TITE OMAHA DAILY REE:
WEDNESDAY,
DECEMBER 4. 1907.
President Roosevelt's .Recommendations
(Cnt.tlnuerl from -Page Oiiiy)
!hrn practically nrt Interstate business sv
euch aa was conducted by water, end thla
the. national government at one proceeded
te regulate In thoroughgoing and effective
fashion. 'Conditions have now ao wholly
: changed, that the Interstate enmmfrrt liy ,
, water ! InsUrnlf leant rominrrl with the
timonnt that goes hv land, anil almnet all
big business concerns ore now engaged In
' Interstate commeree. A a result. It ran
be btit psrtlallem'd lmp"rfeo,tly controlled
or regulated bv' the anion of any one of
the several ' states; such action Inevitably
' lending to be elttjer too drastic or else too
. lax end In either rose Ineffective for pur-
pose of Justice, .Only the nat1or.nl gov
fmmtnt can In t horpnghgolng fashion M-
; erclss the needed control. Thla docs not
. nRr that ther frHotild b . any "extension
'of federal authority! fir such authority
already exists tinder 'th constitution In
amphest end most' fr-reschlng form: but
It doa mean that there should be an ex
tension of federal activity. Thla la not ad-ort-
rertrsllrnt'on.' It la merely look
ing fact In the fare, ana realizing that
t.. ui .atlon In business haa already coma
and cannot be avoided or undone, and that
tha public at large.rnn only protect Itself
from i'ortaln -vvll effents at thla business
centralisation by providing batter methods
for tha exercise of control through tha
authority already centralized In the na
tional government by tha constitution Itself.
There muat ba no halt In the healthy rnn
. atrurtlve course of aetlori which thla nation
baa elected to' pttraue, and haa steadily
( pursued, during tha1 laat olx yeara, as ahown
both In tha legislation of tha congress and
tha admlnlatratlon of the law by- tha De
partment of Justice. .The, moat vital need
la In connection with the rallroada. Aa to
these,' In my Judgment there ahoiild now
H be althar a national Incorporation act or a.
law licensing railway companies to engage,
In Interstate commerce upon certain condi
tion. Tha law ahould ba ao framed as to
glva to tha Interstate Commerce cnmmla
alon power to pass upon tha future laaue of
aacurltlea, while ample meana ahould ba
provided to enable the commission, when
ever In lt Judgment It la necessary, to
make a phvalcal valuation of any railroad.
Aa I stated In my menage to the congTene
a year ago, rallroada ahould bo given
power to enter Into agreement, aubjeept
to theae agreement being; made publlo In
minute detail and to the consent of tha
Interstate Commerce commission being
flrat obtained. Until the national govern
ment assumes proper control, of Interatate
commerce In tha exercise of tha
. authority It already possesses. It will ba
Impossible either to rive to or to get from
tha rallroada full Justlo. The rallroada
and all other great corporations will , do
well to recognize that thla control muat
come; the only queatlon Va aa to what gov
ernmenlal body can most wisely exercise
It. The rourta will determine tha llmtte
within which tha federal authority can x
crcls It, and there will BU11 remain ample
work within each state for tha railway
commlaalon of that elate; and the national
Interatate Commerce commlaalon will work
In harmony with th several state commis
sions, each within Ita own province, to
achluv the desired end. , . .
"v ' Coatrojt of Commerce.
Me-revet". lr my judgment' there ahould be
additional legislation looking to tha proper
control of the great business concerns ln
gaged In Interatate buslneaa, thla control to
be exercised for their own benefit and proa
parity no Inaa than ' for the protection of
tnveatora and tha general public. Aa I have
repeatedly said In' meaaagee to congress and
elsewhere, experience has definitely ahown,
not merely the unwisdom, but the futility
of endeavoring to put a atop to all buslneaa
eomblnatlona. Modern Industrial condltlona
are such that combination la not .only nec-e-sary
but Inevitable. It Is so In tna world
. of buslneaa Just aa It is ao In tha world of
labor, and It la aa idle- to deatra to pnt an
and to all corporations, to all big combi
nations of capital, aa to dalre to put an
end to combination of labor. Corporation
and labor union alike have come to atay
each If properly managed la source of good
and not evil. Whenever In either there l
vli; It ahould promptly be held to account:
but It ahould reoelve hearty anoouragsment
so - long aa It la properly managed. It la
profoundly Immoral to put or kep on tha
atatute, books a law, nominally In the In
terest ol publlo morality, that really puts
a premium on public Immorality, by under
taking . to forbid honest men from doing
what must be dnfla under modern business
conditions, to that the law Itself provides
that Its own Infraction must be the condl-
tlon precedent upon business success. To
, aim at the accomplishment of too much
usually meana the accomplishment of too
little, and often the doing of positive dam-
, Antl-Tnut av la toood.
- The president quote from hi message
- to congress Jn December, 1904k and from
peachea mad since that date showing
'that ha. I not opposed to all commercial
and industrial combinations, but only to
, .'thoee that operate agalnat tha general
. good. The Sherman anti-trust law prohibit
-all combination. The message continues;
The antitrust Isw shrould not be re
' pealed; but It should be made both mora
'' efficient and more In harmony with actual
condltlona. It ahould ba ao amended a
, to forbid only the kind of combination
which doe harm to tha general publlo,
i such amendment to ba accompanied by,
.vior to be an Incident of, a grant of auper
, vlaory power to the government over theaa
big concerns engaged In Intestate business.
This should be accompanied by provision
for the compulsory publication of accounta
...and tha subjection of book and panera
' to the Inspection of the government officials.
A beginning haa already been made for
uch supervision by the establishment of
the Bureau of Corporattona.
The antltruat law ahould not prohibit
' "combination that do no injustice . to the
.'public, still leas thoae th existence of
which Is on th whole benefit to th
public. But even If this feature of tha law
were abolished, there would remain aa an
, equally objectionable feature the difficulty
and delay now Incident to it enforcement.
Tha government muat n,ow submit to Irk
"om and repeated delay before obtaining
T a final decision of the court . upon pro
ceedings Instituted, and even a favorable
Decree may mean an empty victory. More
, aver, to attempt to control theaa corpora-
tlon by law auHe mean to Impoae upon
both the Department of Justice and the
iy court an Impossible burden; It la not feaal
ple to carry on more than a limited num
" ber of such suit. Such a law to be really
f sffectlve must, of course, be administered
I i by an executive body, and not merely by
means of law eulta. Tha design should be
" to prevent the abuaes Incident to the crea
tion of unhealthy and Improper combine
. Hone, Instead of waiting until they are In
. aslstsnoe and then attempting to destroy
Ihem bv etvtl r criminal pmeeedlnga.
MBaella ta Ba Preveatea.
' A combination should not be tolerated If
.'It abuse the power acquired by comblna
i tlon to the public detriment. No corpora
. ' tlon or association of any kind ahould be
' c permitted to engage In foreign or Inter
aiate commerce that la formed for the pur
, pose of, or whose operations create, a
monopoly or general control of the pro.
' ductlon, aale, or distribution of any one
or more of tha prima necessities of life or
. article of general use and neceaalty. Buch
combination are against publlo policy; they
violate the common, law; the doora of the
oourta ara closed to those who are parties
to them, and I believe the congreaa ran
cloae the channel of Interstate commerce
against there, for Ita production. Th law
saould make lla prohibitions and permis
sions as olaar and definite as possible,
leaving th least possible room for arbi
trary action, or allegation of euoh action,
on the part of tha executive, or of dlvnr-
gent Ititerpretatlona by the courla. Among
the points to b alined at ahould be the
prohibition nt 'VKihealthy i' competition, sirjIi
aa by rendering service at an actual l ies
for the purpose of crushing out competi
tion, the prev-ntion Of Inflation of capital,
and the prohibition of a corporation mak
ing eaoluelv trade with ljself a condition
of having any -trade with Itaelf. Reasona
ble aareemt-tiia between, or combinations
of, corporations should be permitted, pro
vided hey are first . submitted.- to aid ap
proved by some appropriate -government
bod y . , - .
