The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1904-04-05
CURRENT

Having proved tina it is in its power
to crush these monopolies where they
exist in defiance of the law. IL will re-
main for the administration to indi
cate which shall be allowed to contin-
ne unmolested- Those organizations
which are friendly to the administra.
ton and which will assist in the COM
ing campaign win be among the good
trusts" Those declining to assist, If
any there be, will be among the bad
trusts" For h n the glad hand
for the other the mailed fst.-Utica
Observer.
The course OF events is every day
emphasizing the great opportunity he
fore the democratic party. Never was
the longing for eligible opposition more
pronounced or widespread. Thousands
OF republicans are coming reluctantly
to believe that what their party most
needs is a sound drubbing at the polls,
and are asking with unconcealed INK
iety whether h democrats are likely
to offer a platform and a candidate
such as the country can hear of with.
out alarm. Under our system Of party
government. the natural remedy for
such arrogance. such corruption, sucn
fierce factionalism as the republicans
are now displaying in office. is to turn
them out; and it is mainly a question
of the democrats showing themselves
to be fit to be<used as the means or
punishment-New York Post.
What are we coming to when a SEN
ator of the United States can be con-
victed and sentenced to fine and i'm
prisonment for converting his pull
into cash! Are there no prerogatives
after all, under the folds Of a toga?
ONO Sc NJ ~ nnco- --A@
sold his influence in the matter Of ap-
pointments, for ready money, actually
found guilty by a jury or plain people
of violating the law of the land. We
thought a enato was 10Y the law,
human and divine. and it is a rude
awakening to find that he may not be.
But senator Burton was foolish to sub
init to the trial of his cas- before the
courts of the country. He ought to
have followed the example of his col
league, Dietrich of Nebraska. who was
accused of the same sort of business
and escaped trial on a technically
leaving his case to the consideration
of the senate. where a nat has
some rights.-Charleston Post.
One unmistakeable lesson of this war
is the need of widely and we'll distrib-
uted coaling stations to a naval power,
Russia is suffering severely, ana is
likely to suffer more. for ack of
them. Not long ago it was said that
her squadron in the Red sea would 1e-
main there indefinitely, TO intercept
Japanese and contraband commerce
Then it was reported hat it was 60
ing back to the Baltic. The redso!
was, of course. that it could not get
supplies of coal from neutral ports or
the Red sea. If Russia had succeeded
in her AbySSinian intrigueS of a few
years ago and had secured a coa!ine
station on the coast near Obok, she
might now easily pal the Red sea
against all japanese ano
all commerce in ~contraband goods in
tended for Japan. AS it is. she must
withdraw her ships and leave the way
open. The statement that she viii
leave her torpedo boat ~destroyers a
Algiers until July, when they will re-
Join the fleet she will then send from
the Baltic to Japan is hardly credible
Algiers is a neutral port, and is no
likely thus to be made a base of bel
liegerent operations. IL the boats stay
there until July they will probabil
have to stay there until the end OF thu
war.-New York Tribune.
We call the attention OF III military
expert, especially Admiral Bowles
Gen. Joe Wheeler. and Captain Rich
mond Pearson Hobson to the very re
markable change of opinion which ba!
come owe the strategists of the Lon
don OF course. the lat
ter must be mistaken. for nothing vii
ever persuade us that the SCARED anC
grizzled warriors above mentionet
could err in the estimates they pro
claimed just after the humiliation c
the Russian fleet at Port Arthur. w
stand pat on their differences and pre-
dictionS. Foul wild horses couldn'
bulge us. Nevertheless Mr.. Fred 7
Jane. of the London Chronicle a spec
ialist of the first rank and Rear Ad
miral Ingle, perhaps an equally gifta
authority, are now busily explainini
| that the earlier news from Toxic, Shan
| hal. Chefoo, and other points of obSer
| walton must have been
( Some even go SO far as to say that tn
announcement of devastation brough
to Wei-ai-Wei by a missionary VIII
escaped from the cataclysm on a Chi
nese junk was feverish, if not inaccu
rate. In a word. we note on the PAL
Of the London experts u revision c
sentiment and prophecy which cause
us to turn with patriotic confidens
and pride to our own experts who wiz
ed the globe and ordered the Japanes
armies to move on Moscow weeks ag
Washington Post.
1t is a great game with the admin
istration now to try to club congress
men into silence by yelled threats. TT
Overstreet report on congressional
Irregularities in connection with t.
postal scandal was a manifest efor
stop the strong movement in congre
for a sweeping public investigation.
failed in so far as the democrat
members are concerned. The followil
dispatch which the New ork Tim
receives from it's Washington Corr
spo9dent indicates that the same c,
viii be tried in the pension case. +"
has beer brought to the presidents 4
| tention hat there is room for refor
in the way that members of congre
II indOrSe DeOSiOn naperS this evident