The Commoner.
'AUGUST 30, 1907
V
Hi
the "boss" In tho house, and Aldrlcli is Iho
"boss" in tho senate?
Is he a member of their party?
Do they represent him and his party or does
he represent them and their party? Does ho
stand for and represont the party that they and
their corporation followers control?
Of course a demagogic answer, sounding in
clap-trap phrases to arouse applause, may be
given, but one does not Willingly associate the
word coward with any defense of Theodore
Roosevelt.
Does he represent the party whose leaders,
organization, influence and power professedly
representing the Incorporated and organized
wealth of tho country have successfully op
posed him to an extent that, strive as he has,
his administration has effected absolutely noth
ing of benefit to tho people or tho country.
If ho is a republican, what Is Harriman?
What is Morgan, Rogers, Armour, Elkins, For
aker, Aldrich, Addicks, Rockefeller? These men
and their associates and followers absolutely
dominate the republican party in congress, and
that party has been the constant and successful
opponent to the administration of Theodore
Roosevelt.
If he Js a republican, what does ho repre
sent, with the railroads and Standard Oil, that
he is prosecuting, in absolute and unconditional
control (Aldrich and "Uncle Joe") of tho re
publican party? W. S. RYAN.
Indianapolis, Ind.
Washington Letter
Washington, D. C, August 26. After Mr.
Root, long time attorney for Thomas P. Ryan,
and men of that type, and Mr. Bacon, assistant
secretary of state, -but long time partner" of J.
Plerpont Morgan, and Mr. Taft, whoso brother
controls the public service corporations of Cin
cinnati and a few other men of like type and
like interests had visited the president at Oyster
Bay, Wall' Street cheered up and prices went
up. Wha't does it all mean? Mr. Root and
Mr. Bacon have denied strenuously that they
visited Wall Street. We must take their denial
as expressing the truth. But it is rather strange
that when all "Values" in Wall Street were
going down the mere fact that Root and'Bacon
the corporation lawyer and the banking partner
were closeted with the president, made values
go up. And curiously enough the news came
out colncidently with their visit to Oyster Bay
that the useful and servile Cortelyou' was about
""to come to the rescue of the New York banks.
The New Yoifc banks have to he rescued by the
treasury department about four times a year.
They are always distressed about the admin
istration at Washington, but every time they
get into trouble they go pleading to it for aid.
Mr. Cortelyou now has determined to release
some part of the $87,000,000 surplus now in
the treasury in order that the banks may furnish
money to move the crops.
Secretary Cortelyou could do no less. But
the party to which he gives his adherence might
have done much more. It-might have refrained
from taxing the people who raised the crops
.and the people who will buy tho wheat and
corn, for moving which this money Is needed
so highly as to pile up $87,000,000 uselessly in
the treasury. It might have so handled the
banking and currency, problem that the national
banks would not be able to say to the govern
ment on the one hand, "Lend us your money at
no interest," and to the farmer on tho other
hand, "Ir the government will supply us with
funds we will" lend it to you to move your crops
at from eight to ten per cent interest." The
problem of the relation of the people to the
banks and tho banks to the government has
not yet been solved.
A New York newspaper which has only sup
ported a democratic candidate once in the last
twelve years, and suffered the ignominy of see
ing that candidate beaten more cruelly than
anyone since Greeley, has been asking "What
is a democrat?' It has had plenty of answers,
but never mind "what they were. The repub
lican party is about t6 be confronted with the
proposition, "What is a standpatter?"
Excepting Governor Cummins, of Iowa, and
LaFolletto, of Wisconsin, there are no states
men In the republican ranks who are frankly
for immediate tariff, reyision and for Teyislon
downward. , Senator , Lodge, of Massachusetts,
who 'announces himself as the president's dear
estfflend; .says 'that there, must 'bo revision' in
time, but ho does not think that tho next con
gress tho Sixtioth should undortako it.