NatloaaT laearporetloa, a,g(st4,j '
The,congrs baa U.e power to charter
corporations ta engage ja lutitat od for
eign oummene, i,d a g.-neral law can be
enacted under the provision of wldoh, ex
ist In k corporatlonav-could b created. .An
essciitiMl provision ol such a law should
be a method, of prl-termlnlng by stund
federal board or commission whether the
api-llcant for a federal charter was an
association or combination within the re
sirlcttone of the Federal law. Provision
slioulj also be mad for complete publicity
In ail nmiter affecting (he public and coin-
ltU protoctlua to the Investing public and
lie shareholder In the matter of Issuing
corporate aecurltUa. If an Incurporatiuu
' law la not deemed advlsKblx, a license act
for big Interatate corporations might be
n tod; or a combination of the two might
be tried. The Supervision eetautlshad W gi t
le hnelugou to that now exerclmd over
t.s; nal Lanka. At leant, the antitrust net
en.- ,J be supuletuauUd by apauirui (xolilbv-tioi'.-
of -&ne luutliuds stitch expeiisuce bs.a
, sh.-.n biive bn of most service la en
at i g nionoiiohstlo coinbinatlotie to crush
Out itipetiU . n Tlie real uwneig of a ccr-p4..r-Jon
should br coruiH-IU-d to do bu.t.
tu tUoir van Lkine Xte r.gl.t tu Lu,J
stock In other rorporatlena hu' hereafter
be denied to mterslate corixrtiiin, unleaa
on apmval by the proper government offi
cials, and a prerequleite to such approval
should be the listing with Ine rorernment
of all owner and stork lioldors, lioth by the
corporation .owning eurh stork and by Hie
corporation la w-blth auh atock la owned.
In ryif,,e nn,tn tha hHnHkl vOVArntnon t .
vecato In tbe antitrust law. pow M super
Vision ovsr bl(5 bil"ln'8S coni-erns epgaged
In Interstate comnvme. would bcnafll tlu m
as it haa benefited the national banks. In
Ihe. sVrent -business crisis It Is noteworthy
that tti Institutions which fscd were In
stltutlons which were not undt-r the super
vised and Control of the national govern
mint, Those which were under national
Contml stootl the test.
National control of the kind advocated
would be to the bopeflt of every well-managed
railways. -From the eiandpolnt of the
public there la need for additional tracks,
additional terminals, and Improvements In
the actual handling of the railroads, and all
this aa rapidly aa possible. Ample. sHfe.
s.nd speedy transportation facilities are even
more necessary than cheap transportation.
Therefore, there la need for the Inveatment
of money which will provide all the"
thing wlill at the same time securing a
far . It la 'possible better, wages nnd
shorter hours for their employ-. There
fore, while there must be Just andM reason
able regulation of rates, we aho-uifl be the
first to protest against any arbitrary and
unthinking movement to cut down .ulthout
the fullest and most cnrt-ful consideration
of all Interests concerned arid M the actual
needs of the situation. Only, a special bodv
of men acting for th national Kovernment
under authority conferred upon R by the
congreaa Is competent to pas Judgment on
uch a matter.
. Par) Food Law aa Example.
Those who fear, from -any renaon, the ex
tension of federal activity will do well to
study th history not, only of the national
banking art. but of the pure food law, and
notably the meat .Inopectlon law recently
enacted. The pure food., law wae opposed
so violently that Its passage waa delayed
for a decade; yet It.hae worked unmlx-d
and Immediate good. The meat inspctlo-.i
law waa even more violently assailed, and
the same men- who now denounce the at
titude of tbo flatinnnl government lrt seek
ing to oversee and control the workings
of Interatate common earrlers and business
concerns, then asserted that we were "dis
crediting and ruining a great American In
dustry. Two year have not elapsed, and
already It haa become evident that the
great benefit the law eonfera upon the pub
lic Is accompanied by an equal benefit to
the reputable packing establishments. The
latter are better off under the law than
they were without It. The benefit to Inter
state commerce carriers and business con
cern from the legislation I advocate would
be equally marked. i -
Incidentally, In tho passage nf the pure
food law the action of the various etate
food and dairy commissioners showed In
striking fashion how much good - for the
whole people results frcm the hearty co
operation of the federal and stato officials
In securing a given reform. It It prima
rily to the action of the state commission
er 'that we owe the enactment of thl
law; for they aroused the people first to
demand , the enactment and enforcement
of tet law on the subject, and .then the'
enactment of the federal law, without
which the- atate laws were largely Inef
fective. There muat be tha closest co-operation
between the national and state
government in administering these laws.
CURRENCY AND REVENUE LAWS
Provision for Emergency git on Id Be
Made by Congress.
. After quoting from his message to con
gress a year ago dn the need of an elastlo
currency, the president make thl recom
mendation! 1 '
I again urge on the congress the need
of Immediate attention to thl matter. We
need a -greater elasticity In our currency;
provided, of course, that we recognize the
even greater need of a safe and secure
currency. There must always be tho most
rigid examination by the national authori
ties. Provlalon should be made,-for an
emergency currency. The emergency laaut
ahould, of courae, be made with an ef
fective guaranty, and upon condltlona care
fully prescribed by tha government. Buch
emergency Issue must ' be based on ade
quate securities approved by the govern
ment and must be Issued under a heavy
tax. Thia would permit currency being la
aued when the demand for It waa urgent,
while eeeurlng Ita retirement a--rh' Je
mand fell off. It la woi-th Iravestliratlng to
determine whether officer and director'
of rational bank should ever be allowed
to loan to themselves. Truat companies
should be subject to tho same eupervlalnn
aa banka; legislation to this effect should
be enacted for the District of Columbia
ard the territories.
Tet we must also remember that. even -th
wisest legislation on the subject can only
accomplish a certain amount. No legisla
tion ran by any possibility guarantee the
business community against the results of
speculative follv any more than It can guar
antee an Individual agalnat the results of
his extravagance. When an Individual
mortgages his house to buy an atomohlle
ha Invite dlsaater; and when wealthy men,
or men who pose aa anch, or are unacrupu
lnusly or fooliahly eager to become euoh.
Indulge In reckless speculation spidally
If It Is acoompanted by dishonesty thev
Jeopardise not only their own future, but
the future of all their Innocent fellow
cltlsena, for they expose the whole business
community to panic and distress.
laeaia 1 Satlafactory.
Th Income account of the nation I In, a
most satlafactory condition. For thT six
fiscal yeara ending with July 1 laat, th
total expenditure and revenue of th
national government, exclusive 1 of the
postal revenues and expenditures were.
In round numbers, revenues, t3.M5.(KX) 000,
and expenditures, 13,275.000.1110. The net ex
cess of Income over expenditures. Including
In the latter I50.000.0oo expended for the
Panama canal, waa I190.0o9.ooo for the alx
year, an average of about 131,000.000 a
rear. This repreaent an approximation
between income and outgo which It would
be hard to Improve. The aatlsfaotory work
tng of the present tariff law ha been
chiefly responsible for thl excellent show
ing. Nevertheless, there 1 an evident and
constantly growing feeling among our pen
pie that th time la rapidly approaching
when our system of revenue,, legislation
muat be revised.
