The people. (Camden, S.C.) 1904-1911, December 10, 1908, Image 1
Sl.SOPer Year
[HE PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE
\ ?> ?
Mr* Roosevelt Makes Rf commendations
Concerning Needed Legislatioh
TBI NATION PROSPEROUS,
Gecoau??ttdftUons CotcxI&s a \7lde
Bancs cf Subjects ? Finances, Com
binations, Transportation, Natural
Eeaomrctj a$d; Otter XstcrestiaT
Topics Brouikt Is tho Attentica of
Cur tweaking BocTj.
Tlje message of President Roosevelt
to J he second session of the Sixtieth
( engross wrs read in both houses,
rnd was in substaneo as follows;
To the Senate and House of Repres
entatives :
Finances.
The financial standing of the nation
81 present time is excellent, and
the financial management of the na
tion s interests by the ? Government
during the last seven years has shown
Hit most satisfactory results. But
cur currency system is imperfect, and
it is earnestly to be hoped that the
Currency Commission will be able to
propose a thoroughly good system
which will <:<> away with the existing
defects. *
During the period from July 1,
3901, to September 30, 1908, there
was an increase in the amount of
^monoy in circulation of $902,991,399.
The increase in the per capita during
this period was $7.00. Within this
time there were several occasions
when it was neccssarv for the Treas
ury Department to come to the relief
of the money market by purchases of
redemptions of United States bonds;
by increasing deposits . in national
banks ; by stimulating additional is
sues of national bank notes, and bv
facilitating importations from
abroad of gold. Our imperfect cur
rency system has made these proceed
ings necessary, and they were effec
tive until the-, monetary disturbance
in the fall of 1907 immensely increas
ed the difficulty of ordinary methods
of relief. By the middle of Novem
ber the available working balance in
the Treasury had been reduced to ap
{>rox innately $.">,000,000. Clearing
iouko associations throughout the
country had been obliged tq resort to
the expedient ofv. issuing clearing
house certificates, to bo used as
jnoney. In this emergency it was de
termined to invite subscriptions for
$50,000,000 Panama Canal bonds, and
$100,000,000 3 per ccnt certificates of
indebtedness authorised by the act of
June 13, 1903. It* was proposed to re
deposit in tho national banks the pro
coeds of these issues, and to permit
. tbCir uso as a basis for additional cir
culating notes of national banks. The
moral effect Of this procedure was so
great that it was necessary to iaeue
only $24,031,980 of tho Panama Canal
bonds and $15,430,500 of the aertifl.
CStea of indebtedness.
During the seven years and three
months there has been a not surplus
of nearly one hundred millions of re?
ceipte over expenditures, a reduction
of the interest-bearing debt by ninety
millions, in spite of the extraordinary
expense of the Panama Canal, and a
saving of nenily nine millions on tbo
annual interest charge. This is an
exceedingly satisfactory showing, e*<
pecially in view of tho'faot that dur
ing this period the Nation has never
hesitated to undertake any expendi
ture that it regarded as necessary.
There havo been no new taxos and no
increase of taxos; on the contrary
somo taxes have been taken off; there
bfls been a reduction of taxation.
Corporations,
As regards tho great corporations
engaged in Interstate bnsinoss, and
especially tho railroads, I can only
repeat what I have already again and
again said in my message to the Con
fross. I belicvo that under the inter,
stato clause of the Constitution the
, United States has complete and para*
mount light to control all agencies of
interestate commeree .and I believo
that tho National Government alone
can exerciso this right with wisdom
and effectiveness so as both to secure
justice from, and to do justice to, the
great corporations which are the most
important factors in modern business.
I believe that it is worst than folly
to attempt to prohibit all combina
tions as is done by the Sherman anti
trust law, because such a law can be
enforced only imperfectly and un
equally, and its enforcement works
almost as much hardship as good. I
strongly advocate that instead of an
unwise effort to prohibit all combina
tions, there shall be substituted a law
which shnlj expressly permit combina
tions which a io in tire interest of the
public, but shall at tho same time
give to Feme agency of the National
Government full power of control and
supervision over them. One of the
chief features of this control should
bo sccuiing entire publicity in all
matters which the public has a right
to know, and furthermore, the power,
not by judicial but by executive
action, to prevent or put a stop to
every form of improper favoritism or
other wrongdoing.
