Nebraska Newspapers

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PRESIDENTS
READ
Document Deals Voluminously with
Questions of State Tariff Left for
Future Communication Position of
the Government Toward Organized
' Labor Dealing with Illegal Combinations.
Tresfdent Roosevelt's message to
Ctocgress, read at the opening of the
kort session of that body, deals vol
uminously with questions of state.
Tfce subject of tariff revision is left
far a further communication. Sub
stantially the message is as follows:
To the Senate and House of Represen
tatives: The nation continues to enjoy note
worthv prosperity. Such prosperity" Is of
course .primarily due to the high individ
ual average of our citizenship, taken to
Crther with our great natural resources;
lit an imtwntant l!'-tor therein is the
working of nr lor.s-coiitlnued sovcrn
wtental policies The people have em
phatically expressed their approval of the
principles un rlylm; these policies, and
heir ili-sIr'- that thes" principles he kept
ubsUintially unchansi-d. although of
nwrse applied in a progressive spirit to
:cet changing rorditio'is.
Cauticn Against Extravagance.
The inlargi merit of scope of the func
tions of the national government re
uiril liy our development as a nation
involves, of course inciease of expense:
nd the pcricd of prosperity through
Vitich tin country is passing justifies ix
jenditiirs fn- pcrt..anent improvements
far Rre:itT than wf.uid le wise in hard
imes. ISiiltle ships and forts. public
fcuildings. anil improved waterways are
investments which should ! made when
me have the money; but abundant rev
enues and a large surplus always invite
xtravaganee. and constant care should
e taken to guard against unnecessary
increase of the ordinary expenses of gov
ernment. Capital and Labor.
In th vast and complicated mechanism
T our modern civilized life the dominant
aote is the t.ote of industrialism: and the
relations of capital and labor, and espe
cially of organized capital ai:d organized
labor, to each other and to the public at
ars? come second in Importance only to
the intimate quest ions of family life.
As long as the states retain the prim
ary control of the police power the cir
cumstances must be altogether extreme
which require interference by the federal
authorities, whether in the way of safe
guarding the lights of labor or in the
av of seeing that wrong is not done by
nruly persons wbo shield themselves be
tilnd the name of labor. If there is re
sistance, to the l'i deral courts, interfer
ence wltli thff ma IN. or interstate com
anerce, or molestation of federal property,
r If the state 'authorities in some crisis
which they are unable to face call for
lielp. then the federal goernriicnt may
interfere; but thoech uch interference
nay be caused by :t cu'ditlon of things
arising out of trorble oonriected with
ome question of labor. tfie interference
itself simply takes the form of restoring
Tiler without regard to (he .questions
which have caused the Lre-ich of order
tar to keep ortler is a p-!m:iry duty and
in a time of ili-ouKr and iolenco all oth
r ijiii-stions sii:k into abeyance until or
der has N-cn restored. In the District
f Columbia and ii the territories the
federal law covcr-s the entire In Id of gov
ernment: but the labor uueiion i only
acute in populous -n-is of c.ciitnerce.
manufactures, or ir.iri'iig. Nevertheless.
Iioth in the enactment aril in the en
forcement of law the fed ra! go"ernment
within its restricted s.h'-:e should set an
xampl6 to the state go-, ernrm-nt.. espe
cially in a ttriiter .-- ir 1 as this afTcct
tng I-ibor. 1 If'ie.e ilat uaJer modern
niiustrial coiulitior.3 it l.s o'Un necisxury.
and even where not necssary. it is yet
often wine, that there shcuStl be oig-.in-Ization
of lab'ir in older better to secure
the rights of the irdivi.lual wage-worker.
All encour-agcrrert sl.i.uM be siwn to any
such organization, so lfa as It is con
ducted with a I'.tie and cYcetit regard for
he rights of others. There are in this
coontry sonic l.ibor union:; which have
abitfinlly. and oilier !:.lnr unions which
lave often, been among the most effec
tive agents in working for good citizen
ship and for uplifting the condition of
those Y."hoc wi Ifare should be closest to
ur hearts. Kitt wl:et any labor union
eeks Improper ends, or seeks to achieve
proper cads by improper means, all good
citizens and more especially all honorable
public servants must oppose the wrong
doing as rcroUitely as they would oppose
the wrongdoing of any srreat corporation.
tf course biiv violence, brutality, or cor
ruption. sloi'd net for one moment be
tolerated. M:ige-worl.e".s have an entire
eight to organize and h all peaceful and
tionorable means to endeavor to persuade
heir fellows to join with them in organ
isations They have a legal right, which,
according to citct instances, may or may
cot li a moral risht. to refuse to work
in company with men who decline to join
their oianiuizations. They have under no
circumstances the ri.;ht to commit vio
lence upor. those, uiieliior c:ipitalists or
wage-v.-o:iors. who refu.-e to support
their orgRnisatienr. or who ride with
th'we witii v.hori ;I:ey are at odds; for
ar.oT rule is inlolei-ilile in any form.
The amendment Rnd BtrenstheninR
f the employers" liability law is rec
mmended. and the passage of a law
rcquiriup; the adoption jf a block sig
nal system, to prevent railroad acci
dents urged.
Unions of Government Employes.
j The message continues:
There is r.o objection to employes of
the government forming or belonging to
anions; but the government can neither
discs iminate for nor discriminate against
aon-vr-!on men who ate in its employ
r.:en'. or who setk to Le employed under
it. Moreover, it is a very grave impro
priety fr government employes to band
hrmsetie? together for the purpose of
extorti-ig impiopor'y high salaries from
the government. Ksneolally is this true
el these within the classified service. The
'letter carriers, both municipal an! rural,
are as a whole an excellent biniy of pub
lic servants. They should be amply paid.
tut tl.eir payment must be obtained by
aixu:ng their claims faiily and honorably
rfoie the Congress. a"d not by Landing
together for the defeat of those ongress
aaen who refuse to give promises which
at.ey can not in conscience give. The
Administration hrs already taken steps
prevent and punish abuses of this na
ture: but it w.ll W wise for the Congress
o supplement this action b;. legi-Uition.
Currsu of Labcr.
