Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-01-28
POLITICS HELD SWAY
House Did Not Confne Itself
to Urgent Deficiency Bill.
SPEECH OF G. B. lands
TELLS OF CHANGE OF HEART RE-
GARDING PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT.
The Latter's Claim to Praise for His
Course Regarding Combinations
and the Coal Strike.
SPEECH OF G. B. LANDS


Representatives yesterday afternoon. and
the time for voting on the urgent deficiency
bill was again postponed in consequence.
The debate gave rise to particularly eu-
logistic reference to President Roosevelt by
Representative c. B. Lands of Indiana.
Mr. Lands frankly admitted. that he had
not always been an admirer of the chief ex-
ecutive but declared he had been won COM
pleteiy over. His tribute was one of the
most striking heard in the chamber
The Southern Negro.
The debate of the afternoon began to
| grow lively when Representative Hard
| wick of Georgia delivered a speech on the
negro question He said there never had
| been any disposition in the south to de-
prive the negro of his civil rights-the right
| to earn living, and the right of protection
| to life and property. There cannot be po-
| litical equality, he contended. He quoted
| statistics and declared it was shown that as
| illiteracy decreased among the race crfmi-
nality increased, from which he deduced
| that education had been detrimental rather
| than beneficial to- the negro.
| Mr.. Watson Qnd) asked if he believed in
abolishing schools for the negro.
! Mr.. Hardwick replied that higher educa-
ton untitled the negro for work; that it
gave him an ambition too high to be real
lied in the south or elsewhere. Calling at
| tention to the laws of a number of states
including Ohio, Vermont, Massachusetts,,
Connecticut, Maine. Oregon. California,
Wyoming and Idaho he said if the repre-
| Sentation of the southern states were to be
| reduced because of the voting qualifications
| imposed the representation of the states
| named would have to be reduced for the
| same reason
Mr.. Grosvenor (Ohio)- remarked to Mr.
| Hardwick that it was the best presentation
| OF a bad cause he had ever heard
| MI Lands, speaking of the condition of
| the two parties, said the democratic party
was in the midst of Generalization and hui
| initiation; that it was without a leader and
| without man. while the republican party
stands with it's face to the future more
| hopeful than ever.
| Reference to election methods in southern
| states precfpitated numerous colloques be-
tween Mr.. Lands and Mr.. Williams (Miss)
and several others on the minority side.
| Mr.: Lands said prosperity was here to re-
| main II the democrats would let 1T stay,
| but the democrats could scare it away to-
| morrow. he added. by electing democratic
| congress and enacting a measure similar
10 the German Wilson tariff bill. The
puDncanS. declared Mr.. Lands, would go
| INTO the battle on the partys record. He
! called attention to the prosperous condition
| or the southern states, and replying to a
question by Mr. Livingston (Ga.). he said
| the democratic states were prosperous in
| spite of themselves.
Mr.. Landis' Change of Heart.
w iiot Lay CidlHl 10 having been the
| original Roosevelt man." said Mr.. Lands.
| Years ago 1 antagonIzed him and his ideas
and it came to be a habit with me to say
harsh things about him. In my own news
| paper questioned his motives In nv own
! newspaper I said he was a sham reformer
| ana pretender. But have changed nv
mind with reference to Theodore Roosevelt.
as have millions of others of his country
| men. first appreciated what an erro-
| neOuS estimate I had pIaca5 on
| saw him, with war threatening infuse
| into one of the great departments of this
| government, stagnant with the monotonous
| routine and dry rot of third of century
| the real blood of activity and timely prep
aration. l realized how 1 had misiudged
| him when l saw the announcement in the
daily press that he had decided to abandon
| place Of power and safety which insured
| conspicuous performance in the very the
| ater or war to raise a regiment to lead to
| the 'front.' 1t seemed to me that that was
the supremest test. for it involved good
bye, II not farewell, to little children and
their mother l knew how fearfully / had
misJudged him when with my colleagues
| on the floor of this House read bulletins
which told how he under a blistering sky,
| the target for a hundred sharpshooters had
| given modern exhibition of that courage
that daring, that heroic vaIor, which has
compelled all nations to subscribe to the
verdict that the American volunteer Is the
| greatest soldier on earth.
Called a Halt on Combines"
We are told that he mixed I'D in the
Northern Securities affair." Yes, he did.
| With hundreds of thousands Of his coun-
trymen, he realized that conservatism had
| lost its head and that capital had gone
mad He invoked the law passed by this
| Congress, and he called stop on combj
nation and speculation that was running
wild In the republic. That law was passed
by this Congress at the earnest solicita-
tion of the American people. One of the
| richest men in New York told me that the
| country would never know what a service
| Theodore Roosevelt had rendered when he
| started the machinery of that litigation
| He stated that had matters been permitted
to go on unchecked we would have had a
panic that would have been without paral-
lei in the history of American financial
| devastation The men who are criticising
most severely now are those whom he
| saved from the consequences of their own
| rapacious folly.
The Coal Strike Settlement.
1--WE are told that he injected himself
| into the anthracite coal strike. He did,
and who is there who will say that he
| erred? He saw passion and greed facing
| each other, hostile and uncompromising,
| and he said to them: Come let us. reason
i together He brought about settlement
! of that strike. and he did it without sacri-
ficing in any manner the dignity of his Of
flee. We must not forget the situation as
1t existed then. Millions of people were
| without fuel. Disease was claiming it's
victims and the chill of death was in
| many cottage.
Right here in the city of Washington
people were burning their furniture to
keep warm. This Capitol building was
running on twentyfour hours of coal ra-
| lions. and We knew not at what hour we
| would have to suspend business Men
| who were known as conservative citizens
| all over the Union were heading delega-
| lions which would stop trains loaded with
| coal and confiscate the cargo. Do you not
| think 1t time for some one to speak?
| coward in the White House would have
| remained silent But there was a brave
| man in the White House, and he acted, and
that strike was settled and the nation was
| saved from series of riots that might
| have ripened into a revolution. His con-
duct in the Northern Securities case and
| in the anthracite coal situation elevated
him in the confidence and esteem of the
| American people, and his course in the
| Panama achievement has placed him so
securely in the affections of his country
| men to protect him absolutely from the
plotting of democracy and assure his vim
dication next November
A Unique Place in History.