. Thla country I definitely committed to
the protective system and any effort to
uproot it could not but cause widespread
Industrial dlsaater. In other words, the
principle of the present tariff law could
not with wisdom be changed. Hut in a
country of such phenomenal growth aa
oure It Is probable well that every dnsen
year or ao the tariff law ahould be care
fully ecrutlnlsed ao a to see tbat no ex
cessive or Improper benefita are conferred
thereby, that proper revenue la provided,
and that our foreign trade I encouraged.
There must always be aa a minimum- a
tariff which will not only allow for the
collection of an ample revenue, but which
will at leaat make good the difference In
tha labor cost here and abroad, for the
well-being of the wage worker muat ever
be a cardinal point of American nollcy.
'The queatlon ahould be approached purely
I from a business atandpolnt: both'the time
and the manner of the change being uch
' a to arouse the minimum of agHatlon and
disturbance In the business world, and to
' give the leaat play for aelflsh, and - far.
i tioeal mottvea. The sole . consideration
. ahould be to see that the sum total of
change represent th publlo good. Thl
meune that the uhject cannot with wisdom
be dealt with In the year preceylmg a piesl
' dent la! election, bocauaa .as a mailer nf
fad experience haa copr-Unively sviown
that gt such g time ft la Impossible; o get
'men to treat It from (lis standDuInt 'if the
pobllQ. good In my Judgment, the wise time
to uef witn trie manor ig immediately
after auch tlectlwn ., .
Iaeome aad ' Inhrrftaac Tag.
When .our J ax Ufws are revised the quea
tlon of aa ipcorao tax and an inheritance
tax ahould receive tie oaiaful attention of
our legn&Ulur. In my. judgmunt both of
these, taxes should b puru of our ayiiem of
fedural taxation. I apeak diffidently about
flie uiopajie tax becSune one scheme for an
Income tax 'wag declared unconstitutional
Ly the auprenio court; while In addition It
i a dlflluult Jo admlnlitr In Ita practical
woiklng and great care would have to be
exercised to see that It, wa not evaded by
the ry tnea-wbiuii.lt was most dea rabl
to have taxed, for if so evaded It would of
course, be worse 'Mian Bo tjt at. all; aa
tho leaat desirable of all ,taxesi I the tax
which bears heavily upun in honest as
compared with the dlalionetl man., Nevti
thelesa, a graduated incume ltg cf the
proper tp would be a desirable feature
t.f federal taxation, and' it u to be hoped
that one may be deviated, a lilch tho supreme
court will declare 0ouittmttoiialv
The inheritance ta.. however, is both a
far better u eib k1 o( taxation, and far more
Important for -the puriM.se of having
Ihe fortunes of tba .country tiear In
.proportion to their tucrraee In slue a cor
repjiidlng Incrras aja.i buroVn of lavut:on.
TI.e government baa the aba. Iut. rtf-ht to
d-t'lde a to ll. term uin which-a man
shuil - receive a" tic-meet or Jevwe from
ixitlmr. and this ixoni lo the-dev.. pit inn of
pili-r.y li otpecUlly apjuupnat lor tlie
Imposition of a tax. t.aws imposing such
taxes hate repeatedly - been plared upon
the national statute books anu-a, re
peatedly declared constitutional by the
courts; and these laws contained the pro
gressive principle, that Is. after certain
amount Is reached the bequest or gift, in
Ufa or death, la Increasingly burdened
and the rate of taxation Is Increased In pro
portion to the remoteness of blood of the
man receiving the bequest. These principles
are recognized already In the leading civil
lied nations of the world In Orcat ltrlta'n
nil the es.atee worth IK.ntM or less are
practically exempt rrom death duties, whll
the Increase la such that when an estate
exceeds f.,ooo,0X) In value and peases
to a distant kinsman or stranger In
blood the government receives all told an
amount equivalent to nearly a fifth of the
whole estate. In France so much of an In
heritance" as exceeds $l0,onn.oo0 pays over
a firth to the state If It passes to a distant
relative. The German law I especially
Interesting to us because it make tha In
heritance tax an Imperial measure, while
allotlng to the Individual atatea of the em
pire a portion of the proceeds and permit
ting them to Impose taxes In addition to
rhfsi Imposed by the Imperial government.
Hmsll Inheritances are exempt, but the tax
Is -so largely progressive that when the In
heritance Is still not very large, provided
It Is not an agricultural or a forest land,
It is taxed at the rate of 25 per cent If It
goes to distant relatives.
t'nltrd State "honld Art.
There Is no reason why In the United
Btstes the national government should not
Impoae Inheritance taxes In addition to
those Imposed by the atate, and when we
last had an Inheritance tax- about one
half of the statea levied auch taxes concur
rently with the national government, mak
ing a combined maximum rate In aome
cases as high as 25 per cent. The French
law has one feature which is to be heartily
commended. Tlje progressive principle Is
so applied that each higher rate la Imposed
only on the excess above the amount sub
ject to the next lower rate; so that each
Increase of rate will apply only to a cer
tain amount, above a certain maximum.
The tax ahould if possible be made to bear
more heavily upon those residing without
the country than within It. A heavy pro
gressive tax upon a very large fortune 1
In no way auch a tax upon thrift or In
dustry aa a like tax would be on a small
fortune. NO advantage cornea either to the
country as a whole or to the Individuals
Inheriting the money by permitting th
transmission In their entirety of the enor
mous fortunes which would be affected by
auch a tax; and as sn Incident to Its func
tion of revenue raising, such a tax would
help to preserve a measvreable equality of
opportunity for the people of the genera
tion growing to manhood. We have not
the slightest svmpathy with that socialistic
Idea which would try to put lailness, thrlft
lessness snd Inefficiency on a par with. In
dustry, thrift and efflcency, which would
strive to break tip not merely private prop
erty, but what Is far mor Important, the
home, the chief prop upon which our whole
civilization stands. Such a theory, If ver
adopted, would mean the ruin of tha en
tire country a ruin which would bear
heavleat -upon the weakeat, upon those
leaat able to ahlft for themelve. But
proposals for legislation auch a thl herein
advocated re directly opposed to thl
class of oclalltlc theories. Our aim I to
recognize what Lincoln pointed outi The
fact that there are some respect In which
men are obviously not equal; but alao to
Insist that there should be an equality of
self-respect and of mutual respect, an
equality of right before the law, and at
least an approximate equalltv In the con
ditions under which each man obtain the
chance to show the stuff that la In him
when compared to hi fellow.
EMPLOYER, EMPLOYE AND COURTS
Abnae of Injoaetlon, Eight-Hoar Day
and Liability for Accidents.
Instances of abuse In the granting of In
junctions In labor disputes continue to oc
cur and the resentment in the minds of
those who feel that their rights are being
Invaded and their liberty of action rand
speech unwarrantably restrained continues
likewise to grow. Much of the attack on
the use of Injunction I wholly without
warrant; but I. am constrained to express
the belief that lor aome of It ther la war
rant Thl question la becoming mor and
more on of prime Importance, and unless
the court will themselves deal with It In
effective manner. It 1 certain ultimately to
demand some form of legislative action.
It would be most unfortunate for our social
welfare' If w should permit many honest
and law abiding cltlgeng to feej. that they
had Just cause for regarding our courts
with hostility. I earnestly recommend to
the attention of congress 4hla matter, so
that ad in e way may be devised which will
limit the abuae of Injunctlona and protect
those rights which from time to time It
unwarrantably invades. Moreover, .discon
tent 1 often expressed with the use of
the process of injunotlon by th court, not
only in labor dispute but where atate law
are concerned. I refrain from discussion of
thl question a I am Informed that It will
soon receive the- consideration of the su
preme court.