BTuch citr e done ly the government
a labor r.iatttrs mettly by giving pub
rlty to certain cor.diti-ns. The buresu
mi Ialor has done cxei-llent wotk of this
linJ in mr.r.y different d'rectloas. I sliall
shortly lay Jvefcre yoj in a specbtl mes
ase the full report C the investigation
af the bureau t iab-;r iito the Colorado
anining strike, r.s this :s a strike in which
'trrfain very evil tor-.. which are more
mv less at work -v,eiywliere under the
. eandltlons of . moo-: u industrialism, be
came startlingly prominent.
Ccrporsticns.
nncn we roinc to ileal with great cor
anrations hc ru--I for the government to
art directly is far greater than in the
ease of labor. cc.v.:s-- great colorations
mxa become such only by engaging in in
terstate commerc. and Interstate com-
aaerce Is peculiarly the field of the gen
erat eovmmen. It is an absurdity to ex
pct to eliminate the shades in great cor
Varations by state action. It is difficult to
patient with an argument that such
tatters should be left to the states, be-
more than one state pursues the
of creating on easy terms corpora-
whM: tmi r?cvt ??2--.ed -v ithin
that state at all. but in other states
araose laws they ignore. The national
Cerernmcnt alone can deal adequately
. arMTi these great corporations. To try to
dteal with them in an intemperate, de
atmctive. or demagogic spirit would, in
, afl probability, mean that nothing what
erer would b accomplished, and. with
aavelute certainty, that if anything were
accomplished it would be of a harmful
alaii The American people need to
esallimr to show the very qualities that
aaey have shown that is. moderation.
9sai sense, the earnest desire to avoid
satar, any damage, and yet the quiet de
tnatnation to proceed, step by step.
ajttkeut halt and without hurry, in elim
MESSAGE
TO CONGRESS
inating or at least in minimizing what
ever or mischief or of evil there is to in
terstate commerce in the conduct of
great corporations. They are acting In
no spirit of hostility to wealth, cither In
dividual or corporate. They are not
against the rich man any more than
against the poor man. On the contrary,
they are friendly alike toward rich man
and toward poor man. provided only that
each acts in a spirit of justice and de
cency toward his fellows. Great corpora
tions are necessary, and only men of
great and singular mental power can
manage such corporations successfully,
and such man must have great rewards.
Hut these corporations should be man
aged with due rcpanl to the Interest of
the public as a whole. Where this can
be done under the present laws it must
be done. Where these laws come short
others should be enacted to supplement
them.
The bureau of corporations has made
careful preliminary investigation of many
important corporations. It will make a
special report on the beef industry.
Bureau of Corporations.
The policy of the bureau is to accom
plish the purposes of its creation by co
operation, not antagonism; by making
constructive legislation, not destructive
prosecution, the immediate object of its
inquiries; by conservative investigation
of law and fact, and by refusal to issue
incomplete and hence necessarily inaccu
rate reports. Its policy being thus one
of open inquiry into, and not attack up
on, business, the bureau has been able to
gain not only the confidence, but. better
still, the co-operation of men engaged in
legitimate business.
The bureau offers to the Congress the
means of getting at the cost of produc
tion of our various great staples of com
merce. Rebates.
Above all else, we must strive to keep
the highway. of commerce open to all
on equal terms: and to do this it Is nec
essary to put a complete stop to all re
bates. Whether the shipper or the rail
road Is to blame makes no difference: the
relate must be stopped, the abuses of
the private car and private terminal
track and side-track systems must be
stopped, and the legislation of the Fifty
eighth Congress which declares it to be
unlawful for any person or corporation to
offer, grant, give, solicit, accept, or re
ceive any rebate, concession, or discrim
ination in respect of the transportation of
any property in interstate or foreign
commerce whereby such property shall
by any device whatever be transported
at a less rate, than that named in the
tariffs published by the carrier must be
enforced. While I am of the opinion that
at present it would be undesirable, if it
were not impracticable, linally to CiOthe
the Interstate. Commerce Commission
with general authority to fix railroad
rates. I do not believe that, as a lair se
curity to shippers, the Commission should
be vested with the power, where a given
rate has been challenged and after full
healing found to be unreasonable, to de
cide, subject to judicial review, what
shall In a reasonable Kite to take its
place; the ruling of the commission to
take effect immediately, and to obiain
unless and until it is reversed by the
court of review. In my judgment the
most Important legislative act now need
iii as regards the regulation of corpora
tions is this act to confer on the Inter
state Commerce Commission the power
to revise rale.s and legulations. the re
vised rate to a: once go into effect, and
to stay in effect unless and until the
court of review reveises it.
Much space is here devoted to a
consideration of the problem of the
proper housing of the poor in our
great cities, and the importance of a
proper solution of the question shown.
On this subject the message says:
There should be severe child-labeir and
factory-inspection laws. It is very desir
able that married women should not - -ork
in factories. The prime duty of the man
is to work, to be the breadwinner; the
prime duty of the woman is to be the
mother, the housewife. All questions of
tariff- and finance sink into utter insig
nificance when comiurcil with the tre
mendous, the vital importance of trying
to shape conditions so that those two
duties of tlie man and of the woman can
10 fulfilled under reasonably favorable
circumstances. If a nice does not have
plenty of children, or if the children do
not grow up. or if when they grow up
they are unhealthy In body and stunted
or vicious in mind, thru Hint race is de
cadent, and no heaping up of wealth, no
splendor of momentary material prosper
ity, can avail in any degree as offsets.
Agriculture.
The Department of Agriculture has
grown into an educational institution
with a faculty of two thousand special
ists making research into all the sciences
of production. The Congress appropri
ates, directly and indirectly, six millions
of dollars annually to carry on this work.
It reaches every state and territory in
the Union and the islands of the sea late
ly come under our Hag. Co-operation Is
had with the state experiment stations,
and with many other Institutions and in
dividuals. The world is carefully search
ed for new varieties of grains, fruits,
grasses, vegetables, trees, and shrubs,
suitable to various localities in our coun
try: and marked benelit to our producers
has resulted.
Irrigation.
During the two and a half years that
have elapsed since the passage of the
reclamation act rapid progress has been
made in the surveys and examinations of
the opportunities for reclamation, irj the
thirteen states and three territories of
the arid West. Construction has already
been begun on the largest and most im
portant of the irrigation works, and plans
are being completed for works which will
utilize the funds now available. The
reclamation act has been found to be re
markably complete and effective, and so
broad in its provisions that a wide range
of undertakings has been possible under
it. At the same time, economy is guar
anteed by the fact that the funds must
ultimately be returned to be used over
again.
