The progress-advertiser. (Lexington, Miss.) 1902-1903, 1903-08-13
| WASHINGTON
| LETTER.
--------A-

ID /
wearing worn, haggard and hunted
expression are now walking the
J streets of the nations capital wear.
ing a broad and expansive smile that
: somewhat resembles a crack in q
frozen liver. Wherefore? Simply
because on the 31st Of July last the
statute of limitation ran and they are
forever barred from prosecution for
| the misdeeds and peculation they in
dulged in while holding positions of
trust and honor under the national
government three years ago. There
are many men who ought to have
been indicted and would have been
had not President Roosevelt told
Fourth Assistant Postmaster General
Bristow not to investigate any of the
cases where the statute of limitation
would run this year. 1t was known
here also that Perry S. Heath, the
secretary of the Republican National
Committee, would have been of one
the first indicted, along with Machen,
if the republican leaders had not
stepped in and put a veto on the
thing. Mr.. Heath knows too much
of the inside working of the cog
wheels and oiling that the different
parts of the machine received in the
last two national campaigns. He
might, as Rathborne threatened to do
pull down the pillars Of the temple
and that would be dangerous to many
in high places and leave the republi-
can skeleton exposed in all it's hide
BUSINESS. The man who invented the
statute of limitations should have a
monument erected to his memory by
the republican leader, for they know
how much tribulation he saved them
The next convention Of the party
should pass the hat around and no
one should be more liberal in his do
nation than President Roosevelt, for
| it has saved him a world of annoyance
and publicity, that migiiv iave jeop-
ardized his political future. An ex-
cellent slogan for the republicans
next year would be: Vive la Statute
Of limitations!
As corroboratlve evidence that the
leaders of the republican party are
standing in with the trusts and they
each understand the game that is
being played for the edifcation of the
gullihle public, the administration
organ in Washington, the Evening
Star, not long ago had an article at
tacking Governor LaFollette of Wis
consin for his speeches before differ
ent Chautauqua assemblies, in which
he fercely assailed the trusts of the
country. This article said in effect
that Governor LaFollette was to be
disciplined for his heresy; that he
was jumping on the republican party
and one of its pets in his attacks on
the trusts, and that the leaders of
the republican party were becoming
alarmed lest the trusts should get
the idea that they really were after
them and withdraw their financial
support. What stronger evidence
that the republican party is the party
Of, for and by the trusts, do the peo-
| pie want?
If President Roosevelt is elected
next year it will be simply and solely
because the voters of the country
believe that he is helping them in
their battle with the trusts. 1t is
not strange, then, that the President
is doing all in his power to give cur
rency to the idea that he is fighting
the trusts with might and main.< Let
us see how he is doing this. Let us
see how much he is entitled to the
distinguished consideration of the
people for his efforts to curb the
trusts. Mr.. Roosevelt started in po-
litical life as a strenuous free trader,
and was member Of the New York
Free Trade Club, yet recently, under
pressure from the Protective Tariff
League, he joined the "standpat-
ters," and thus stands opposed to
the most certain way Of curbing the
trusts and giving relief to the peo-
pie by reducing the tariff duties.
1t was the Presidents voice that
killed the Littlefield anti-trust bill in
the last Congress and caused the
passage Of two sham ANTITRUST bills
i Tho Ellxina nnti- -rahata hill and Tho