The federal court must, of course, decide
ultimately what are th respective phere
of slate and nation In connection with any
law, state or national, and the must de
cide definitely and finally In matter affect
ing Individual citisens, not only aa to th
right and wrong of labor, but as to th
right and wrong of capital; and the na
tional government must alway ee that
the decision of the court 1 put Into effect,
The proces of Injunction 1 an essential
adjunct of th court doing It work well;
and aa preventive meagurea are better
than remedial, th wia us of thl prooea
1 from every eiandpolnt commenaable. But
where It 1 recklessly or unneceasarlly uaed,
the abuae ahould be censured, above all, by
the very men who are properly anxlou to
prevent any effort to uar th court of
tula neoensary power. Th court' decision
muat be final; the proteat 1 only against
the conduct of Individual Judgea In need
lessly anticipating auch final decision, or In
the tyrannical use of what la nominally a
temporary Injunction to accomplish what 1
In fact a permanent decision.
Employers' Liability.
The loss of lit and limb from railroad
accident In thl country has become appal
ling. It 1 a subject of which th national
government should take supervision. It
might be well to begin by providing for a
federal Inspection of Interstate railroad
somewhat along th line of federal inspec
tion of steamboats, although not going ao
far; perhaps at first all Uiat It would be
necessary to have would bo som oalcer
whose duty would b to investigate all ao
cldents on lnteraiat railroad and report
In detail the cause thereof, buch an o nicer
should make it his business to get Inui
i-luae toucii ' with railroad operating men
so a to become thoroughly familiar wita
vti si. la nt the auesnon. the Idea being
to work along the line of th praseul
leamboat Inspection law,
Ihe national government hould b a
model employer. It hould demand the
highest quality of aervlc from ach of Ita
employee and It ahould care fur all of
them properly In return. Congreaa hould
adopt legislation providing limited but
definite compensation for accident to all
workmen within the Scope of the federal
power, Including employi of navy yard
and araenals. In other words, a model em
plovers' liability act. far-reaching and
thoroughgoing, should b enacted which
should apply to all positions, publlo and
private, over which the national govern
ment haa Jurladlctlon. Th number of ac
cident to wage workera, Including thosi.
that are preventable and those that are
not, baa become appall'ng In the mechan
ical manufacturing and transportation op
erationa of the day. It works grim hard
ship to the ordinary waae worker and his
i..niiv r have the affect of auch an acci
dent fall aolely upon him; and. on the
other band, there are whole claase of
aitornevs who exist only by Inciting men
who my or may not have been wronged
to undertake suits for negligence. As a
matter of feet a suit for ne'l'gence la gen
erally an Inadequate reemdy for the per
son Injured, while It often rauaea alto,
gether d'aproportlonat annoyance to the
employer. The law should re made such
that the payment for accidents by the
employer would be automatic Instead of
being a matter for lawsuits. Workmen
should receive certain and definite com
pensation for all accldenta In Indostry Ir
respective of negligence. The emplover Is
the aet of the nubile ami on his own
resnonsihlllty and for Ms own nroflt he
serves the publ'c. When he starts In mo
tion seem-les which rreate rinks for other,
be should tare all tha ordinary and ex
traordinary riaka Involved: 'and the rl'
he thua at the moment assumes will ul'1
rxatelv be assumed, as 11 ought to he. bv
the general puhPe. Onlv In th's way
ran the shock of the accident be diffused
Instesd of falling npon the man or w
man lesst able to bear 1t, aa s now, the
ene. The community at large ahould
shere the burden as well as the benefl's
rf Industry. PV th rronoed law. em
r.'overs would an m dret oera'n'v
nf obligation and get rid. of litigation to
det'-r-r-lne U, while the wrtr,ran sn '
fam'Ty would be relieved from a crushing
load With such a nei'cv weuld CO a n
freaoeel care. d "-Mer vuii tut ra
rtio"d 1n nutnr"r- The national lawa pro
viding for emeloTers is"iv on ra"eed
er.rired e Interstate swiumm ins rnr
'ov . anabanrea. aa well ss for . dl"n
i.i-irr tha 'o.irs inv emnloye of g poll
red pt.oi.td He neeIH1 tn we" V shout,
ell 1 tr.ntl,nw1 wherever tit se-iV
practice they hav shown, smaknea; tbey
for Advaricirig- Public Interests arid Private Welfare
should be kept on the statute books In
thoroughgoing form. '
i Matter In rhnrt.
The constitutionality of ,tbe employers'
llabllltv act passed by the preceding con
gress has been carried before the courts.
In two Jurisdiction the law has been d-
elared gnconetitutlohal and In throe Jurix
ulc-tlons Ita constitutionality has been nf
firmed. The questlnn haa been carried to
the supreme court, the case has been heard
by that tribunal and a declalon Is exacted
at an early dale. . In the event that the
court ahould affirm the constitutionality of
this act, 1 urge further legislation along
the line advocated in my message to the
preceding congress. The practice of put
ting the entire burden of loss to life or
limb upon the victim or the victim s family
is a form of social Injustice In which the
Vnlled Btatea stands In unenviable prom
inence. In both our federal and our state
legislation we have, wlih few exceptions,
scarcely gone farther than the repeal of
the fellow-servant principle of the old law
of liability, and In aome of our states even
this alight modification of a completely out
grown principle ha not yet been a.cured.
The legislation of the rest of the Indus
trial world stands nut In striking contrast
to our backwardnesa in thla respect. Bine
1SD5 practically every country of Europe,
together with Hreat Britain, New Zealand,
Australia, British Columbia and the Capo
of Good Hope ha enacted legislation, em
bodying In one form or another the com
plete recognition of thea principle which
place upon the employer the entire tradu
risk in the various lines of Industry. I
urgs upon the congress the enactment of
a law which will at the aame time br ng
federal legislation up to the standard al
ready established by all the European
countries and which will erve as a ilm
ulu to the varlnua atate to perfeot their
legislation In this regard.
Lalrersal Elaht-lfoor Day.
Th congreaa ahould consider the exten
sion of the eight-hour law. The constitu
tionality of the present law has rec'n.ly
been called Into question, and the supieme
court has decided that the existing legis
lation Is unquestionably within the powers
of the congress. ' The principle of the
eight-hour day should aa rapidly and aa
far as practicable be extended to the entire
work carried on by the government, and
the present law should be amended to em
brace contracts on those public works
which the present wording of th act has
been construed to exclude. -The general
Introduction of the eight-hour day ahould
be the goal toward which we should stead
ily tend, and the government should set
the example In this respect.
Compulsory Arbitration.
Strikes and lockout, with their attendant
loaa and suffering, .aontinue to increase.
For the five years ending December 81,
1905, the number of strikes was greater
than those In any previous ten years and
wa double th number In the preceding
five year. These figure Indicate the In
creasing need of providing some machinery
to deal with thl olass . of disturbance
In th interest alike of the employer, the
employe and the general public. I renew
my previous recommendation that the con
gress favorably consider the matter of
creating the maohlnery for compulsory in
vestigation of such Industrial controversies
a are of sufficient magnitude and of suffi
cient concern to the people if the country
a a whole to warrant th federal govern
ment In taking action.',
Th need for some provlalon for auch In
vestigation waa forcibly illustrated during
the laat summer. A strike of telegraph
operators seriously Interfered - with tele
graphlo communication, causing great dam
age to business Interests and serious In
convenience to the general public. Appeals
were made to me from many parts of the
country, from city oounoll. from board of
trade, from chamber of commerce and
from labor organisation, urging that aiepa
be taken to terminate .the strike. Every
thing that could with any propriety be
done by a representative of the govern
ment wa done, without avail, and for
week the publlo stood by and suffered
without recou'te of any kind. Had the
machinery existed and had there been
authority for compulsory investigation of
the dispute, the public would have been
placed In possession of 'the merit of the
controversy and publlo i opinion would
probably hav brougUt,, about a prompt
adjustment.