Forests.
It is the cardinal principle of the forest-reserve
policy of this Administration
that the reserves are for use. What
ever interferes with the use. of their re
sourcs is to be avoided by every possible
means. But these resources must be used
in such a way as to make them perma
nent. Although the wisdom of creating for
est reserves is nearly everywhere heart
ily recognized, yet in a few localities
there has been misunderstanding and
complaint. The following statement is
therefore desirable:
The forest-teserve policy can be suc
cessful only when it has the full support
of the peoplj of the West. It can not
safely, and shculd not in any case, be im
posed upon them against their wpl. But
neither can we accept the views of those
whose only interest in the forest is tem
porary: who are anxious to reap what
they have not sown and then move away,
leaving desolation behind them.
The making of forest reserves within
railroad and wagon-road land-grant lim
its will hereafter, as for the past three
years, be so managed as to prevent the
issue, undir the act of June 4. 1SS7. of
base for cxciiange or lieu selection (usu
ally called scrip). In all eases w-her
j forest reserves within areas covered In
land grants appear to be essential to
the prosperity of settlers, miners, or oth
ers, the government lands within such
proposed forest reserves will, as in the
recent past, be withdrawn from sale or
entry pending the completion of such
negotiations with the owners of the land
grants as will prevent the creation of so
called scrip.
Establishment of game reserves
wherein may be preserved specimens
cf our wild animals which are now
rapidly tending toward extinction is
urged.
Pensions.
The veterans of the civil war have a
claim upon the nation such as no other
body of our citizens possess. The pen
sion bureau has never In Its history been
managed in a more satisfactory manner
than Is now the case
Indians.
The progress of the Indians toward civ
ilization, though not lapid. is perhaps all
that could te hoped for In view of the
circumstances. It is commonly declared
that the slow advance of the Indians is
due to the unsatisfactory character of
the men appointed to take Immediate
charge of them, and to some extent this
is true. While the standard of the em
ployes in the Indian service shows great
improvement over that of bygone years,
and while actual corruption or flagrant
dishonesty is now the rare exception. It
is nevertheless the fact that the salaries
paid Indian agents are not large enough
to attract the best men to that field of
work. To achieve satisfactory results
the official in charge of an Indian tribe
should possess the high qualifications
which arc required in the manager of a
large business, but only In exceptional
cases is it possible to secure men of such
a type for these positions.
Postal Service.
In the Postoffice Department the serv
ive has increased In efficiency, and con
ditions as to revenue and expenditure
continue satisfactory. The Increase of
revenue during the year was S9.358.181.10.
or 5.9 per cent, the total receipts amount
ing to S143.3S2.G24.C4. The expenditures
were $152,362,116.70. an Increase of about
9 per cent over the previous year, being
thui SS.979.4W.36 In excess of the cur
rent revenue. Included in these expendi
tures was a total appropriation of $12.
9.")6.637.35 for the continuation and exten
sion of the rural freu delivery service,
which was an increase of $4,902,237.33
over the amount cxpended for this pur
pose in the preceding fiscal year. I-argo
as this expenditure has been the benefi
cent results attained in extending the
free distribution of mails to the residents
of rural districts have justified the wis
dom of the outlay. Statistics brought
down to the 1st of October. 1904. show
that on that date there were 27,138 rural
routes established, serving approximately
12.000.000 of people in rural districts re
mote from postofllces. and that there
were pending at that time 3.Sr.9 petitions
for the establishment of new rural routes.
I'liquestlonably some part of the general
increase in receipts is due to the In
creased postal facilities which the rural
service has afforded. The revenues have
also been aided greatly by amendments
in the classification of mail- matter, and
the curtailment of abuses of the second
class mailing privilege. The average in
crease in the volume of mail matter for
the period beginning with 1902 and end
ing June. 190.1 (that portion for 1903 be
ing estimated), is 40.47 per cent, as com
pared with 25.46 per cent for the period
immediately preceding, and 15.92 for the
four-year period immediately preceding
that."
The message here points out the
need for improvement in our consular
system, advises the creation of a na
tional art gallery and suggests the
enactment of a national quarantine
law.
Extravagance in Printing.
I call your attention to the great ex
travagance in printing and binding gov
ernment publications, anil especially to
the fact that altogether too many of
these publications are printed. There is
a constant tendency to increase their
number and their volume. It is an un
derstatement to say that no appreciable
harm would be caused by. and substan
tial lienetit would accrue from, decreas
ing tlie amount of printing now, done by
at least one-half.
Laws Concerning Citizenship.
Xot only are the laws relating to nat
uralization now defective, but those re
lating to citizenship of tlie United States
ought also to be made the subject of
scientific inquiry with a view to prob
able further legislation. By what acts
expatriation may be assumed to have
been accomplished, how long an Amer
ican citizen may reside abroad and re
ceive the protection of our passport,
whether any degree of protection should
be extended to one who has made the
declar.it ion of intention to bcromc a citi
zen of the Vniteil States but has not se
emed naturalization, arc questions of
serious import, involving personal rights
and otten producing friction between this
government and foreign governments.
Yet upon these questions our laws are
silent. I recommend that an examination
be made into the subjects of citizenship,
expatriation, and prole'ctlon of Ameri
cans abroad, with a view to appropriate
legislation.
Currency.
The attention of tlie Congress should
be especially given to the currency ques
tion, and that the standing committees
on the matter in the two houses charged
with the duty, take up the matter of our
currency and see whether it is not pos
sible to secure an agreement in the busi
ness world for bettering the system: the
committees should consider the question
of the retirement of tlie greenbacks and
the problem of securing in our currency
such elasticity as is consistent with safe
ty. Kvery silver dollar should be made
by law redeemable irr gold at the option
of tlie holder.
Merchant Marine.
I especially commend to your immedi
ate attention the encouragement of our
merchant marine by appropriate legisla
tion. Tariff.
On tlie tariff I shall communicate with
you later.
Immigration and Naturalization.