The railways of the country shoulrl
be put corrpk'Ulv under the Inter
state Commerce Commission and re
moved firm the domain of the anti
trust law. The power of the Commis
sion should he made throughgoing, so
n that it could exercise complete super
vision and control over tho issue of
??wriUw it well u over the rtlaing
and lowering of ratea. jig regards
SEs&SsK5?
Ut"on!ral?bl# feat"r^'ia *2SmU^bI
Md t?I#WW t0 make combinations
nlLl?** ??rra*n?" ?bould b? ex
upon the railroads,
iW StTif L?f ^ Commission bc
or sirrcl?Mnfe?L*D tb?, conabination
ita dSSu i Publlsh^ in all
in Ik* the ,nter*?t of the pub
ihonW *pre8entat?ves of the public
^ ?h- VOB?p,ete P?wer to we
?l ... railroads do their duty by
the publae, and as a matter of couree
terthtoa,d alr *
the noinjuetirc. is done to
V, Th? 8b? re-holders, the
sftsv.? lh: wah,pp? ?? ???
interests that mast be guarded. It is
?*dC TV *" ?{ thom tbat no
an?,!* g i * u 8pccu,ation should be
imnron* ? 1Cre 8hou,d be no
improper issuance of securities. The
frwdniK intelligences necessary for
msn?? * building and successful
manapement of railroads should re
ceive ample remuneration; but no
iH*^ ? h* al!owed to make money
X..S i * ?" Wlth ?i,roads out of
?.7^r. k;'rrb,inK Performan
I?"' m"" >* ?o defrauding of
investors, oppression of the farmers
and business men who ship freight or
USST^ff"* ,0f "Shts and
iTtki. Ik. ? ""P'oywn. Ill addition
JO this the interests of the sharo
shinn**' of. th.e. ""Payees, and of the
Iter Uld be P??^ed as
of E:L0nCJn?ther; To *ive any one
era?. i. ? JC '^proper consid
eration is to do injustice to the others.
pat\blemwi?h made as ,ow a" is oom
patible with giving proper returns to
from theT'TM ?f thc ?lro?d.|
from the highest to the lowest, and
roper returns to the shareholders;
ducrf?nmHi un?'Pr insta"<*. be re
tat<Ta ^uch fashion as to necesti
*!! / ?n the wages of the emplov
or the abolition of the proper ami
legitimate protits of honest aharehold
enirit5r"iPh- ?*nd lc|eP,lone eompanies
i,Ut^ta.te bush,ess "bould
tT#J^ r*? JtiriatKetion of the
Interstate Commerce Commission.
ti Labor.
labor li/JS ??y mattcrs "Meeting
?b?r and tb? status of the wage
Z.'.?,!llltV.'h,>uM lik? "> 1
your attention, but an exhaustive dis
Mcti0? /he problem in it? as.
peers is not now necessary. This nrf
ministration is nearing its end- and
moreover, under our form of govern.'
ment the solution of the problem dcr
Peuds upon the action of the Stnt^s
| M i much as upon the action of the
ui Qtl' therp pre ,er!
Ill wn" erfttK>r8 which 1 wi#h ?o
ou? tlni ?V0V.' beoai,<p I hope that
tS!L u i Z T50,1* flnd more keep
resist a ne#"0 / J?d ?"d ^norant
form k ery ettort for thp re.
form of abuses and for the readjust
oondit? ?#rfe,y to modern industrial
vitf ism bnf r#pr.e,e"t8 not true oonser
e b t r i n ? I i * 0 incitement to the wild
and wfi* i ' i TrI,,0 radicalism
dothZm',tllln ?? hand j?
nand 0ne bent on progress, the other
unless "in00/^ ia,t,nj.chanR:e *? made
unless in the right direction. I be
S"' ",M<|y "Tori, or perhaps it
i * lt50re acc"rate to sav in
t oL ffl k? m u#ny dif*ercnt diree.
sl?rTr' br,n? about a condition of
whh h.MnH r WKh,C,h the ,nen who work
Z IS J F i/r b,ain' the laborers, I he
superintendents, the me,, who pro
wluT fl j market and the men
? fln4 ? market for the articles
fh^U7k 8h811 own a ftr irreator
th^enr?in #t pr?lMt of ,he health
vtltil #k \ -Vd be enab,ed to in.