Each succesalve step creating machinery
for tha adjustment of labor difficulties
muat be taken wlt,h camJon, but we should
endeavor to make progfes In this direc
tion. '-
The provisions of the act' of 189S creating
j,he chairman, of tlievIrttrtat, Comm-roe
oommlBalon and the commissioner of lab r
a board of 'mediation' In'' controversies be
tween Interatate railroads and their em
ploye haa, for th first, time, been ub
Jeoted to aerloua teat 'within the last
year, and the wisdom' of 1 the experiment
has been fully demonstrated. The cra;l in
of a board of compulsory Investigation In
case where mediation falls and arbitration
is rejected Is the next ' logical step in a
progressive program. . r
Child Labor Lawa.
No question growing ut of our rapid
and complex Industrial development Is
more Important, than that of th employ
ment of women and children. The presence
of women In Industry reacta with extreme
directness upon the character of the home
and upon family life, and the condition
surrounding the employment of children
bear a vital relation to our . future cltizen
ahlp. Our legislation In those areas under
the control of the congress Is very much
behind the legislation qf our more pro
gressive states. A thorough and compre
hensive measure should be adopted at this
session of the congress relating to the
employment of women snd children In the
District of Columbia and the territories.
Th Investigation inter the condition of
women and children wage earners recently
authorised and directed by the congreaa
Is now being csrrled on In the various
Btatea, and I recommend that the appro
priation made laat year for beginning thla
work be renewed In order that we mav
hav th thorough and comprehensive In
vestigation which th subject demands.
The national government haa aa an ul'l
mat resort for control of child labor the
use of the Interatate commerce clause to
prevent the product of child labor from
entering into Interatate, commerce. But he
fore using this It ought certainly to enact
modal laws on the ubject for the terri
tories under M own 1m-nediiite control.
What May Be Don:
Ther fa one fundamental proposition
which can be laid down aa regards all
these matters, namely; While honesty by
Itself will not aolve ttie problem, yet the
Insistence upon honeaty not merely tech
nical honesty, but honeaty In purpose and
plrit la an essentia), slement In arriving
at a right conclusion. Vice In Its cruder
an.l more archaic forms shocks evervbodv;
but ther Is very urgent need that public
orcein" ahould be Just, as severe In con
demnation of the vice which hides l(self
behind class or professional lovaltv. or
which denies that It la vice 'f It can escape
conviction in tha courts. The public and
the representatives of the public, the high
'floBls. whether on the bench or In execu
tive or legislative posltlora, nerd to re
member that often the "lost angeroo
crlmlrala so f-n as, Inn life of the nsMon
la concerned, are not those who corn-nit
the crlm-s known to a"d condemned bv
the popular conscience for centuries, but
those who commit, crimes only rendered
possible hv th comolex rnnriUlons of m-r
I""1'""' itidos'r'al ' life. Tf makes not a
particle, of dlference whether these crimes
s . ,.orTmltte hv g cani'sust or bv a
Isborer, by a leading banker or menu
lacrnrer or railroad man. or bv a lArf'ng
1 repreaentatlve of a tihor union.' Kw-tn-Hing
In atocka. corrupting legislatures, msk'ng
I fortunes bv the Inflation of securities, by
I wrecking railroads, hv destroying comne
I t'i through rebstes. th.e forms of wrong
. doing Hi the capital's!, are far more ln-
ii"".. man bmv oruo'arv T'rm or em
bexzletnent or forrery: yet It Is a matter
of extreme d'fflculty to secure-the punish
ment nf the ran mwt gc'lty nf them, most
responsible for them. The bitslr.es man
who condones such conduct stands on a
level with the labor man who d"1lbemr.)y
aoooorta a corrupt !"nag igiie and asltator,
whether head of a union or heal .of some
municipality, because be Is sthl to hav
"stood hy the union. The member of the
business community, .the educators, or
clcrgvmen. who condone and encourage
the first kind of wrongdoing are no mine
danrerocs to the community, but are
morally even worse, than the labor men
who are gulltv of the aecond tvpe of wrong
doing, because less la to be pardoned those
who have no auch excuse as is furnished
either hv lanorance cr hy dtr ned
Fanner and Waste Workera.
No growth of cltlea, no growth of wealth,
can make up for any loss In either Ihe
number or the trharacter of the farming
population. We of the I'nlled States.
BhAu'd realize this above almost all other
feople. We began our existence as a na
on of farmers, and In everv great 'crisis
of th nast a peculiar dependence has had
to be placed upon the farming population;
and thts denendenc haa hitherto been Jus
tified. Hut It cannot be Justified in the fu
ture If agriculture la permitted to sink In
tha scale as compared with other employ
n'enta. We cannot a"ord to lose that pre
eminently tvplcal American, the farmer,
who own h's own madtum sized farm. To
have hie pi nee -taken by either a class of
small tirasant proprietor, or by a class of
great landlords with fenant-farmed estates
would he a veritable calamity The growth
cf ou)i c'ttes s a good tntiig. but on'v inso
far as It dot not mean g growth at the ea-
pense of the country farmer. We must
welcome the rise of physical sciences In their
application, to agricultural practices, and w
must do all we can to render country condi
tions mure fasy and pleasant. There are
fori en which now tend to bring about both
these, results, but they are as yet in their In
lamy. 'ihe national government, through
the Department of Agriculture, ahould do all
II can by Joining with the atate govern
ments and with Independent associations of
farmers to encourage the growth In the
open farming country of such Institutional
and social movements as will meet the de
mand of the best tvpe of farmers, both for
the itnpiovement of their farms and for tho
betterment of the life ItBelf. The Depart
ment of Agriculture has, In many places,
perhaps especially In certain districts of
the south, accomplished an extraordinary
amount by co-operating with and teaching
the farmers through their associations, on
their own soli, how to Increase their Initome
by managing their farms better than they
Were hitherto managed. Th farmer must
not lose his Independence, his initiative, his
rugged self-reliance, yet he muat learn to
Work In the heartiest co-operation with hie
fellows, exactly as the buslneaa man has
learned to work; and he must prepare to
use to .constantly better advantage the
knowledge that can be obtained from agri
cultural colleges, while he must Insist upon
a practical curriculum In the achoola In
which his children are taught. Farmera
must co-operato with one another and with
the government, and the govrenment can
best give Its aid through associations of
farmers, so as to deliver to the farmer the
large body of agricultural knowledge which
haa been accumulated by the national and
state governments and by the agricultural
Colleges and schools.
. Inspection of Grata.
The grain producing industry of the coun
try, one of the most Important In th
United Btatea, deserves special consider
ation at the hands of congress. Our grain
Is sold almost exclusively by grades. To
secure satisfactory results In our home
markets and to facilitate our trade abroad,
tlie!e grades should approximate the high
est degree of uniformity and certainty. The
present diverse methods of Inspection and
grading throughout the country under dif
ferent laws and boards, result In confusion
and lack of uniformity, destroying that
Confidence which is necessary for healthful
trade. Complaints against the preaent
methoda have continued lor years and they
are growing In volume and Intensity, not
only In this country but abroad. I therefoi-e
suggest to the congress the advisability of
a national system of Inspection and grad
ing of grain entering Into Interstate and
foreign commerce 8 a remedy for the pres
ent evils.
CONSERVATION OP OCR RESOURCES
End of Reckless Waste and Stafal
Neglect at Hand.