In ib-aling with tlie questions of immi
gration and naturalization it is indis
pensable to keep certain facts ever be
fore the minds of those who share in en
acting tlie laws. First and foremost, let
us remember that the question of being
a good American has nothing whatever
to do with a man's birthplace any more
than it has to do with his creed. In
every generation from the time this gov
ernment was founded men of foreign
birth have stood in the very foremost
rank of good citizenship, and that not
merely in one but in every field of Amer
ican activity: while to try to draw a dis
tinction between tlie man whose parents
came to this country and the man whose
ancestors came to it several generations
back is a mere absurdity. Good Ameri
canism is a matter of heart, of consci
ence, of lofty aspiration, of sound com
mon sense, but not of birthplace or of
creed.
There is no danger of having too many
immigrants of the right kind. But the
citizenship of this country should not be
debased. It is vital that we should keep
high the standard of well-being among
our wage-workers, and therefore we
should not admit masses of men whose
standards of living and whose personal
customs and habits arc such that they
tend to lower the level of the American
wage-worker: and above all we should
not admit any man of an unworthy type,
any man concerning whom we can say
that he will himself be a bad citizen, or
that his children and grandchildrem will
detract from instead of adding to the
sum of the good citizenship of the coun
try. Similarly we should take the great
est care about naturalization.
Under the Constitution it is In the
power of the Congress "to establish a
uniform rule of naturalization." and
numerous laws have from time to time
been t enacted for that purpose, which
have been supplemented in a few states
by state laws having special application.
There should be a comprehensive revision
of the naturalization laws. The courts
having power to naturalize should be
definitely named by national authority;
the testimony upon which naturalization
may be conferred should be definitely pre
scribed: publication of impending natural
ization applications should be required in
advance of their hearing in court: the
form and wording of all certificates issued
should be uniform throughout the coun
try, and the courts should be required to
make returns to the Secretary of State
at stated periods of all naturalizations
conferred.
Protection of Elections.
The power of the government to pro
tect the integrity of the elections of Its
own officials is inherent and has been
recognized and affirmed by repeated dec
larations of the Supreme court. There
Is no enemy of free government more
dangerous and none so insidious as the
corruption of th electorate. No one de
fends or excuses corruption, and it would
seem to follow that none would oppose
vigorous mcasuts to eradicate it. I
recommend the enactment of a law di
rected against bribery and corruption in
Federal elections. The details of such a
law may be safely left to the wise discre
tion of the Congress, but it should go
as far as under the Constitution it is
possible to go. and should include severe
penalties against him who gives or re
ceives a bribe intended to influence his
act or opinion as an elector: and provi
sions for the publication not only of the
expenditures for nominations and elec
tions of all candidates but also of all
contributions received and expenditures
i made by political committees.
Delays in Criminal Prosecutions.
No subject is better worthy the atten
tion of the Congress than that portion of
the report of the Attorney-General deal
ing with the long delays and the great
obstruction to justice experienced in the
cases of Beavers. Green and Gaynor. and
Benson. Were these isolated and special
cases. I should not call your attention to
them: but the difficulties encountered as
regards these men who have been indict
ed for criminal practices are not excep
tional; they are precisely similar in kind
to what occurs again and again in the
case of criminal! who have sufficient
means to enable them to tako advantage
of a system of procedure which has
grown up in the Federal courts and
which amounts in effect to making the
law easy of enforcement against the man
who has no money, and difficult of en
forcement, even to the point' of some
times securing immunity, as regards tne
man who has money. In criminal cases
the writ of the United States should run
throughout its borders. The wheels of
justice should not be clogged, as they
have been clogged in the cases above
mentioned, where it has proved absolute
ly impossible to bring the accused to the
place appointed by the Constitution for
his trial:
At present the Interests of the Inno
cent man are amply safeguarded: but
the interests of the government, that is.
the interests of honest administration,
that is the Interests of the people, are
not recognized as they should be. No
subject better warrants the attention of
the Congress. Indeed, no subject betbsr
warrants the attention of the bench and
the bar throughout the United States.
Many suggestions for the Improve
ment of conditions in Alaska are
made, among others the admission of
a delegate from that territory to con
gress. Hawaii and Porto Rico.
The AIaskan natives should be given
tlie right to acquire, hold, and dispose
of property upon the same conditions as
given other inhabitants: and the privilege
of citizenship should be given to such us
may be able to meet certain definite re
quirements. In Hawaii Congress should
give the governor power to remove all
the officials appointed Aii'der him. The
harbor of Honolulu should be dredged.
The marine-hospital service should be
empowered to study leprosy in the is
lands. I ask special consideration for
the report and recommendations of tlie
governor of Porto Rico.
Foreign Policy.
In treating of our foreign policy and of
the attitude that this great nation should
assume in the world at large, it is abso
lutely necessary to consider the army and
the navy, and the Congress, through
which the thought of the nation finds
its expression, should keep ever vividly
in mind the fundamental fact that it is
Impossible to treat our foreign policy,
whether this policy takes shape In the
effort to secura justice for others or jus
tice for ourselves, save as conditioned
upon the attitude wc are willing to take
toward our army, and especially toward
our navy. It is not merely unwise, it is
contemptible, for a nation, as for an in
dividual, to use high-sounding language
to proclaim its purposes, or to tako po
sitions which are ridiculous if unsupport
ed by potential force, and then to refuse
to provide this force. If there is no in
tention of providing and of keeping tlie
force necessary to back up a strong atti
tude, then it is far better not to assume
sueh an attitude.
The steady aim of this nation, as of all
enlightened nations, should be to strive
to bring ever nearer the day when there
shall prevail throughout the world the
peace of justice. There are kinds of
peace which are highly undesirable,
which are 'in the long run as destructive
as any war. Tyrants and oppressors have
many times made a wilderness and called
it peace. The peace of tyrannous terror,
the peace of craven weakness, the peace
of injustice, ail these should be shunned
as we shun unrighteous war. The goal
to set before us as a nation, the go:;l
which should be set' before all mankind,
is the attainment of the peace of jus
tice, of the peace which comes when
each nation is, not merely safe-guarded
in its own rights, but scrupulously re-cognizes
and performs its duty toward
others.
There is as yet no judicial way of en
forcing a right in international Saw.