whllh in W* and Inatrumentg by
rJ ^SLJSi W?r.k i? oarrlcd on* As far
,e* ft ?rflnl< rce.
h5 ^ ui he odvant?*e? conferred
JfaloTn# ft or*,nizatlon. and <1|.
vision of labor, accompanied bv an
?ffort to brine abont a |,wr iharS
rtilwv?Wn,n ibJ wafto-workera of
railway, mill, and factorv. In farm
togir 11 81?ply mean> ihat we wi?b
we dn 1Z ^er4 0Wn hi" own land ;
larJ ?K.? 1 1 u 8Ce thp farm? so
large that they become the property
of absentee landlords who farm thrrn
by tenants, nor yet so small that the
farmer becomes like a European peas
ant. Again, the depositors in our
saving banks now number over one
tenth of our entire population. Th?H,0
are all capitalists, who through t h<> ,
savings banks loan their monev to
! workers that is, in many rases
to themselves? to earrv on their var.
ious industries. The more we increase
their number, the more we introduce
the principles of cooperation into our
mdustry. Every increase in the num
ber of small stockholders in eorpora
* J00? thing' for th* Rame
reason# ; and where the employees are
srlv ^? vr" th" Tr*"U is Particu
larly good Very much of this move
ment must be outside of anvthinp; that
ean be accomplished by legislation ;
but legislation can do a eood d*al.
Postal savtngs banks will moke it
easy for the poorest to keen their
savirTs in absolute ssfotv. The rr-/
j'lation of the national highways m
be such t lint thev shall serve nil n o.
}?le with equal justice. Corporate
flnaneet must be supervised so as fo
make it fy safer than at present for
Ik* man of email means to forest his ,
money in stocks. There must be pro
hibiten of (U4 labor, diminution of
woman labor, shortening of hoars of
all meehaiHeal labor; atoek watering
should bo prohibited, and stoek gamb
ling so far as is possible discouraged. <
There should be a progressive inheri
tance tax on large fortunes. Indus
trial education should be encouraged.
Aa far aa possible we should lighten
the burden of taxation on the small
nun. We ahould put a premium upon
thrift, hard work, and bupineas ener
gy i but theaa qualities eease to be the
main factors in accumulating a for
tune long before that fortune reachee
a point where it would be aeriously
affected by any inheritance tax such
aa I propose. It is eminently right
that the Nation should fix the terms
upon which the great fortunes'are in
herited. They rarely do good and
they often do harm to those who in
herit them in their entirety. ?
The above is the merest sketch,
hardly even a sketch in outline, of
^thc reforms for which we should
"work. But there is one mstter with
which the Congress should deal at this
session. Tliere should no longer be
any paltering with the question of
taking care of the wage-workers who,
under our present industrial system,
become killed, crippled, or worn out
os part of the regular incidents of a
given business. The majority of wage
workers must have their rights se
cured for them by State action; but
the Notional Government should leg-'
islate in thoroughgoing and far-reach
ing fashion not only for all employees
of the National Government, but for
all persons engaged in interestate
commerce. The object sought for
cuold be achieved to a measurable de
gree, os for as those killed or crippled
are concerned, bv proper employers'
liability laws. As far as concerns
those who have hern worn out, I coll
your attention to the fact tbot definite
steps toward provding old-age pen
sions have been taken in many of our
private industries. These may bo in
definitely extended through voluntary
association and contributory schemes,
or through the agent y of savings
banks, os under the recent Massachu
setts plan. To strengthen these prac
tical measures should be our imme
diate duty; it is not at present neces
sary to consider the larger and more
general governmental schemes that
most Europena governments have
found themselves obliged to adopt.
1 renew my recommendation made
in a previous message that half-holi
days bo granted during summer to all
wage-workers in Government employ.
1 also renew my recommendation
that the principle of the eight-hour
day should as rapidlv and os far as
practicable be extended to the entire
work being carried on by the Govern
ment ; the present low should be
amended to embrace contracts on
those public works which the present
wording of the act seems to exclude.
Tfco Courts.
I most earnestly urge upon the Con
gress the duty of increasing the to
tally inadequate salaries now given
to our Judges. On the whole there is
no body of public servants who do as
valuable work, nor whose moneyed re
ward is so inadequate compared to
their work. Beginning with the Su
preme Court the Judges should hove
Ibeir salaries doublid. It is not be
fitting the dignity of the Notion that
it a most honored public servants
should be paid sums so small compar
ed to what they would earn in private
life that the performance of public
service by them implies an exceeding
ly heavy pecuniary sacrifice.
