Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1905-12-01

Two Great Policies.

The well-informed and reliable Wash
ington correspondent of the Boston Trans
cript says, with the approaching session
of Congress in view, that the Roosevelt
administration is at work upon two great
lines of public policy, one domestic and
the other foreign, but each entirely dis
tinct from the other. President Roose-
welt recognizes fully the fact that the first
need of the American people is the safe
guarding of individual rights in their re-
lations to the great corporations, and he
believes that events, backed and urged
forward by an aroused public sentiment,
are moving toward a national control of
corporations With this movement he is
entirely in sympathy, but he realizes that
1t must advance slowly and that no great
change can be accomplished all at once.
The first logical step he sees to be in the
direction of the public regulation of trans
portatlon corporations and it is this sub
ject which he will steadily and forcibly
urge upon the attention of Congress. This
correspondent further says that. while
Mr.. Roosevelt is himself thorough be-
lever in the necessity of tariff revision,
he realizes fully the practical impossi-
bility, political and otherwise, of accom-
plishing comprehensive tariff changes
now. He believes as do all our people
that national prosperity is secure for the
present, and that 1t is far more important
that unjust discrimination by the rail-
roads should be done away with than that
certain tariff changes should be accom-
plished or attempted.
The second line of policy has reference
TO our relations with the South American
countries and a proper understanding by
them of the Monroe doctrine. Mr. Roose-
welt holds, in short, that while this
country undertakes to protect our South
American neighbors from enroachment or
invasion by European powers, this act of
protection on our part involves the OBJ
llgauon on the part of these smaller
countries to observe their contracts show
themselves amenable to international law.
and conduct themselves generally as or
derly and self-respecung members of the
great family of nations. With this pur-
pose in view, it is understood that Sec
retary of State Root will early in the
new year go to Brazil with the primary
purpose of attending there the session of
the Congress of American Republics.
which owes its existence to the work of
James G. Blaine when he held the Office
of secretary of state. But Mr.. Root will
not be simply a spectator at the proceed
ings of that Congress. He has a definite.
comprehensive policy to work out for
better continental regulations and for a
more definite and binding understanding of
the scope and meaning of the Monroe doc
trine.
The present administration" this cor
respondent says in conclusion, holds its
authority by such a peculiarly strong
popular commission, in the practical eras-
ure of party lines in Congress and before
the public, that it need not content itself
in doing routine administration work,
signing appropriation bills and issuing
Thanksgiving proclamations, but instead
should map out far-reaching policies, for
eign and domestic, which may turn leaf
in the historic chapter of our own won
derful age"