When one nation wrong another or
wrongs many others, there is no trib'i
nal before which the wrongdoer can he
brought. Either it is necessary supinely
to acquiesce in tlie wrong, and thus put
a premium upon brutality and aggres
sion, or else it is necessary for the ag
grieved nation valiantly to stand up for
its rights. Until some method is devised
by which there shall be a degree, of in
ternational control over offending na
tions, it would be a wicked thing for
the most civilized powers, for those with
most sense of international obligations
and with keenest and most generous ap
preciation of the difference between right
and wrong, to disarm. If the great civ
ilized nations of the present day should
completely disarm, tlie result would mean
an immediate recrudescence of barbar
ism in one form or another.
Arbitration Treaties.
We arc in every way endeavoring to
help on. with cordial good will, every
movement which will tend to bring us
into more friendly relations with the rest
of mankind. In pursuance of this policy
I shall shortly lay before the Senate
treaties of arbitration with all powers
which are willing to enter into these
treaties with us. Furthermore, at the
request of the Interparliamentary Union,
an eminent body composed of practical
statesmen from all countries. I have
asked the Powers to join with thN gov
ernment in a second Hague conference.
at which it is hoped that the work al
ready so happily begun at The Hague
may be carried some steps further to
ward completion. This carries out the
desire expre-ssed by the first Hague con
ference itself.
Policy on Western Hemisphere.
It is not true that the United States
feels any land hunger or entertains any
projects as regards the other nations of
the western hemisphere save such as are
for their welfare. All that this coun
try desires is to see tlie neighboring
countries stable, orderly, and prosperous.
Any country whose people conduct them
selves well can count upon our hearty
friendship. If a nation shows that it
knows how to act with reasonable effi
ciency and decency in social and political
matters, if it keeps order and pays its
obligations, it need fear nD interference
from the United States. Chronic wrong
doing, or an impotence which result. in
a general loosening of the ties of civil
ized society, may in America, as else
where, ultimately require intervention by
some civilized nation, and in tlie western
hemisphere the adherents of the United
States to the Monroe doctrine may force
the United States, however reluctantly,
in flagrant cases of such wrongdoing or
impotence, to the exercise of an inter
national police power.
Our interests and those of our south
ern neighbors are in reality identical.
They have great natural riches, and if
within their borders the reign of law and
justice obtains, prosperity is sure to come
to them. While they thus obey the pri
mary laws of civilized society they may
rest assured that they will be treated by
us in a spirit of cordial and helpful sym
pathy. We would interfere with them
only in the last resort, and then only
if it became evident that their inabii.ty
or unwillingness to do justice at home
and abroad had violated tlie lights of
the United States or had I:tvitc-d foreign
aggression to the detriment of the en
tire body of American nations.
In asserting the Monroe doctrine, in
taking such steps as we have taken in
regard to Cuba. Venezuela. anJ Panama,
and in endeavoring to circumscribe tlie
theater of war in the far Kast. and to
secure the open door in China, we have
acted in our own interest as well as in
the interest of humanity at large. There
are. however, cases in which, while our
own interests arc not greatly involved,
strong appeal is made to our sympathies.
There are occasional crimes committed
on so vast a scale and of such peculiar
horror as to make us doubt whether it is
not our manifest duty to endeavor at
least to show our disapproval of the deed
and our sympathy with those who have
suffered by It. The cases must be ex
treme in which such a course is justi
fiable. But In extreme cases action may
be justifiable and proper. What form
the action shall take must depend upon
the circumstances of the case; that is.
upon the degree of the atrocity and upon
our power to remedy It. The cases in
which we could interfere by force of
arms as we interfered to put a stop to
intolerable conditions in Cuba are neces
sarily very few. Yet It is not to be ex
pected that a people like ours, which in
spite of certain very obvious shortcom
ings, nevertheless as a whole shows by
its. consistent practice its belief in tlie
principles of civil and religious liberty
and of orderly freedom, a people among
whom even the worst ciime. like the
crime of lynching, is never more than
sporadic, so that individuals and not
classes are molested In their fundamental
lights it is inevitable that such a na
tion should desire eagerly to give ex
pression to its horror on an occasion like
that of the massacre of the Jews m
Kishenef. or'when it witnesses such sys
tematic and long-extended' cruelty and
oppression as the cruelty and oppression
of which the Armenians have been the
victims, and which have won for them
the indignant pity of the civilized world.
Rights of American Citizens Abroad.
Even where it is not possible to se
cure in other nations the observance of
the principles which we accept us ax
iomatic. It Is necessary for us firmly to
insist uron the rights of our own citi
zens without regard to their creed or
race: without regard to whether they
were born here or born abroad.
The Navy.
The strong arm of the government In
enforcing respect for its just rights In
international matters is the navy of the
United States I most earnestly recom
mend that there be no halt in th work
of upbutlding the American navy. There
is no more patriotic duty before us as a
people than to keep the navy adequate
to the needs of this country's position.
We have undertaken to build the Isth
mian canal. We have undertaken to se
cure for ourselves our just share in the
trade of the Orient. We have under
taken to protect our citizens from im
proper treatment in foreign lands. We
continue steat'ily to insist on the appli
cation of the Monroe doctrine to the
western hemisphere. Unless our attitude
in these and all similar mutters is to be
a mere boastful sham we can not afford
to abandon our iraval programme. Our
voice is now potent for peace, and is so
potent because we are not afraid of war.
But our protestations upon behalf of
peace would neither receive nor deserve
the slightest attention If we were im
potent to make them good.
The Army.
Within the last three years the United
States has set an example in disarma
ment where disarmament was proper.
By law our nrmy is fixed at a maximum
of one hundred thousand and a minimum
of sixty thousand men. When there was
insurrection in the Philippines we kept
the army at the maximum. Peace came
in the Philippines, and now our army
has been reduced to the minimum at
which it is possible to keep it with due
regard to its efficiency. The guns now
mounted require twenty-eight thousand
men. if the coast fortification.? are to be
adequately manned. Relatively to the
nation, it is not now so large as the po
lice force of New York or Chicago rela
tively to the population of cither city.
We need more officer-:; there are not
enough to perform the regular army
work. It is very important that the offi
cers t.f the army should be accustomed
to handle their men in masses, as it is
also important that the national guard
of the several states should be accus
tomed to actual field maneuvering, espe
cially in connection with the regulars.