It is earnestly to be desired that
some method should be devised for
doing away with the long delays
which now obtain in the administro
ticn cf justice, ond which operate
with peculiar severity ogainst pendens
of small means, and favor only the
very criminals whom it is most de
sirable to punish. These long delays
in the final decisions of oases moke in
the aggregate a crying evil; and a
remedy should be devised. Much of
this intolerable delay is due to im
proper regard paid to technicalities
which ore a mere hindrance to justice.
In some noted recent cases this over
regard for technicalities has resulted
in a striking denial of justice, and
fUgrant wrong to the body politic.
Forests.
If there is any one dntv which more
than another we owe it to our children
, and our children's children to pcr
| foim at once, it is to save the forests
of (his country, for they constitute
the first and most important element
in the conservation of the natural re
sources of our country. /There are of
conrse two kinds of natural resources.
One is the kind which can onlv be
used as part of a process of exhaus
tion; this is true of mines, natural
oil and gas wells, and the like. The
oiher, and of course ultimately by far
i lie most important, includes the re
sources which ran be improved in the
process of wise use; the soil, the riv
ers, and the forests come under this
head. Any really civilized nation
*viM so use ell of these three great
natlor.nl assets that the nation will
have their benefit in the future. Just
r.s a fanner, ofter all his life making
his living from his farm, will, if he
is an expert farmer, leave it as an
asset of increased value to his son, so
we should leave our national domain
to our children, inereasd iti value and
not worn out. There are ?mall sec
tions of our own country. In the East
and in the West, i:> the Adirondacks,
the White Mountains, and the Appa
lachians, nnd in the Roekv Mountains,
where we eon already see for oursel
ves the drrr.aee in the shnpp of per
manent injury to the soil -ond the
river sv stems which comes from reck
Irss deforestation. It inntters not
whether this deforestation is due to
the actual cutting of timber, to tho
i &**? t Jm t inevitably follow anch reck
lets cutting of timber, or to reckleaa
an* ^uncontrolled ;gruaing, especially
jjjj1 ?te** kands of
sleep, the unchecked wanderings of
which over the country means de
struction of foreata and diaaster to
i* 6 m?kers' the settlers
.of limited meana.
? Xalurt Waterways.
Action should be begun forthwith,
rorfJLlH ""?!??? ?ewion ?' the
Congifeae, for the improvement of *?ur
S2IS? ^t?wyMfct^.wbieh will
ISSi lit ?*,no: navi
f?ble but navigated rivers. We hav*
*pent hundreds of million* of dollar
"P?? thf8? waterway#, re* the traffio
on nearly all of tkem is steadily de
condition is the dhect
wsult of the abeenee of any compre
hensive and far-eeein* plan of waler
way improvement. Obviouslv we ea-.
"ot continue thus* to expend the Av
enues of the Government, without re
turn. It is poor business to spend
money for inland navigation unless
we get it. .
Denatured Alcohol.
I had occasion in my message of
May 4, 1900, to urge the passage of
sproe law putting alcohol, used in tl*
arts, industries, and manufactures,
upon the free list; that ij,, to provide
for the withdrawal free of tax of
alcohol which is to be denatured for
hose purposes. The ia.v c? June 7,
{nU ' a,,d 1,8 amendment of Mareh 2.
1907, accomplished what was desired
in that respeet, and the use of de
natured aleohol, as intended, is mak
ing a fair degree of progress and is
entitled to further encouragement and
support from the Congress.
Pure Food.
The pure food legislation has al
ready worked a benefit difficult to
I overestimate.
Indian Affairs.
I It lias been my purpose from the
beginning of my administration to
take the Indian Servico t??mplctely
out of the atmosphere of political
activity, and there has been stead v
progress toward that end. The last
remaining stronghold of polities in
that service was the agency svstem.
wlueli had seen its best days and wns
gradually foiling to pieces from nat
!!? n P"rt,v 4*olutionary causes,
but. like all such survivals, was de
caying slowly in its later stages. It
setms clear that its extinction had
better be made final. now, so that the
ground can be clcared for larger con
structive work on behalf of the In
dians, preparatory to their induction
into the full measures of responsible
citizenship. On November 1 only
eighteen agencies were left on the
roster, with two exceptions, where
some legal quest ioiva. seemed to stand
temporarily in the way, these have
been changed to snpeHntendensies.
and their heads brought into the
I classified civil service. ?
