The Saint Paul globe., 1899-04-23
PUBLIC Is OFTEN VICTIMIZED
STOCK sPECULATORs MANIPULATE
THEIR COMBINATIONS TO PUB
LIC DISASTER
wATERED STOCKS A MENACE
Wealth I'm Itself Il Not to BE Feared,
Said the senator-The Solution
of the DifRculty Was to BE Found
In Investigating the Right of Ger
tain Corporations to Exist-Ad-
dress Was Well Received.

NEW YORK, April 22.-The Montauk
club gave dinner tonight in honor of
Senator Chauncey M. Depew, about 25O
members and guests sitting down to the
banquet. 1t was Senator Depew's sixty
fifth birthday. The club house was hand
somely decorated. and Senator Depew
got a rousing reception. President Moore
presided and acted as POSTMASTER
Mr.. Depew said that since nobody
wishes to die everybody must be glad he
was born. He continued: "It is a good
thing to have a birthday but its pleasure
Is increased when your friends In this
substantial way indicate their Joy that
you came into the world. Artemus Ward
said. 1T would have been $40 In the pocket
OF Jefferson Davis If he had never been
born, but the only limitation upon ma
tai festivities is the necessity Of making
a speech. The difficulty increases when
the occasion has called together goodly
company, the majority of whom have lis
tened and cheered for eight successive
years. Happily for me the life of an
American is Kaleidoscope and the his
tory of our country presents perpetual
succession OF new and interesting pic
lures. Certainly the last twelve months
form an epoch in the story of nations.
Heretofore you have honored me as
private citizen. But tonight you greet
me both as the same old friend and your
representative in the senate Of the United
States. l shall be most fortunate, IL in
this new sphere l am able in a measure,
to meet your partial expectations and
predictions. Certainly I am absolutely
free and untrammeled. l am proud of
the railway profession in which I have
spent my life, but I owe to 1t no obliga-
tions to favor 1t in any way or to treat
Its interests in any other manner as q
legislator than all other questions which
may come up for action. Public duty Is
very simple and not In conflict with any
honest business "a It is that whatever is
for the public good, is also for the good
OF every legitimate trade. occupation and
business in the country.
PEOPLE WISE.
my long connection with the work and
operations of the railroads has given me
g. healthy contempt for politicians who
believe that they can fool the people by
phrases denouncing the work and those
engaged In 1t out Of whom they make
money in practice. The familiar form is
the lawyer who derives his fees and his
living from the retainers Of corporations,
and in legislative halls and on the plat.
form covers them with indiscriminate
abuse. Another form Is that which makes
nate to stock speculation the fiuctuation
of values and the undermining OF credit.
With an ingenious stock broker, shrewd
lawyer, and skillful press agent the COM
bination is complete. The bill Is intro
duced, Its advent heralded as a public
boom and patriotic effort in the in
terest of the people. The committee ia
vorably rsnorts, the stock of the COM
pany soon goes down, the investors be-
RI oh nd
upon the market, the spectators, who
have sold short in anticipation Of this ef-
feet, cover their contracts at a large
profit. Then they buy again at the panic
price, the measure is quietly killed, the
stocks and bonds affected resume their
normal relation. the speculators are again
the winners, hundreds, perhaps thou
sands, of people who could i'll afford 1t
are the losers, and legislation and legis-
lators are injured in that essential Of
government, the confidence of the people.
WATCH THE TRUSTS.
''The tendency Of the times cannot be
met by shouting. AS the business in
most common present form Is Of neces-
sity public because done under a public
charter, the state must exercise a scru-
tiny which would not be permitted m
the conduct Of private affairs. The state
is bound to protect Its people against any
enterprise which, under the form Of law
and it's protection, is injurious to the
people. It Is bound to protect the in
vestor by keeping the electric light Of
publicity constantly upon all its creations.
The vast wealth which has poured into
our country because the world has be-
come our debtor apparently exhausted
the securities In which money could oe
prof1tably invested. Three per cent inter-
est after the taxes are taken out leaves
little income for the support Of the help
less, which every prudent and right
minded man desires to provide. This sit
uation was speedily grasped by far
sighted and speculative men, who have
organized the present Industrial craze.
Come with u.s. they cry, and we will
give you per cent upon our bonds, 6 per
cent upon our preferred stock and an in
come upon the common only to be gauged
by the growth Of the country Three
thousand millions Of dollars at par of