Speaker Cannon drifts into Washington In tho
dull season and In his patronizing way says to
tho newspaper men who Interview him: "My
boy, wo must rovlso tho tariff, but not until
after tho next presidential election." Secretary
Taft, tho president's candidate for tho presi
dential nomination, goes about saying that a
revision of the tariff Is bound to como, but not
until after the presidential election. How cur
ious it Is that all these men, and wo have men
tioned only three out of tho sixty who might bo
named, admit tho necessity for tariff revision,
but each ono Insists that it shall not bo oven
discussed in tho next congress. Now why? Is
it barely possible that their deslro for campaign
contributions to bo used In tho noxt presiden
tial election makes them unwilling to offend or
affront tho protected Industries. If tariff re
vision is necessary, why not do it now? Why
not effect It now? In tho Sixtioth congress Mr.
Roosevelt, an old time low tariff man, will havo
back of him tho senate and the house. If thoro
is any honesty or integrity of purpose on his
part, or on the part of his political associates
and proteges, this is the time for him to revise
the tariff and to revise it downward. If ho
purposes to allow his friend Lodge, his legatee
Taft, his sycophantes Burton, Parsons, Warner
and the rest to go about the country preaching
tariff reform to bo accomplished after his re
tirement from office, he must expect that tho
people of the country will recognize in his atti
tude merely a cowardly evasion of an issue
which he and his lieutenants daro not moot at
tho polls.
The complaint made by some spokesmen of
the railroads against tho laws enacted in certain
southern states fixing the relative power of tho
state and tho federal court is unjustified, but
demands some attention.
These laws provide that when a railroad
transfers a case from a state to a federal court
its license to do business in the state is thereby
revoked. Within a few weeks the- enforcement
of a law of this sort has caused a clash in North
Carolina, Alabama and Arkansas.
In tho north the erroneous impression
seems to be hold that the law forbids tho rail
roads to appeal to the federal courts. Nothing
could be further from the truth. What the
states condemn, and rightly, is tho notorious and
unfair tactics of railroad corporations of trans
ferring civil cases to tho federal courts in tho
first instance, without waiting for a decision
from a state court. Aside from the discourtesy
to the state implied by this practice tho proper
course under the law and directed by both state
and federal statutes is to carry the case first
through the state court, appealing from tho
lower to the higher, and then in the last in
stance to take It to the United States supremo
court, lhat court remains the court of last
resort. Its dignity, its authority and its justice
are questioned by no one. It is open to any
litigant who has carried his case through the
subordinate tribunals. If the railroads would
abide by this fair and proper practice, there
would be no trouble. The federal courts are
merely appellate in nature and only after a de
cision by the highest state courts can the fed
eral courts be invoked to pass upon the issues
involved. This is the law, and it is futile, un
fair and Impolitic for any railroad to attempt to
evade It by a resort to the federal courts in the
Jlrst instance.
The right of a state to revoke a license of
a corporation that Ignores the state courts and
appeals in the' first instanco to tho federal
courts, has been passed upon four times by the
United States supreme court. True, that dis
tinguished tribunal with consistent Inconsistency
has reversed Itself twice on this subject, as it
reversed itself once on the income tax, and as
in its long career it has reversed itself on al
most every subject submitted to its learned ad
judication. In the early seventies Wisconsin
enacted a law requiring' foreign corporations
to agroe not to remove suits against them to
the federal courts. That was Wisconsin. Just
now statesMn that immediate neighborhood look
upon the action of the southern states in doing
the same thing as a sort of relic of nullification
and secession. But the supreme court declared
that law unconstitutional. The sovereign state
of Wisconsin thereupon passed another law
providing licenses for foreign corporations with
a forfeiture of the license in the event that the
corporation removed civil cases to the federal
courts. This was upheld by the supreme court.
In April, 1887, the supreme court declared
a somewhat similar, but possibly too drastic act
passed by the Iowa legislature unconstitutional,
lis latest"'tleclsIon1iri May of last year upheld a
I
Kontucky law of liko tonuro on tho ground that
"as a state has powor to refuso permission to
a foreign corporation to do business at all within
Its confines, and as it has powor to withdraw
that permission when onco givon without stating
any reason for its action, tho fact that It may
give what somo may think a poor reason, or
nono, for a valid act, is Immaterial."
That is tho law. Curiously enough that
law was built up as much by tho action of
northern states as by that of tho southern satca
now appealing to it. i
WILLIS J. ABBOTTi
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