Secret Service.
f law cnaeted by the last session
I ?[ Congress to provide, that there
should be no detail from the Secret
oerviee and no transference there
from seems to have been only in
the interest of the criminal classes,
both large and small, and as a mat
ter of common interest should be re
pealed and the old system re-enact
I ed.
Corporations are necessary instru
ments of modem business. They have
been permitted to become a mcn.ee
largely because the govermental rep
resentatives of the people have work
ed slowly in providing adequate con
trol over them. .
Control over the great corporations
doing interstate business can be ef
fective-only when such control is
rested in the executive department
of the government.
Postal Savings Banks.
I again renew my recommendation
or postal savings banks, for deposit
ing savings with the seeuritv of the
government behind them. The obiect
s o encourage thrift and eeonomv
in tho wage-earner and person of
moderate means. In fourteen States
the deposits in savings banks a* re
ported to tho Comptroller of the
Currency amount to $3,590,245,402, or
r' Cent ot the *ntlre deposits,
while in the remaining 32 States there
are only ?70,308,?43, or 1.0 per cent
ehowlni conclusively that there arc
many iocal.lica in the United State,
where sufficient opportunitv is not
fit?" ,0 l*?Ple t0 their
pavings. The result is that money is
? l i- 'm^n* and unemployed. If
?* believed that in the aggregate vast
sums or money would be brought in
to circulation through the instrume'i
tahtv of the postal savings banks.
While there are only 1,453 savings
banks reporting to the Comptroller
4n^nnnrrm0uITLthan fil'000 ^-offices
40,000 of which nre money order of
fices. lostal savings banks are now
m operation in practically all the
great civilized countries with the ex
ception of the United States.
Parcel Post.
In my Inst annual message I com
mended the Postmaster-General's re
commendation for an extension of the
P1r77. r?8t on ,,ie n,rnl routes. The
establishment of a local parcel post
on rural routes would be to the mu
tual benefit of the farmer and the
country storekeeper, and it is de
sirable that the routes, serving more
than 15,000.000 people, should be
utilized to the fullest practicable ex
tent. An amendment was proposed
>n the Senate at the last session, at
the suggestion of the Postmaster
'?eneral, providing that, for the pur
pose of ascertaining the practicability
or establishing n special local parcel
post system r>n the rural route?
throughout the United Ktatf-< thr
Postmaster General be authorised and
"?rceted to experiment and report to
tho ( ongress the result of such ex
periment by establishing a special
local parcel post system on rural dc
livery rentes in not to txccfd four
counties in the United States tor
packagea of fourth-class matter orig
inating on a rural route or at the dis
tributing post cfRec for delivery by
rural carriers. It would seem only
proper that _ such an experiment
should be tri;d in order to demon
strate the practicability of the prop
oaitic.i, especially as the Postmaster
General estimates that the revenue
derive^ frcm the opeation of sueh a
system on all the rural routes would
amount to msnv million dollars.
Education.
The share that the National Gov
ernment should take in the broad
work of education has not received
the attention and the care it rightly
deserves. The immediate responsi
bility for the support and improve
ment of our educational systems and
institutions rests and should always
rest with the people of the several
States acting through their state and
local governments, but the Natiou
hag an opportunity in education work
which must not be lost and a duty
which shpuld no longer bo neglected.
With the 1 'mi ted means hitherto
ptwided, the Bureau of Education
ihas rendered efficient service, but the
Congress has neglected to adequately
supply the bureau with means to meet
the educational growth of the coun
try. The appropriations for the gen
eral work of the bureau, out side edu
cation in Alaska, for the year 1909
arc hut $87,500 ? an amount less than
they were ten years ago, and some of
the important items in these appro
priations are less than they were
thirty years ago. It is an inexcusable
waste of public money to appropri
ate an amount wjiich is so inade
quate as to make it impossible prop
erly to do the work authorized, and
it is unfair to the great educational
interests of the country to deprive
them of the value of the results which
can be obtained by proper appropri
ations.
Census.