Th comei-v.iuui ol our natural resource
and their proprr tise conatltute the funda
mental probltm which underlls almost
every other problem of our na'.lonal life.
We must maintain for our civilization th
adequate material basis without which tha:
civilization can not exlat We must show
foresight, we must look ahead. Aa a na
tion wo not only enjoy a wonderful meas
ure of present prosperity, but If thl pros
perity Is used aright i It Is an earnest ol
future success such as no other nation will
have. The reward of foresight for this
nation is great and easily foretold. But
there must be the look ahead, there must
be a realization of the fact that to waste,
ta destroy, our natural resource, to skin
and exhaust the land Instead of using It so
a to Increas Its usefulness, will result In
undermining In the days of our children
the very prosperity which We ought by
right to hand down to them amplified and
developed. For the laat few yeara, through
several agencies, the government has been
endeavoring to get our people to look ahead
and to substitute a planned and orderly
development of our resource In place of
a haphazard striving for Immediate profit.
Our great river systems should be de
veloped As national water highways; tht
Mississippi, with Its tributaries, standing
first In Importance, and the Columbia sec
ond, although there are many others of
Importance on the Pacific, the Atlantlo and
the gulf slopes. The national government
should undertake this work, and I hope a
beginning will be made In the present con
gress; and the greatest of all our river,
the Mlsslh-slppl, ahould receive especial at
tention. From the great lake to the mouth
of the Mississippi there should be a deep
waterway, with deep waterways, leading
from It to the eaet and the west. Buch a
waterwav would practically mean the ex
tension of our coast line Into th very heart
of our eountiy. It would be of Incalculable
benefit to our people. If begun at once It
tan be carried through In time appreciably
to relieve the congestion of our great
freight-carrying llnea of railroads. . Th
work hould be yatematlcally and con
tinuously carried forward In accordance
with some well-conceived plan. Tha main
streams should be Improved to the highest
point of efficiency before the Improvement
of .the branches Is attempted; and the
work. should be kept free from every taint
of recklessness or Jobbery. The Inland
waterways which lie Just back of tho
whole eastern and southern coast should
likewise be developed. Moreover, the de
velopment of our waterwsys Involves many
other Important water problems, all of
which should be considered as part of the
same general scheme. The government
dams should be used to produce hundreds
of thousands of horsepower aa an -Incident
to Improving navigation; for the annual
value of the unused waterpower of the
I'nited Btatea perhnps exceed th annual
value of the products of all our mines. As
an Incident to creating the deep waterway
down the Mississippi, the government
ahou'd build along Ita whole lower length
leveea which taken together with the con
trol of the headwatera, will at once and
forever put a complete atop to all threat of
floods in the Immensely fertile Delta region.
The territory lying adjacent to the Mals
s'ppl along Ita lower courae will thereby
become one ; of the most proaperoua and
populous, as It a'ready Is one of the most
fertile nr.n'ng regime. - " the world. I
ha- appo ntd an Inland WaU'way c m
mistier- t" study aed -ij ,! i com -rehen-slve
scheme nf development along the line
Indicated. Later I ahall lay It report be
fore the ronrres.
Extension of Irrigation.
Irrigation should be far more extensively
developed than at present, not only In the
states of the great plain and th Rocky
mountain, but In many other, as, for
Instance, In large portions of the South
Atlantic and gulf atatea, wnere it should
go hand In hand with the reclamation of
swan p land. The federal government
should seriously devote Itself to thla task,
real-zing that utilization of waterwaya and
water power. fo;estiy, 'rrl-.ation and the
reclamation of landa threatened with over
flow are all interdependent j arte of the
same problem. The work of the reclama
t'on service In developing tha larger op
portunltlea of the western half of our
country . for Irrigation is more Important
than almost any other movement. The
constant purpose of the government In
connection with the reclamation aervlc
has been to una the water resources of the
nubile lands fcr the ultimate greatest good
of the greatest number; In other words, to
put upon t'.ie land ix-rmanent tio ue-maAers,
to use and develop tt for themselves and
for their cI 'M'- M and chlldien'e children.
Pnblla Land Law.
'The effort nf 'the government to deal
with the j ublic land has been based upun
the same- piUK-Ipl as that of the reclama
tion serv'ce. The land law- s stem which
was (Ji-acncd to meet the need of the
ferl'W and rwell-wulered regions of , the
lu'clilU west haa lurgely broken down when
ai I lied to the ill ) ci . i i-giong of the great
chiim-. the 1'iQunta'na. and pinch of the
lJui-lic flope, whi'lu a frirm of l'JJ seres
la Inaduqiiate for self-support. In thrse
reg'ona tun ystio lent Itself to fraud, and
much land I asm a out of the hands nf the
government without passing Into the hands
of tho honie-ioi T. J he Ie artmont of
the Interior und the Deportment of Jus
tice Joiiu-d in pruN ui'ng the offenders
aga'tint the law; and they have accom
pllslud much, while where tho administra
tion nf the law bax ben defectlvu It haa
been rhunged Hut the luwa themselves
are defntlvo. Three yeara ago a public
lamia coicm'i'sloii was nppoinu-d to scru
tinize the luw and defects and recommend
a remedy. The r examination si e, incaliy
shoved the existence of great fraud upon
t lie public domain, and their recommenda
tions tor ibunues in the law were made
Willi the desgn of conserving the natural
r. souices t.f rvi-iv j art t.f the public lands
by putting It (o Its best use. Kspeclal at.
t.'-nliuii was culled to the prevention of vet-tlt-uiint
by the passage of great areas of
public land into the hands of a few men,
rd to t lie i. normuus waate caused by un
restricted gin1ng upon the i-en range.
The recommendations of the public lands
commission are sound, for they are espe
cially in the Interest of the actual honie
im'o r; and where the aumll home-maker
cannot at present utilize the land they
provide that thn government shall keep
control r.f it so that It may not be monupo
1 zed by a few w en. The congress haa not
yet acted upon these recommendations, but
they arc ao Juft and proper, ao essential
to our national welfare, that 1 fee,l con
fident, -If the congress will take time to
cons'der them, that they will ultimately be
adapted. ... -
reded for th Hang,
gome auch legislation aa that proposed
Is essential in order to preserve the great
si re i hea of public grating land which are
uif't f.r cultivation under present emthods
and are valuable only for the forage which
Ihcy supply. These aututu ainwuut In
all to soma fno.0ofi.000 acres, and are open
to the free gailng of rattle, heep, horse
and goats, without restriction. Buch a sys
tem, or rather such lack of system, mean
that tha rang I not o much used as
wasted ny abuae. As th west settles the
range becoraee more and more overgrzed.
Much of It cannot be uaed to advantage
unless It Is fenced for fencing tt the only
way by which to keep In check the ownete
of nomad flock which roam hllhrr and
thither, utterly destroying th pastures
and leaving a waste behind o tbat their
presence la Incompatible with the presence
of home-makers. The existing fences are
all Illegal. Borne of them represent the
lmproer exclusion of actual settlera. actual
home-makera. from territory which la
usurped by great rattle companies. Some
of them represent what Is In Itself a proper
effort to use the range for those upon the
land, and to prevent It use by nomdlo
outsider. All these fence, time that are
hurtful and thoee that are beneficial, are
alike Illegal and muat como down. But It
la an outrage that th law ahould necessi
tate auch action on the part of th admlnla
tratlon. The unlawful fencing of public
land fot private grazing muat be etopped,
but th necessity which occaaloned It muat
be provided for. The federal government
ahould have control of th rnge. whether
by permit or lease, a local necessities
niay determine. Such control could ecur
the great benefit of legitimate fencing,
while at the ssme time, securing and pro
moting th settlement of the country. In
som place It may be that the tract of
range adjacent to the homesteads of actual
settler ahould be allotted to them everally
or in common for the ummer grating of
their stock. Elsewhere It may be that a
lease system would erv the purpose;
the lease to be temporary and aubject to
the rights of settlement, and the amount
charged being large enough merely to per
mit of the efficient and beneficial control
of the range by the government, and of the
payment to the county of the equivalent
of what It would othrrwlae receive In taxes.
