OCTOBER 19, 1905
Nebraska. Indopondont
PAGE 3
exceedingly poor excuse at this time. The president should bo the
nation's leader in all good causes and there is no better cause now
before tlio people than the movement to abolish the free-pass system.
Some have queried with a note of anger and pain what the presi
dent is to do when the people in certain sections of the country de
mand to see him. Have the people of the United States come to
such a pass of imperialism tha they must witness a royal progress
through certain districts of the country at short intervals? Do their
loyalty and happiness require such food to feed on. Would they
show signs of revolution if the president were to stay in Washington
and with democratic simplicity and independence decline to take a
trip unless he was able to pay for it either out of his private purse
or out of tho public purse?
At this juncturo it is of much more importance that the chief
executive should lead the anti-pass movement than that he should
make a royal progress through the south or through any other section
of the country, VSWs
INSINCERITY ON PASS QUESTION?
Although there is an anti-pass plank in their platform the re
publicans are betraying much indifference and insincerity with
reference to the free transportation evil. Throughout the state re
publican papers are treating the question with ill-concealed levity
and contempt. A number of newspapers have frankly declared their
hostility to anti-pass legislation.
At the state house, however, the insincerity of republican of
ficials is even more notable than among the republican editors. It
is true that sonic of these officials. surrendered their passes as an
act of conformity with the anti-pass declaration of the platform.
This was to be expected, and was 9 cheap and easy method of
creating confidence in the sincerity of tho convention which adopted
tho platform. There is, however, a better way of proving their
sincerity. On the statute books of the state there is a la av which
forbids transportation companies to contribute money, property
transportation, help or assistance to any political party or to any
candidate for any civil office, or to any political organisation or com
mittee, or to any individual to be used or expended for political
purposes.
Why is not this law enforced? Tho attorney .general car. not
now plead ignorance of tho law's existence. It ha been called to
his attention forcibly by the democratic platform. ' The fact that its
enforcement is demanded by his political adversaries is no good
reason why the attorney general should refuse to see that it is
enforced.
Congressman Tollard ha3 declared that tho people cannot ex
pect relief from railroad domination as long as the system of free
pass bribery exists. Here is an admonition from a friendly source
that the attorney general should heed. Surely the free pass bribery
system can never be destroyed as long as complacent prosecuting at
torneys decline to enforce the law against free pass bribery.
It looks very much as though the powers that control republi
can politics inserted the anti-pass plank in the platform as a decep
tion. A stronger law than that which now exists cannot be placed
on the statute books until the noxt legislature convenes, and between
now and then tho machine politicians will find time to "educate"
tlio people to look with less rcpugnanco on free pass bribery. t
the republican ticket is elected they will claim perhaps that anli
pass legislation has been repudiated. At all events they can so order
republican affairs that the next state convention will disregard the
pass question and thus give a republican legislature, if such a legis
lature is elected, its cue to ignore anti-pass legislation. It is likely
that republicans who refuse to enforce a mild law this year will
seek to placo a strong law on tho statute look next year ?
DANGER IN FEDERAL CHARTERS
Those interested in having tho federal government regulate
life insurance are advocating federal charters for all life insurance!
companies. A mere licence to transact business after complying
with certain government rules is not considered sufficient. That
would lc federal supervision, but not federal control, and these men
are anxious that the national government should take complete charge
of life insurance Uvause they see that public sentiment will lead
the states to adopt more drastic insurance laws. They understand
that tho only way to escape rigid talo legislation U to secure federal
control.
A federal licence to transact biedne-u would not iieeesuily inter
fere with .state legislation, lleforo Mich a licence Would le grm!ed
the life inuntneo eonqunie-i would 10 foieed to meet all federal
requirements but the government could not require the iiemiaueo
companies to do anything that would bring them into conflict with
state laws, for such requirements would infringe on state rights
and would be unconstitutional. The national licence, moreover,
might bo mado optional. Tho life insurance company could comply
with the requirements or not as its officials should see fit. It would,
of course, be to its benefit to obtain tho federal licence Failure
to secure such a licence would be taken as prima facie evidence by
the people that the company was unable to meet the just require
ments of the federal law, and this would work greatly to the com
pany's disadvantage.
This kind of supervision, however, is not the kind desired by
those who are now talking tho loudest for federal control. They
are demanding that the government shall issue a federal charter to
all life insurance companies and that this charter shall bo the" solo
licence required of the company, State licences would thus bo
abolished. Fortunately for the nation their plans cannot be carried
out unless the constitution is amended and a constitutional amend
ment must bo ratified by two-thirds of tho states. Tho supremo
court has decided that life insurance is not interstate commerce
and if the court, does not reverse itself tho life insurance companies
must pin their hope of federal supervision to a constitutional amend
ment. The greatest danger is that the supreme court may be in
duced to change its mind as its personnel is changed. New judges
might bo placed on tho bench by corrupt political methods similar to
those used by the insurance companies to influence state legislation.
That such a scheme has entered the minds of insurance officials is
evident from the declaration made a few days ago by a prominent
insurance man that the, supreme court might change its decision if
afforded new light. Such a result is indeed probable if the insur
ance companies and trusts are permitted to continue their practice
of buying national elections for preferred presidential candidates.
A timely warning" as to tho -'intentions of Senator John F.
Dryden and others who are advocating federal charters will do much
good and will make the people more determined than ever that laws
shall be enacted which will prevent corporate wealth from controling
the election of presidents.
Hereafter when a trustee steals the funds of widows and orphans
he should excuse his conduct on the ground that ho contributed tho
money to tho republican campaign fund. He will then find de
fenders who will say ho was actuated by sincere motives. Unkind
persons might say that there would bo no certainty that he had con
tributed the funds to tho committee, but the same may be said of the
insurance contributions. Tho insurance companies had a non-ledger
method of bookkeeping which made it possible for certain officials
'to slice off liberal portions of moneys ordered paid. It would bo
interesting, therefore, to compare the books of the republican cam
paign committee if any books have been preserved with tho
statements mado by the high insurance officials as to the amounts
contributed. It might be revealed that some of the officials exacted
toll for doing disreputable work.
Defending the expenditures made by tho life insurance com
panies to influence legislation, James M. Beck of New York de
clared that most of the legislation proposed in state legislatures is
of a blackmailing character and he added that the insurance com
panies rarely spent a dollar to secure favorable legislation. Mr.
Beck should explain why it is not letter to spend money for good
legislation than to spend money to defeat bad legislation. As a mat
ter of fact, however, the insurance lobbies squandered the money
of policyholders with an impartial hand to secure favorable and de
feat unfavorable legislation.
Tho American association of bankers went on record as an--
proving government subsidies tor American shipping interests. The
bankers have grown so rich on subsidies themselves that they aro
beginning to get generous. Why not subsidize our farmers who are
trying to cultivate tho poorer lands of the country ?
Senator IJurton of Kansas is seeking to make a deal by the terms
of which his prosecution would cea-:e on hi$ immediate resignation
from the senate. Time was when a llurton would have disgraced
the senate, but we have had so many senators of his kind lately that
his offer smiH of little worth.
Through an oversight an article howled "For INto Control,"
which iqqwaivd in a recent isuo of The Independent was not
credited to the editor of the Lincoln State Journal.
Japan will probably ive the Koreans us much .'If-governmeni
as the Japanese n capable of enjoying.