For this reason we are to be cougratu
lated upon the success of the field ma
ennvers at Manassas last fall, maneuvers
in which a larger number of regulars
anil national ' guard took patt than was
ever before assembled together in time
of peace. No other civilised ration has.
relatively tc its population, such a di
minutive army as ours; and while the
army is so small we are not to be ex
cused if we fail to keep it at a e:y high
grade of proficiency.
Great progress has been made in pro
tecting our coasts by adequate fortifi
cations with sufficient guns. We should,
however, pay much more heed than at
present to the development of an exten
sive system of floating mines for use in
all our more important iiarbon;. These
mines have bsr proved to be a most for
midable safeguard against' hostile fleets.
The Philippines.
In the Philippine islands theie has
1 en during tins ptst year a continuation
of tli steady progress which lias ob
tained ever since our troops definitely
got the up,;er hand of tiro insurgents.
The Pliilinpine people, or, to' speak more
accurately, the many tribes', and even
races, sundeied from one another more
or less sharply, who go to make up the
people of the Philippine islands, contain
many elements of -iood. and some ele
ments which v.-c have a right to hope
s'and for progress. At present they arc
utterly incapable of existing in hide-
per.dence
all or of building u,; n civ
ilization o: their own. I firmly believe
thPt we i.v.n hr-'p them to rise higher and
higher in the scale of ci ilizatiou and
of eapafity for self-government. ii.d I
n'.'-t earnestly hope that in the ir.d they
will be able to --tai.il. if not entirely alone,
yet in some si'ch relation to tlie United
States as Cuba now stands. This end
is not yet in iiglit. and It may bo in
definitely postponed if our people aie
foolish chough to turn the attention of
t'.ie Filipinos away from the pioblems of
achieving moral and material prosperity,
e.f woiking for a stable, orderly, and just
Government, and toward foolish and dan
gerous intrigues for a complete independ
ence for which they are as yet totally
unfit.
On the other hand our people must
keep steadily before their minus the fact
that the justification for our stay in the
Philippines must ultimately rest chiefly
upon the good we are able to tio in the
islands. I do not overlook the fact that
in the development of our inter esid in
the Pacific c.:.-in and along Its coasts,
the Philippine: 1i?hj prayed and will play
an important part, and that our interests
have been served in more than one way
by the possession of the islands. But
our chief reason for continuing; to hold
them must be thrt v. onghj in good
faith to try to do our chare of the
world's work, and this particular rb'ee
of work lias been imposed upen us by
the results of the war with Ppuin. The
problem presented to us in the Philip
pine islands is akin to. but 'irt exactly
like. th problems presented to the other
great civilized powers which have pos
sessions in the Orient. More distinctly
than any of the powers we are endav
oring to develop the natives themselves
so that they shall take an ever-increasing
share in their own government, and
as far as s prudent we are already ad
mitting their representatives to a gov
ernmental eu'ia'ity with our own. There
ate commissi;:-..! s. judges, and governors
in the islands '.vi.o are Filipinos and who
have exactly the same share in the gov
ernment of th i'-land:; as have their col
leagues wlo a-e Americans, while in tlie
lower ranks, of course, the great major
ity of the fjublic servants are Filipinos.
Within t-e a9 r.-e shall be tryins he
experiment of an elective lower house in
tire I'hilipi.ine legislature.
Meanwhile our own peoolc should re
member that there Is need for the high
est standard of conduct among the Amer
icans 'e:it to the Philippine islands, not
only among the pubiic servants but
among the private individuals who go
to them. U is because I feel this so
deeply that in the administration of these
islands I have positively refused to per
mit any discrimination whatsoever for
political reasons and have insisted that
in choosing tlie public servants consid
eration should be paid solely to the.
worth of the men chosen and to the
needs of the islands. There is no high
er body of men in our public service
than we have in the Philippine islands
under Gov. Wright and his associates.
So far a.: possible these men should be
given a free hand, and their suggestions
should receive the hearty backing both
of the Executive and of the Congress.
There is need of a vigilant and disinter
ested support of our public servants in
the Philippines by good citizens here in
the United Slates. Unfortunately hither
to thoe "of our people here at home who
have specially claimed to be the cham
pions of the Filipinos have in reality
been their worst enemies. This will
continue to be the case as long as they
strive to make tlie Filipinos independent,
and stop all industrial development of
the Islands by crying out against the
laws which would bring it on the ground
that capitalists must not "exploit" the
islands. Such proceedings are not only
unwise, but are most harmful to the Fil
ipinos, who do not nceo independence at
all. but who do reed good laws, good
public servants, anu ine ::mu.iri;u uc- i
velopment that car. only come if the in
vestment of American ami foreign capital '
in the islands is favored In :11 legitimate
ways.
Every measure taken concerning the
islands should be taken primarily with a
view to their advantage. We should cer
tainly give them lower tariff rates on
their exports to the- United States; if
this is not done it w'll be a wrong to j
extend our shipping laws to tnem. I
earnestly hope for the i mured bite enact
ment into law of the legislation now
pending to encourage American capital to
seek investment in the islands in rail
roads, in factories, in plantations, and
In lumbering and mining.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT.
The White House. Dec. 5. 190t.
Dolphin in Eastern River.
Mr. Otis O. Story and Capt. Bum
ham captured a small dolphin in the
river at Essex, Mass.. recently which
measured 6 feet G inches. It is pre
sumed that it got into the rhei by
runrinr after the herrinp Sth fur food.
Consider the Lilies.
The lii'cs of the field, whose bloom Is
brief
We are as they:
Like them we fade away;
4s doth a leaf.
Consider.
The sparrows oi the air. of small ac
count. Our Cod doth view.
Whether they fall or mount
He .guards us. too.
Consider.
The lilies that do neither spin nor toil
Yet are most .fair
What profit all this care
And all this toil?
Consider.
The birds that have no barn nor har
vest weeks,
God gives1 them food
Much more our Father seeks
To do us good.
Consider.
Christina Rossettl.
A Weighing Contest.
, Here is a jolly kind of entertainment
for you boys and girls to make use of
the next time you give a party. It will
please your little guests ever so much
Get two sets of scales, one to weigh
large articles and one for the smaller
things, i-or some of the tiny objects
suggested be!ov it will perhaps be bet
ter to buy a cheap pair at a toy shop.