The destruction of the public range will
continue until some auch law a these are
enacted. Fully to prevent the fraud In tho
public land which, through the Joint action
of the Interior department and th Depart
ment of Justice, we have been endeavoring
to prevent, there must be further legisla
tion, and especially a sufficient appropria
tion to permit, the Department of the In
terior to examine certain classes of en
trie on the ground before they pass Into
private ownership. The government should
part with tt title only to the actual home
maker, not to th profit-maker, who doea
not care to make a home. Our prim ob
ject Is to secure the rights and guard the
Interests of th amall ranchman, th man
who plows snd pitches hay for himself. It
Is this small ranchman, this actual settler
and home-maker, who In th long run Is
most hurt by permitting thefts of tna publlo
land In whatever form.
Preservation of tho Forcat.
The preservation or replacement of th
forest I on of the most important means
of preventing thl loss. We hav made
a beginning In forest preservation, but It
Is only a Beginning. At present lumber
ing Is th fourth greatest Industry in th
United State; and yet, so rapid ha been
the rat of exhaustion of timber In th
United State In th past, and so rap
Idly 1 the remainder being exhausted, that
th country 1 unquestionably on tho verge
of a Umber famine which will ba felt
In every household In the land. Ther haa
already been a rise In the price of lum
ber, but there I certain to b a more
rapid and heavier rise In the future. The
present annual consumption of lumber Is
certainly three times as great a th an
nual growth; and If the consumption and
growth continue unchanged, practically
all our lumber will be exhauated In an
other generation, whll long before the
limit to complete exhauatlon, Is reachedf
the arrowing scarcity will mak Itself felt
In many blighting ways upon our national
welfare. About w per cent of our forested
territory I now reserved In national for
est; but these do not Include the moat
valuabl timber land, and In any event
the proportion I too amall to expect that
the reserve can aooompllah more than
mitigation of tho trouble which I ahead
for the nation. Far mor drastlo action
la needed. Forests can be lumbered so
a to give th publlo th full us of their
mercantile lumber- without the (lightest
detriment to th forest, any mor than
It Is a detriment to a farm to furnish a
harvest: so that there I no parallel be
tween forests and mine, which can only
be completely uaed by axhauatlon. But
forests. If used aa all our forests have
been used tn the past and aa moat of them
are still used, will be either wholly de
stroyed, or so damaged that many decade
have to pass before effective us can b
made of them again. "
All of thea fact are ao obvtou that It
1 extraordinary that It ahould be nece
ary to repeat them. Every business man
In th land, every writer tn the news
papers, every man or woman of an or
dinary school education, ought to be abl
to eee that Immense quantltlea of timber
are uaed In the country, that the forests
which supply this timber are rapidly being
exhausted, and that. If no changa take
place exhaustion will coma comparatively
soon, and that the effects of It will be
felt eeverely In the every-day llf of our
people. Surely, when the fact are o
obvious, there should be no delay In tak
ing preventive measure. Tet we item
ta a nation to be willing to proceed In this
matter with hanpv-go-lncky Indifference
even to the Immediate future. It la thlt
attitude which permit the self-interest of
a very few persona to weigh for more than
the ultimate Intereet of all our people.
There are persona who find It to their
Immenae pecuniary benefit to deatrov the
foreata by kimherlnr. They are to be
blamed for thu sacrificing the future of
the nation a a whole to their own self
Interest of the moment; but heavier blame
attaches to th eonle at large for ner
mlttlng uch action, whether In th Whit
mountain in tna snr-thern Alleghenles, or
In th PeeVln. eS "I -
Reckless as tha laraga, .
Only a savage' would, In his private
affairs, show such reckless disregard of the
future; yet It la precisely thla reokleaa dis
regard of the future which the opponents
of the forestry system are now endeavoring
to get the peopl f th United Btatea to
how. The only trouble with the move
ment for the preservation of our forest
I that It ha not gon far enough, and
wa not begun toon enough. It la a most
fortunate thing, however, that we began It
when we did. We should acquire In the
Appalachian and Whit Mountain regions
all the forest landa that It la possible to
acquire for the us of th nation. These
lands, because they form a national asset,
are aa emphatically national, as the rivers
which they feed, and which flow through
so many states before they reach the ocean.
There ahould be no tariff on any forest
product grown In this country: and. In
especial, there should be no tariff on wood
pulp; due notice of the change being nf
course g'ven to those engaged In the busi
ness so a to enable them to adjust them
selves to the new conditions. The repeal of
the duty, on wood pulp should If possible,
be accompanied by an agreement with
Canada that there ahould be no export duty
on Canadian wood pulp.
WORK ON OHEAT PANAMA CANAL
Satlafactory Progress I Being: Mad
a tha Undertaking.
Th work of the Panama canal 1 re
viewed at considerable length by the preal
dent, quoting reports made by the engineers
In charge. He declares that the work can
be done more cheaply by th government
than by private contract. . On the question
of the proposed change of th canal from
a lock to a sea level, the president says:
' The chief engineer and all tils profes
sional associate are firmly convinced that
the hi-feet level louk ranul which they are
constructing Is the best that could be de
sired. Borne of them had doubts on this
point when they, went to the Isthmus. Aa
the plans have developed under their di
rection their doubts liuve been dispelled.
While they may decide upon changes in de
tail aa construction advances, tlicy are In
hearty accord in approving the gunerat
plan. They believe that It provides a canal
not only adequate to all demands that will
be made upon It. but superior In every way
to a sea level canal. I concur In this be
lief. . .
POSTAL SAVINGS BANKS NEEDED
Congress Strongly I'raed to Provide
the Lawa Needed.
I commend to th favorable consideration
of the congees a postal savings bank sys
tem, as recommended by the poslmasier
general. The primary object Is to encour
age among our pxople economy and thrift,
and by the use of postal savings banks to
give them an opportunity to husband their
resources, particularly thoae who have not
the facilities at hand fur depositing their
money In aavlngs banks. Viewed, however,
from the experience of the past few week.
It Is evident that the advantagea of audi an
Institution are ettll more far-reaching.
Tlinld depoaltore have withdrawn their eav
Inga fur the time being from national
banka, trust companies and savings banks;
Individuals liAV husrded their cash and tha
worklngmen their earnings; all of which
money has been withheld and kept tn hid
ing or In the safe deposit box to the detri
ment of prosperity. Through the agency
of the postal saving banks such money
would be restored to the channels of trad,
to th mutual benefit f oapllal and labur.
I further commend to th eongrea thg
consideration of th postmaster-general
recommendation fot an extension of th
parcel poet, especially on th rural routes,
There are now rural routes, serving
nearly 16.ono,0"0 people who do not hav th
advantage of the Inhabitants of rltte tn
obtaining their upplles These reeommen
datlnna have been drawn up to benefit th
farmer and th county atorekeeper; other
wise, I should not favor them, for I bellev
that It la good policy fur our government
to do every thing poaalble to aid the email
town and th onunty district. It I desir
able that the country merchant ahould not
be crushed out
Th fourth-claa postmaster' convention)
haa paaaed a very strong resolution Ita
favor of planing the fourth-clase post
masters' under th civil service law. Th
admlnlatratlon ha already put Into effect
the policy of refuelng to remove any
fourth-claa postmaster save for reason
connected with th good of th ervlce; and
It I endeavoring far a possible to re
move thm from the domain of partisan
politic. It would ba a moot dealrabl
thing to put the fourth-clas postmaster
In the classified service. It I possible that
this might be done without congressional
action, but, aa th matter It debatable. I
earnestly recommend that th congroag
enact a low providing that they b Included
under th civil aervloe law and put tn th
Classified service.
