The Washington times., 1905-12-05
An Impressive Message

Dead wood is conspicuously absent
from the Presidents message. 1t is
alive from beginning 20 end. From
his first general observations on pros
perity-"Taken as a whole, we must
all go up or go down together
his last recommendation for the
State Department-that we provide
salaries for our diplomatic represent
atives proportional to their response
bilities-it is full OF meat The mes
sage has, moreover, new tone. 1t
is more deliberative, more judicial,
though not less vigorous, than the
Presidents earlier state papers. All
in all, IL is fine condensation of the
problems now before the American
people and sets forth answers to
many of those problems which the
American people Will heartily in
dorse.
Under those circumstances, 1t is un-
wise TO attempt brief OF the instru-
ment. The several subjects of which
it treats will come up in Congress
separately, and must be discussed in
the newspapers separately. But it
is possible here to indicate a few Of
the Executive expressions in which
the readers of The Times will find
instant and extra interest
Thus, the President scrupulously
refrains from imposing on Congress
any specific terms which he would
have embodied In its legislation for
the control of railway rates. ct IS
not In my province" he says. "to in
dicate the exact terms of the law
which should be enacted; but 1 call
the attention of the Congress to GER
tain existing conditions with which
it is desirable TO deal"
This care not to seem to take to
himself the legislative province of
Congress is manifest throughout the
message. But no inconsistency with
it is involved because his advisers
have drafted and submitted to Con
gress an outline Of the authority
which, In their judgment and his, is
requisite to the accomplishment of
the reform the President recon-
mends. That outline, in the form of
a bill first published in The Times.
has now been printed officially aud
put before both houses of Congress.
by whom 1T is regarded as the Ad-
ministration measure. But it is no
bar TO any independent action bv
Congress which would accomplish the
same results; and the President right
ly keeps that distinction clear.
The review of the commercial con-
ditions which have made such legisIa-
tion necessary, and have produced the
present Insurance scandals; the com
ment on present conflicts between
capital and labor; the need for free
competition and the not less essen
tial need for the supervision OF great
corporate power which stifies COM
petition; the pressing demand for
laws Furnishing bribery and corrup-
tion in Federal elections; the indorse-
ment Of the present pension admin
istration and the proposal to care for
Confederate graves; the danger of
exposing the world TO the depreda-
tions Of the barbarous and despotic
by precipitous disarmament; our for
eign relations and the broader Mon
roe doctrine; the navy large
enough" our inadequate naturaliza-
ton laws and an international con-
ference for the control OF immigration
TO America; the hearty Endorsement
of the jamestown exposition: the re-
affirmation of recent amendments to
the civil service regulations; the de-
mand for free trade with the PhiIiD-
pines; and the review Of our Iabors
on the isthmus of Panama are all of
extreme importance They are. in
fact, of too much importance to be
treated briefly.