I strongly urge thnt the request of
the Director of the Census in connec
tion with the decennial work so soon
to be begun, be complied with and
that the appointments to the census
force be placed under the civil ser
vice law, waiving the geographical
requirements as requested by the Di
rector of the Cens is. The supervisers
and enumerators should not be ap
pointed under the eivil service law,
for the reasons given by the Director.
I commend to the Congress the care
ful consideration of the admirable re
port of the Director of the Census,
ard I trust that his recommedations
wiA be adopted and immediate action
thereon taken.
Soldiers' Home.
All Soldiers' Homes should be plac
ed under the complete jurisdiction
and control of the War Department.
Independent Bureaus and Commis
eions.
Economy and sound business policy
require that all existing independent
bureaus and commissions should be
placed under the juridiction of ap
propriate executive departments. It
is unwise from every standpoint, and
results only in mischief, to have any
executive work dono save by the
purely executive bodies, under the
control of the President : and each
such executive body should be under
the immediate supervision of a Cabi
net Minister.
Statehood.
I advocate the immediate al-sb
sion of New Mexico and Arizona as
States. This should be done at tfye
present session of the Congrert*. The
people of the two Teivitories have
made it evident bv their votes that
they will not come in as one State.
The onlv alternative is to admit them
as two. and I trust that I his will be
(Vne without delay.
Interstate Fisheries.
I call the attention of the Con
gress to Ihe importance of the prob
lem rf the fisheries in the interstate
wateis. On the Great l akes we are
row. under the very wise treaty of
April 11th, of this year, endeavoring
to come to un international agree
ment for the preservation and satis
factory use of the fisheries of these
waters can not otherwise be achieved.
Lake Erie, for example, has the rich
est fresh water fisheries in the world j
but it is now controlled bv the
statutes of two Nations, four States,
and one Province, and in this Prov
ince by different ordinances >:i dif
ferent counties. All these political
divisions work a t, cross purposes, and
in no ease they achieve protection to
the fisheries, on the one hand, and
justice to th" localities and individ
uals on the other. The case is simi
lar in Pugct Sound.
Fisheries and Fur Seal*.
The federal statute regulating in
terstate trnflic in gam? should be ex
tended to include fish. New federal
fish hate,*"?ries should be esthalished.
The administration of the Alaskan
fur-seal service should be vested in
the Bureau of Fisheries.
Foreigr Affairs
This Nation's foreign policy is
base,j on the theory t lint, right must
he dona, between nations precisely as
between individuals, and in our ac
tions for the last ten years we have
in this matter proven our faith bv
our deeds. We have behaved and arc
behaving, towards other nations, as in
private life an honorable ma.i would
behave towards his fellows.
Latin- American Republics.
The commercial and material pro
gress of the twenty Latin-American
Republics is worthy of the rrreful I
attention of the Congress. No other
seetirn rf the werld hf.< nhown *
treat er f?*op{.rt?ej?"tr <Vv/ Vipment < f
its foreign trad?- durr? <!>e li*' ??*?
\ea is arid none other lias more special
claims on the interest of the tTnifcd
States. It offers today probably
larger opportunities for the legiti
mat# extension of our ccramcrtc then
aojr other group cf eo:v?4ries. The??
eountries will want out pioducts it|
greatly increased quantities. end we
shall eoi respond! ugly nerd theirs.
The International Bureau of the Am*
ertean He pub lie* i* doinjc a useful
work iu making thes? nations and
;their resources better l:no?n to us,
and in acquainting (hem not o?il.?
with us as a pfuplo end wiJ'i our
purposes towards tbem. but with
wbat we have to exchang* t'er (heir
food#. It It on internal insri
tnticu iupportfd bv eil the Rdl-r.n
menta of the two Americas. .
rioiair, Canal.
, The work en the Panama Caucl
is being done with a speed. efjeienev
and entire devotion to dutv, which
make it a model for all work of the
kind. No task of sne'i magnitude has
ever before been undertaken bv air*-.
nation; and no task of the k' !<i has
ever hern better performed. Tlic men
on the Isthmus. from Colonel (Joe
thala nnd his fellow commissioners
through the entire l,st. <^f employees
who are faithful!.- doing the'r duty,
have wen their right to 4 he ungrudp
in? respoct and gratitude of the An:
eriean people. j
Ocean Mail Iirc3.
I again recommend the extension
of the ocean mail act of 1801 c0 thnt
satisfactory American ocean lines to
South America. Aaia. the Phil pines,
and AustValia may be established.