Having arranged for the weighing, se
lect a number of articles to be
weighed. Have these as unlike and
deceptive as possible, so that there
really will be great difficulty in decid
ing. For instance, the following list:
A man's hat and a book.
A pair of scissors and a bunch of
keys.
A boot and a pasteboard box (con
taining, say, a stone or something
very heavy).
A large book and a pasteboard box
(this one empty).
A watch and a bottle of ink.
A pen nib and a feather.
A pin and a little piece of paper.
An envelope and a postcard.
A one-cent piece and a bow or rib
bon. A doll and a shoe.
A newspaper and a package of tacks.
A rubber ball and a sponge.
Arrange the articles beforehand, and
let each boy and girl write down on a
slip of paper which of the two articles
in each lot they think is the heavier.
Tlie competitor hands the list, signed,
of course, to the judge. Then com
mences the weighing.
A prize should be given to the one
guessing the greatest number correct
ly. A Dainty Handkerchief Apron.
Have any of our readers ever seen
the pretty aprons made of handker
chiefs? It is a gift that will delight
&
your friends. To make this pretty and
useful gift two embroidered handker
chiefs, or two gentleman's initial silk
handkerchiefs, one yard of hamhurg
insertion, three yards of one-inch rib
bon, four yards of baby ribbon and
three yards of Valenciennes lace are
required.
Cut one of the handkerchiefs into
four parts diagonally and join to the
! other with the Valenciennes insertion.
The outside edge is then shaped to
give the rounded effect, edged with
Valenciennes insertion run with baby
ribbon and Valenciennes lace. The
belt is made of inch-wide insertion
laced with baby ribbon an inch wide
and leaving enough of the ribbon at
either end for ties. The accompany
ing illustration will be of great bene
fit to you in making this apron.
A Little Window-Garden.
Here is something children can
grow in their own windows: Get
some raw peanuts and plant in a pot
of good earth. They will sprout, and
very soon a pretty leaved vine will be
running over the top of the pot.
Tho saucer garden is a daintv
thing. Put in the middle of a saucer
a single pine cone, and place moss
about it. Sprinkle the cone with mus
tard seed, and then keep the whole
very moist. The seeds will sprout,
and soon the tiny plants will be cov
ered with tiny yellow flowers. Canary
seed and fine grass may also be plant
ed. national Magazine.
Christmas Day Games
For the children are as necessary as
a plum pudding, and they are welcome
to many grownups.
SANTA CLAUS PACK: All form
in. line and march to a lively strain
on the piano to the next room, where
a table Tiolds the contents of Santa
Claus' pack. They look at every ob
ject on the table and then march
back. The company now divides in
half, one-half leaving the room, the
table and its contents having been
coveted. Those remaining choose
some object, which they remember
seeing, the piano begins to play again.
and the others ietum. The leader
gives to the returning party a word
which rhymes with the object chosen.
Thus, if it was a ball, he might men
tion the word "hall."
The returning party now proceed to
guess what object has been chosen,
and they express their guess by acting
In pantomime. They do not all sug
gest the object in the same way. but
each according to his individual
fancy: but they must all agree upon
the object they will guess. If wrong
they go out for another trial, and so
ou until guessed, when the other half
of the company goes out and they re
main and select the object for the
others to guess.
HIDING THE MISTLETOE: All
form in line, single file, and march
about the room or several rooms until
the music stops. They then proceed j
to hunt the mistletoe, which the lead
er carried in his hand and concealed
somewhere during the march. The
finder must effect a return to the
starting point without being touched
by the leader.
SANTA CLAUS' SLEIGH: Six girls
are harnessed to a little sleigh or sled,
and the white ribbon reins are held bj
a seventh. The sled is filled with
small parcels in colored papcre con
taining Christmas crackers or any
trifles as favors. The party goes
round the room several times, dis
pensing the favors to the young men.
snfin.a-n.tittn: v: ft. nvQ-. i ; u. rn r i
who proceed to select partners and
uance until a signal from the leader
calls all to march around the room
and back to their places.
Left and Right Hands.
You know that your eye sees objects
upside-down, the head being down
ward, as it were, and the impression
being reversed in the brain. This ap
pears strange, doesnt' it? But it is
not more so than what follows.
Take a soft pencil in your right
hand and write a word upon your
forehead; then look in a mirror to see
what you have produced. You' know
that when writing is reflected in a
mirror the characters read backward
in the reflection.
If you wonder why your playmates
laugh when they see what you have
written, look at yourself in the mirror.
You will find the word reflected so
that the letters are produced toward
the right, when they should read to
the left, so it will be backward upon
your forehead.
Now write upon a piece of paper
and place this on your forehead: this
time the writing, when reflected, will
appear to be produced from right to
left.
Another amusing experiment con
sists in taking a pencil in each hand
?.nd in trying to write or draw a de
sign with both at the same time. The
movements of the two hands must be
simultaneous.
The left hand will make exactly the
same movements as the right, but in
the opposite directions. You will then
have two words or designs, but one
will be just the reverse of the other.
Laughter Games.
The children of many nations have
games that consist in saying or doing
something funny while each ch:ld
tries not to smile, giggle or laugh. The i
Eskimos, the North American Indians,
the Italians and the Germans all have
a great variety of these laughter
games.
One of them, which is almost the
same among the children of both the
civilized and uncivilized nations, is as
follows:
One child stands in the middle of a
ring formed by the others. In turn
they step up to the one and pluck her
by the chin, saying:
"Aunty thick and thin
I pluck you by the chin;
If you se-e me laugh or smile
1 must take your place awhile."
Now it seems easy enough to say
these words without laughing or grin
ning when you read about it. But
it isn't a bit easy when you try it.
Candle Trick.
How would you arrange, with a
room full of people, to place a candle
in such a position that all hut one
would see it. and that person must
not bo blindfolded?
Place the candle upon the head o!
the person who is not to see it.
Should there be a mirror in tlie room,
and this one person should make use
of it, he does not see the candle, but
only its reflection.
Fish and the Sixth Sense.
It is stated that there are some indi
cations that fishes possess a sixth
sense, the organs of which are the
pores of the head and of the latteral
band. This band is a row of little
canals connected with the external
, world by holes through the scales. In
tr.ese cavities, under which runs a
large nerve, are found nerve heads or
terminations like those of other sense
organs. The use of this apparatus iK
unknown.
