said, 'tho remarkably
high sense of justice the Unltod States has used
In all her dealings with China. You remember
that after tho boxer troubles China agreed to
pay an Indemnity of $2l,U0,778.8i on account
of the losses entailed by tho United States gov
ernment as well as for personal property lost
by her citizens during the boxer campaign. Four
years ago your government was good enough
to promise mo that when tho time arrived, as a
token of sincere friendship for China, the origi
nal figures of tho indemnity would bo revised.
True to the promise of the executive officers, I
received a note from Secretary Root saying that
the president directed him to say that in his
next message to congress he would be pleased
to recommend, that China be relieved of all obli
gations in excess of the final revised amount of
the Jndomnity, which had been set at $11 , 6T 5,
492.69. That, as you can see, will save China"
over $12000,000 and also an Interest nt four
per cent. You can not emphasize too strongly
my great admiration for the fair spirit which
has always characterized Mhe dealings of tho
United Slates with my country. This final action
is another monument to America's high sense
of justice and I feel called upon to say not
because I am the retiring minister that per
sonally I feel that America is one of China's
strongest friends.' "
ON ANOTHLR page will be found a letter
written by Hon. Boyd Winchester, formerly
United States minister at Berne, Switzerland, to
the editor of the Louisville Courier-Journal.
About seventeen years ago Mr. Winchester wrote
a book entitled The Swiss Republic in which
he described the initiative and referendum as
they are in operation in Switzerland. Tho book
was dedicated to Henry Watterson and tho chap
ter relating to the initiative and referendum was
recently published In full in the Courier-Journal.
The letter reproduced in this issue was
intended as a supplement to the book. It might
seem like a cruel joke that Mr. Winchester
played on Mr. Watterson In dedicating to him a
book explaining and' commending the initiative"
and .referendum, but that was before tho politi
cians discovered how undemocratic and un
American it is to let the people have their way
in matters of government. It used to be pop
ular for democrats to' trust the people and It is
still popular with most democrats, but Mr. Wat
terson has joined the class that looks upon our
system as an "admirably regulated representa
tive system," and sees in the introduction of
the Initiative and referendum "the substitution
of 'a Grecian democracy." However, in-spite
of the fears jt those who talk of "half-baked
verdicts" and "mobs organized to- suit exigen
cies of conglomerate agitation," popular gov
ernment moves on. There was a time when all
sorts of objections were conjured up when tho
popular election of senators was suggested, but
within the last fifteen years the national house
of representatives has five times declared for
that reform, twice when the house was demo
cratic and afterward three times when the house
was republican. This reform will come and the
republic will not only still live, but it will be
the better for the reform. So it will be with
the Initiative and referendum ..when they are
unMorstood by the public.
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