The cfeation of such steamship lines ,
should be the natural corollarv of the
voyage of the battle fleet. It should
precede the opening of the Panama
Canal. Even under favorable con
ditions several years must elapse bo
fore such lines can be put into epcra
tion. Accordingly I urge that the
Congress act promp'lv whetre fore
sight already shows that action soon
er or later will be inevitable.
The Army.
As retrards the Anny I call atten
tion to the fact that while our junior
officers and enlisted men stand very
high, the present system cf promo
tion bv seniority results in bringing
into the hither grades iv*>;jy nion of
mediocre cpacitv who have bnt a
shoit time to serve. No man shonhl
regprd it as his vested right to ri>?
to the highest rank in the Aimv ar.y
more than iu c.iv other pvofess'on.
It 1? a curious and bv no means cred
itable fact that there should ho ro
often a failure on the part of the
pubi c puj its representatives to un
derstand the great need, from the
standpoint rf the service and the Na
tion, of refusing to promote respeot
able, elderly' incomDctcnts. The
higher places should be given to the
most deserving men without regard
to seniority; at least senioritv should
be treated as onlv one consideration.
In the stress of modern industritl
competition no business fl:m could
succeed if those responsible for its
management were chosen simplv on
the ground that they were the oldest
people in its emplo\ment; yet this is
Ihe course advocated as regards the
ormv, and required by law for oil
grades except those of general officer.
As a matter of fact, all of the best
officers in the highest ranks of the
anny are those who hav? attained
their present position whellv or in
part by a process of selection.
Tfce Nary.
I approve the recommendation* of
the General Board for the increase of
the Navy, celling especial attention
to the need ClJ additional deatroverf
and colliers, tful above all. of the
four battleships. It is desirable to
complete as son as possible a squad
ron of eight battleships of the best
existing type. The North 'Dakota.
Deleware. Florida and Utah w'll form
the Pus' cf this squadron. Th? four
vessels pic posed will form the second
division. It will be an improvement
cn the flist, the ships being of the
heavy, single caliber, all big gun
type. All the vessels should have the
same tactical qualities, that is, sp-ed
and turning circle, and nj s near as
possible theso tactical qualities
should be the same as is in the four
verse |* before named now being
built,
fJl;e American pcoflo have cause
lor profound gratification, both in
view of the excellent condition of the
fleet as shown by this cr.sise ,and in
view c-f the impiovrment the cruise
has worked in this already high ccn
dit.cn. I do not believe that there it
any other fervlco in the world in
which the average of character and
(fficicney in ihe crl stod nnn is a*
hivh rs is row the case in our own.
1 believe that t Jic same statement ran
he made as to bur c flleers, taken as a
whole; hut there must be a rcscrva*
t en made in regard to those in the
highest lanks? as to which I have al
ready spoken ? end iij regard to those
who have just entered t' service;
because we do not now get full bene
fit furn our excellent naval school
r.t Annapol s. It is obs-.trd not to
graduate tne midshipmen os ensigns;
to keep them for two years in su?'!i
rn anomelous |Mnitien as at present
the law requires is detrim'-n'al to
? hem and te> thn service, J.i the aca
demy itself, every first classman
s!:ould be required in turn to serve
as petty officer and officer; his abil
ity to discharge his duties as such
should be a prerequisite to his going
into the line, snd his success in com
manding should largely determine his
standing at graduation. The Board
of Visitors should be appointed in
January, and each member should bp
required to give at Ifast six dnvs'
service, onlv ffc m fie to thrr" Hays'
to be performed during June week,
v/hi-Ji ;?? t;.<- )e>i*t dc.ijrab.'e time for
0?" ?'?rid *o b,v ot Anr-'?f.r? ?o far
i i h ' 'I M "_r the navv by ? Ii-r- '? r eb
f .1 vatic i?'? in concerned.
TTTKODORK ROOSKVFiLT.
The White House, Tuesdry, ?ocem
bcr H, 1003.
CHURCH AND LABOR
? ? ?
Religious Ffdrralion Takes Up
Issue of Working People
CHILD LABOR CUR DISGRACE
Pederci Ccnrdl of the Chcvabe* of
Christ in Air crica Endorits tt#
Wcrk ef the L*bor Oriadiationj.