Jolly Blindfold Game.
In "Parlor Blind .Man" I he leader is
I blindfolded, while the other playurs
! stand or sit about the room. Tlie man
1 agcr of the game has told eai'li child
what animal he is to represent for th"
time being, and when he is touched by
the blinded child he must imitate the
noise made by that particular animal,
repeating the r.oise three times if re
nuested. From the noise thus made
: the "blind man" must guess the for
j tner's name. If successful, the child
named takes the place of the blind
i folded one, and so the game goes on.
j For instance, ore child mews like a
; cat. another barks like a dog. still an-
1 other hisses like a goose, and so oft.
World's Lawmaking Bodies.
The name of the lawmaking bodies
in the United States is the congress,
in England, the parliament; in
France, the assembly; in Germany,
the reichstag; in Holland, the states
general; in Spain, the cortes; in
Greece, the boule, and in Denmark,
the landsthing.
How to Lift Oneself Up.
No doubt you have often heard how
impossible it is for a man to lift him
self from the ground by pulling on
the strap of his boots. Other thirds
are supposed to be equally impossible.
one of them being to lift one's self by i
means of a rope and pulley.
While this is perfectly true in the
case of a straight pull, there is a very j
simple way to do it which you may t
easily prove to the astonishment of
your friends.
Throw a rope over the limb o a
SANDOW'S WRIST AND
Xo.U
S.i
9o..
Many, even among otherwise very
strong, people forget that "a chain is
as strong as its weakest link." The
il9m!; fincers and wrists are often
overlooked in the desire for a big bi
ceps only.
Here are a series of movements spe
cially directed to strengthen these
parts:
EXERCISE 1 Position: Fingers
close together, thumb pressing against
the side of the first fingernot in frcnt.
Movement: Slowly widen out the
fingers to their fullest extent all in
one plane; pause momentarily, and re
turn to the ready position, pressing
the fingers tightly together.
EXERCISE 2 Ready position Back
of the hand upward, fingers together.
thumb sligntiy apart.. .
Movement: Reverse, brinsins the j
tree, and in one end of the rope make
a strong loop large enough to hold
your foot. Now you are to pull your
self up as the boy in the picture- is
doing. You stand on the ground with
your left foot in the loop of the rope'
and pull your best on the other end of
the rope. but. though you feel a good
deal of strain on your foot in the loop
you do not stir. Now you are doing,
exactly what is done by the man who
tries to lift himself over the fence by
pulling on his bootstraps.
By this time you are convinced that
there is a trick to it. Indeed, there
Lifting One's Self.
is. but so simple a one. that you wilt
have no trouble in performing it. Bear
your weight on the rope in your hands
and lift your legs, swinging them up
ward from your hips. The result will
be that your feet will go up about
three feet from the ground, while tho
rope in your hands will sink till your
head is about on a level with your
feet.
Now climb up the rope, "hand over
hand," till your head is above your
feet and lift your feet as before, pull
ing on the rope at the same time.
You do rot easily pull yourself up
this way. but it looks so to the spec
tators. You climb up the rope hand
over hand, and could do it just as well
withpjut having your foot in the oop
at afl, providing the rope was fastened
to the limb.
The Laughing Game.
The laughing game is one of th
jolliest. It requires no preparation
whatever, but may be played by a
roomful of boys and girls the moment
it is suggested. Any number of play
ers may take part in it. They first
select a leader, who should bo a
bright, alert, quick-witted boy. cap
aide of preserving his self-possession
while fun and laughter are going on
all around him.
The players seat themselves in a sir
cle. and the leader takes his place in
the center. Ho holds in his hand a
white handkerchief, which he has
knotted so as to make it partly solid.
When everything is ready the leader
tosses the handkerchief up in the air.
:.nd theft every player must begin
laughing. But they must all stop
laughing by the time the handkerchief
reaches the floor, and if any one does
not stop and the leader catches hint
either laughing or smiling he imposes
a forfeit or a fine. Or. instead of mak
ing the delected laugher pay a forfeit,
he may be required to drop out of W-i
circle. If played in this way the play
ers drop out one after another, until
only one is left, and that one wins
the prize.
The Paper Duel.
Two boys are ptaced back to back'
with balls made of soft paper in their
hands. Two other boys are their sec
onds, to pick up the balls. They walk
away from each other about eight feet,
turn around and throw the balls at
each other until one is hit. The sec
onds pick up the ball whenever they
fall and replace the duelists.
Toy Boat.
If you will make a. toy boat from a
sheet of celluloid, put in a deck of
i cork, and above the cork an upper
dock of blotting paper, and then satu
rate tho edge of tho blotter at the
j stern of the boat with ether, or some
other volatile chemical, the boat win
propel itself about in the water at a
rapid rate. The motion ts dm to the
turning of the liquid into a gas which
pushes the boat. Care must be taken
not to bring this boat near a flame,
for both celluloid and ether easily
catch fire.
How Fishes Talk.
Fishes undoubtedly communicate
with their fellows. Even if they can
not "talk." they have other means of
communication that are better
adapted to their needs, says St. Nich
olas. Wo know how readily fishes
recognize their mates, and how quick
ly broo'ding fishes repel intruders of
their own or other species. Some-.
thing besides seeing thorn, perhap.s
some sense of which we have no con-
caption, may do
thts. .Many fishes
communicate with their fellows by
m;;ans of sounds produced through
the medium of their air-bladders, by.
grinding their teeth together, and in
various other ways.
HAND EX ERCISES.
20.1.
'.i
palm of the hand slowly up, so that
the palm is perfectly horizontal; re
turn to ready position and repeat.
EXERCISE 3 Ready position, as in
Exercise 2.
Movement: Work the hand slowly
from side to side as far as possible.
EXERCISE 4 Ready position: Fin
gers flexed upon themselves (not up
on the palm), as shown in sketch.
Movement: (a) Extend fingers to
full extent, keeping them together.
Flex them rapidly again to ready po
sition (b) as before, but extend fin
gers to full extent, fanwise. separated
from one another instead of extending
them together.
EXERCISE 5 Ready position: Fist
clenched.
Movement: Work fist slowly back
ward and forward upon the forearm,
grinding the muscles thoroughly
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