AFFAIRS IN TUB) TERRITORIES
Local gel f -Govern meat for Alaakzt
aad Other Rreenmassstlsas,
Referring briefly to th admission of Ok
lahoma Into th union, the president de
vote aome space to a eonstderatlon of af
fairs In th other territories. Ho urge a
territorial form of local self-government
for Alaska and speak an encouraging word
for tho proposed Alaaka-TukontTaclflo x
positlon to b held In 19C. H advise ap
propriation for th Improvement of Paarl
Harbor, Hawaii. H again reoommtnds
that th right of cltltenshlp be conferred
upon tho poopl of Porto Rico. A spools!
message is promised on Philippine affairs
when Secretary Taft return.
INTERNAL AFFAIRS OF KATT09T
Mlaar Points of Iaanartaaen for La"
talatlva Actios.
A bureau of mine ahould be created, un
der th control and dlrotlon of th secre
tary of th Interior, th bureau to hava
power to collect statistic and make in
vestigations In all matter pertaining to
mining and particularly to - the aocldent
and danger of th Industry. If thl can
not now be done, at least additional appro
priation ahould be given th Interior de
partment to be uaed for th study of min
ing condition, for th prevention of fraud
ulent mining scheme, for carrying on tha
work of mapping th mining districts, for
studying method for minimising th acci
dent and danger In tha Industry; In short,
to aid In all proper ways th development
of the mining Industry.
I strongly recommend to the congress ta
provide funds for keeping up th Her
mitage, the home of Andrew Jackson;
these fund to be uaed through the exist
ing Hermitage association for th preserva
tion of a hlstorlo building which should
ver be dear to Americana
I further recommend that a naval mon
ument be established In the Vlcksburg Na
tional park. Thl national park gives a
unique opportunity for commemorating tho
deeds of those gallant men who fought on
water, no less than of those who fought
on Isnd, in the great civil war.
Legislation should be enacted at tho
present session of tha oongress for thir
teenth oensus. The establishment Of th
permanent census bureau afford th op
portunity for a batter cenaua than w hava
ver had, but In order to realise th full
advantage of the permanent organisation
ample time muat be given for preparation.
There Is a constantly growing Interest In
thl country In .th queatlon of th publlo
health. At last th publlo mind Is awake
to th fact that many diseases, notably
tuberculosis, are national scourges. Th
work of tho state and city boards of health
should be supplemented by a constantly In
creasing Interest on th part of th national
government. Th congreaa ha already
provided a bureau of publie health and has
provided a hygienic laboratory.
There are other valuable laws relating to
the public health conneotad with th vari
ous departments. This whole branch) of
the government should bo strengthened
and aided In every way.
Campaign Fnada.
Under our form of government voting 1
not merely a right, but a duty, and, more
over, a fundamental and necessary duty If
a man Is to bo a good citizen. It Is well
to provide that corporations shall not con
tribute to presidential or national cam
paigns, and, furthermore, to provide for
th publication of both contribution and
xpendlturea. Ther la, however, alway a
danger. In law of this kind, which from
their very nature are difficult of enforce
ment; the danger being teat they be obeyed
only by the honeat and disobeyed by th
unacrupuloua, so as to act only as a pen
alty upon honeat men. Moreover, no such
law would hamper an unacrupuloua man
of unlimited means from buying his own
way Into offlcs. There Is a very radical
measure which would, I believe, work a
ubstantlal Improvement In our system of
conducting a campaign, although I am well
aware that It will take aome Urn for peo
ple so to familiarise themselves with suoh
a proposal as to be willing to consider Its
adoption. The need for collecting large
campaign funds would vanish If congress
provided an appropriation for th proper
and legitimate expnse of each of the
great national parties, an appropriation
ample enough to meet th necessity for
muruugii organisation ana machinery,
which requires a larg expenditure of
money. Then the stipulation should be
made that no party reoelvlng campaign
fundi from the treasury should aooept
mor than a fixed amount from a'ny Indi
vidual subscriber or donor; and tha neces
sary publicity for receipts and expendi
tures could without difficulty be provided.
National Art Gallery.
, There should be a national gallery of art
established In the capital city of thl coun
try. This la important not merely to the
artistic, but to the material welfare of the
country; and the people are to be oongrat
ulated on the fact that th movement to
establish such a gallery is taking definite
form under the guidance of the Bmlthson tui
Institution. So far from ther being a
tariff on work of art brought Into th
country, their Importation should be en
couraged In every way. There have been
no sufficient collection nf objeols of art by
th government and what collections have
been acquired are acattered and are gener
ally placed In unsuitable and Imperfectly
lighted galleries.
Biological Survey la Worthy.
Th biuiuaJca. suivey Is yu.uiiy working
fur lue guwu of our aiKUi.uiai liueresut,
and is ail excellent euifl ot a govern
ment uuieau which tuuuuila uiigUial Bcleu
lultj rescaicti ll. a tiiiuiugs of witiib ax of
much piactuai uumy. k or inui man
twenty euia n has studied Ine fuod habit
of bnua and' n.amii.ais mat are injurious
or beneucial tu agiliuuur, horticulture and
forestry ; has uutiibuted Illustrated bulle
tin. u.i Ine auuject, and lias laoored Jo
accuie leai'auve piotecl. un lor Ui bene
ficial spot its. ihe cotton boJl-wvil, which
lias lecriiliy oveisiead tn ccuou belt of
Texas and ia strauily extending Us fangs
Is said to cause an annual luss of auout
3,'.vi.'.uv0. The biological survey ha ascer
tained and given waie publicity to the fact
li.at at leak! fortv-thise kinds of hlrda
luey upon tula destructive insect. It haa
uiscuveted thai llfti-aevsn apeule of blru
Iced upon ecuie-lnaecie dreaded enemies of
the fruit glower, ll has snown tnat wood
peckeis as a class, by destroying th larva
itt woud-PuiIng inset la, ar ao essential to
tree lite that It la doubtful If our forests
could exist without them. It has shown
tiial cuckoos and orioles ar th natural
enemies of th leaf-uatlng caterpillar that
desiroy our ahade and fruit treee; mat our
quails ai.d sparrow censurn annually
bundled uf tuns of seede of noxious weeds;
that hawks and owls aa a class (excepting
the few that kill poultry and gam birds)
ar majkldly beiwticlal, spending their
lives In catching grasshoppers, mic and
ether peats that prey upon the product of
husbandry. It ha conducted field exerl.
ments for th purpose of devising and per
fecting simple methods for holding In check
these hordes of destructive rodents rata
mice, rabbits, gophers, prairie dogs and
ground aqulrrels which annually deatroy
crop worth many millions of 'dollars; and
It has published practical directions for th
destruction of wolves and coyote on th
stock rangea of th weat, resulting during
the past year In an estimated aavlng of
ra'tle ant ehop valiesl at upwards f a
million dollars.
Foreign Mall Servle. '
f call your especial attention to tha Un
satisfactory condition of our foreign mall
service, which, because of th lack of
American ateamahlp lines 1 now largely
done through fureign tinea, and which, par
ticularly ao far as South and Central Amer
ica are concerned, Is dun In a manner
which constitute a serious barrier to Ui
extension of our commerce.
Tb time ha come, la my Judgment to
(Coutlttued on t'Utq. PsfteJ
i