Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1902-12-11
ROOSEVELT TO CONGRESS
His Annual Communication Upon Questions
of importance to the Nation.
VIEWS ON THE TRUSTS AND TARIFF
Lowering of Import Duties Would Not Remedy the
Evils of Monopoly-Believes in a Tariff Com
mission-Much That Is Good in Labor
Unions and Corporatons-Many
Needs of the Nation.

To the Senate and House of Representa-
tiVes: We still continue in period of
uEbounGed prosperity. This prosperity is
not the creature of law but Undoubtedly
the laws under which We work have been
instrumental in creating the conditions
which mace it possible, and by unwse leg
iSlation it would be easy enough to destroy
It. There will undoubtedly be periods of
depression. The wave will receGe; but the
tide Will advance. This nation is seated on
a continent hanked by two great oceans.
1t Is composed of men the descendants of
pioneers, or IN sense, pioneers them
selves; of men winuOwed out from among
the nations Of the olG world by the energy,
boldness, and love Of adventure found in
their own eager hearts. Such ration, SO
placed, Will surely wrest success from for
tune.
As a people We have played large part
In the world. and We are bent upon making
our future even larger than the past. In
particular, the events of the last four years
have dc fnitely decided that, for woe or
for veal our place must be great among
the nations. We may either fan greatly
or succeed greatly, but we cannot avoid
the enGeavor from which either great fail
we would, we cannot play a small part.
If we should try, ali that would follow
would be that We should play q large part
tgnobly and shamefully.
Causes of Prosperity.
No country has ever occupied a higher
plane of material well-being than ours
at the present moment. This well-beinS
is due to no sudden or accidental causes,
but to the play of the economic forces
this country for over a century; to
our our sustained and continuous
policies; love all, to the high individ-
ual average of our citizenship. Great
fortunes have been won by those who
have taken the lead in this phenomenal
industrial development, and most Of these
fortunes have been won not by doing
evil, but an incident to action which
has benefited the community as a whole.
Never before has material well-bcing
been so widely diffused among our peo-
Pile. Great fortunes have been accum-
ulated, and yet in the aggregate these
fortunes are small indeed when COM
pared to the wealth of the people as a
whole. The plain people are better off
than they have ever been before. The
insurance companies, which are praC-
ticaly mutual benefit sOceties-especial-
ly helpful to men of moderate means
represent accommodations of capital which
are among the largest in this country.
There are more deposits in the savings
banks, more owners of farms. more we'll
than ever before in ourhistory. OF course,
when the conditions have favored the
growth of so much that was good, they
have also favored somewhat the growth
of what was evil. 1t is cmnenty neCes-
Sary that we should endcaVor to cut out
this evil. but let us keep a due sense of
proportion: let MS not in fixing our gaze
upon the lesser evil forget the greater
good The evils are real and some Of
them are menacing, but they are the
OutErowth. not of misery or deCadcnCe,
gigantic industrial development. This
industrial development must not he
checked. but side by side with II should
go such progressive regulation as viii
our duty If we did not try to remedy the
evils, but we shall succeed only II we
proceed patiently with practical common
sense "a well as resolution, separating
the former while eEdeayoring TO get rid
of the latter.