Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1904-04-21

dangers and its action must be condemned
by the Democratic party
Usurping the powers Of the Legislative
branch of the government and defying that
section of the constitution which declares
that all fiscal legislation must originate in
the house, which comes direct from the
| people every two years, we find the Repub-
lican executive, by one stroke Of the pen,
lappr0priating millions to be paid in pen
sions to the soldiers of the republic
No Democrat desires to deny the old
soldiers who have fought their country i
battles the pensions to which they are en-
titled but we say it is an outrage that this
order should come from the executive, who
Is candidate for the presidency in the face
of presidential campaign.
We have had a sporadic attempt to en-
force the law against the trusts, but was it
an honest case9 Was it intended to make
for the welfare of the people or only for
campaign purposes The body polite OF
this country is infested with Just such sores
and yet instead of enforcing the law against
them all, we find the chief Law officer of the
president declaring, as soon as this one feat
is accomplished, that he has no intention to
run up against the other trusts. oh, what
bid for campaign funds this one case was.
The rest of you need not fear, we have
made our record we have attracted the at
tention of the public, is the declaration
of the Republicans Come down with
your checks and help re-elect us. is their
cry to the trnsts.
The trusts have not been dealt with in a
manner that has been effective. What is it
that has given them their power? They
have been fed and supported by Ubiquitous
tariff laws
No Democrat would deny to infant in
dustries the protection in the tariff that will
enable all employers to pay the best pos
sible wages to the American workingman.
You ali know that the benefits OF the
present protective laws of this country are
not enjoyed by the infant industries or the
workingman, but by overgrown industries
gobbled up by trusts, which compel us to
pay this tribute out of the hard earning of
the poor.
What a shame it is for the Republican
party to pretend that it can deal with the
sources of this evil while feeding it with
legislation.
The situation is not very encouraging
when we come to our own state. If there
was ever state that was manacled to cor
porations and railroads, New jersey enjoys
that unenviable position to the limit We
have no objection to the help that these
competitions give us in the payment of our
own taxes, SO long as they are our servants
and not our masters. What we complain
Of is that the Republican administration Of
this state has allowed the trusts to become
our masters Let them enjoy equal rights
with all of us, but under the law and not
above it. Let them have voice in iegis-
lation, but not control it.
Some so or rs years ago, you remember,
the people of New Jersey gave great privil-
eyes to a company to construct a waterway
in the northern part Of the state Believing
that such waterway would be Of value to
the people of that section, the state gave to
the Morris canal company practically all
the water rights in northern New Jersey.
The canals business grew and finally its
tonnage amounted to 800, 900 tons per year
and its earnings to nearly half million
dollars. The Lehigh Valley railroad recog-
nizing in the canal a strong competitor,
bought it, and in few years the tonnage
had decreased to one-ifth of what it had
been.
Then the railroad Company came knock
ing at the door of the legislature asking for
the prililege Of abandoning the canal
There was no objection to the abandoning
but the railroad wanted to retain for its
own use all the rights which the people had
given to the canal company
Three times the railroad company came
and knocked, but the legislature didn't dare
do what it wanted.
Finally a commission was appointed
commission which was made up Of three
former governors. The commission favored
the abandoning of the canal but did not
say the water rights which the people had
given the canal should be given to the
Lehigh Valley Railroad Company. But
tackled on to the commissioners report was
bill, and when the people read the bill,
they found that it gave to the Lehigh
Valley railroad everything it had ever
asked for
don't believe that the three ex-gover-
nOrs drafted that bill or ever saw it, for
their report recommended the opposite OF
what was provided for in the bill. The
people were aroused and the legislature
adjourned without passing the canal aban-
donment bill.
But the Lehigh Valley railroad wasn't
satisfied and the governor called an extra
session of the legislature to pass the aban-
donment bill and the pigeon bill. don't
believe the Republican leaders wanted the
pigeon bill passed. The Lehigh Valley
raj road had that extra session called, and
the object Of that session was defeated be-
cause the Republican leaders heard rum
bling in the earth. They didn't dare pass
the Lehigh Valley Railroads abandonment
bill. 1t wasn't for virtue, but for votes.
II there is one principle above all others
for which the Democratic party has ever
stood and for which it deserves great credit
it is for equal taxation for all the people,
Taxation at its best is burden upon US
all. Nevertheless, we bear 1t cheerfully SO
long as the burden is equally distributed
When, therefore, we see, as we do in some
of the cities of this state, private citizens
paying three cents on the dollar and the
railroads paying one cent on the dollar we
protest The demand of the mayor IS league
for equal taxation was right and for that
/ prrnose and NOT for niOeons or the canal