Philadelphia, Pa., Special. ? A clett
?cnccption of what the Federal Conn*
?il of th? cburcbcs of Christ in Am
?rica hope to accomplish through
Church unity wns conveyed through
!hc actions of the body in session here
in adopting resolutions placing itself
on rccord as favoring active work in
the interest of the laboring man and
organised labor and also urging a
better distribution of clmrrlics end
the missionary workers.
Rev. Charles Str.ltzer, of New York,
superintendent of the department of
rhurch and labor of the Presbyterian
church, declared that the relation of
the laboring man to the church was
one that dared not be ignored. He
said that topics must be introduced
to interest sthe working man in the
church and keep him away from So
cialism. Ho declared that Socialism
bad taken the lead from the churches
in taking up the fight for advance
ment in behalf of labor and placed
himself on record as favoring organiz
ed labor. No matter what the evilt
of the labor organizations, he said,
they were necessary in protecting the
working men against organized cap
ital.
I)r. A. J. MeKelwav. of New Or
leans, secretary for the Southern
States of the National Child Labor
Commission, declared that the greatest
shame of the rountrv was child labor
and that the greaetst shame of the
church is it? disregard of this indus
trial and social problem.
The resolution of the committee on
"The Church and Modem Industry"
was adopted, recommending the aboli
tion of child labor; the regulation of
the work of women so as to protect
the physical and moral health of com
munities; the suppression of the
"sweating system;" the projection
of the worker from dangetons ma
chinery; a reasonable reduction of V ?
l hours of labor to the lowest practii
I bio point ; a living wag? ns a minimum
in every industry and for the highest
wage that each industry can afford.
Memorial to Cleveland.
New York, Special. ? Notable exer
cises in memory of the late Orovet
Cleveland, former President of the
United States, constituted the feature
/it the opening session in this city of
the Association of Life Insurance
Presidents, of which he had been
chairman during the year and a half
between the time of its organization
and his death. The programme in.
eluded addresses by President Paul
Morton, of the Equtable Life Assur
ance Society, and Dr. John II. Finley,
president of the College of the City
of New York, and the reading of let
ter* which had been received from
former Vice President Adlai ^ E,
Sevenson, and Governor Hoke Smith,
.jhm} ' Hilarv A. Herbert, members of
Mr. Cleveland's cabinet.
Works cn With Broken Neck.
Granville. Mas?.. Special. ? BuliiJ
bard Hollister, an elJerly farmer. ha?
been performing routine duties about
his place since July Ml with a broken
neck . Friday he decided to eonsuW
a physician relative to his "stifj
neck." Dr. A. T. Schoonmaker no I
Dr. H. W. Van Allen applied X-ray?
and found that two vertebrae werj
fractured. Hollister may livo indeflj
nitely it is stated. ?
Killed Daughter Then Suicided.
Memphis, Tcnn., Spceia1.--A hand#
romely dressed woman, supposed M
be Mrs. Nicholas P. Errington, o|
Chicago, fought a desperate battU
?vith her 12-year-old daughter, The*
resa, in the Peabody Hotel, killing
'ho child and herself. Carbolic acid
'vr.s the weapon used and both wer?
teriibly burned.
Hflf-MJllion Fcr Pie*.
Atlantic City, Sprcifl. ? Sale of thd
Steeplechase Pier, wl ose principal
owner is Councilman William Riddluj
to a New York syndicate for .$f>00,00|
hps set mew value on property on ?
side the Poardwaik, flt:d will pro S
ahlv rlnrrst double the price. whi?-|
city ofiHr!* intended to pay for co a
demnaticn of the beach front. T.ii
new owncts of the pier are not ?
known, but are underfeed to ha"|
in mind the rebuilding of the p'->|
at the end of the lease now held bj
Georgo Tilyou. ,
All-Night Bank. 1
Philadelphia, Special. ? Despite t! 4
genersl belief that the Quaker Ci'f
gfocs to br<1 nt () o'clock, Philadelph a
is soon to have on "cv.l" or rll-ni^ t
bank to acrr.modate w o
prov.l r.b* t dnrir.^ 1V> i? " t?}: t vntelw t
The new .'ulil'tlion will h- ?<n?lnet <1
on I jjo eo'itinucun plan r.:ul will ha a
counting room and offices in tl a
northwest torner of tho IJellcvuo*
Stratford. j