The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-11-28
THE LOBBY, THE PRESIDENT AND
RAILROAD RATE REGULA-
TION.

derideS the stories put in circulation
by the railroad emissaries that Mr..
Roosevelt is. trembling at the sound
of his own voice and is ''shivering at
the brink of the river into which he
plunged long ago." and closes by as
surfing the advocates OF government
regulation that they need have no
fear that the President will desert
them in the face of the enemy" The
Post seems to be in the fight for the
doctrine demanded by the Democratic
platform and upheld by Mr.. Roose-
welt. 1t declares that the President
has never deviated or wavered in any
utterance from the position set forth
in his message to Congress last De-
cember when he said
Il do believe that, as a fair security
to shippers, the commission should be
vested with the power, where a given
rate has been challenged, and, after
| full hearing, found to be unreasonable,
to decide. subject to judicial review,
what shall be a reasonable rate to
| take its place; the ruling of the COM
mission to take effect immediately, and
| to obtain unless and until 1t is re-
Versed by the court of review
| Any scheme of legislation that does
not cause 1.-The ruling of the commits
sion to take effect Immediately" will
be to postpone any remedial legislation
! to the slow processes of the inferior
Federal courts, in which most of the
judges We're appointed by the great
railroad corporations. This does no
| injustice to the railroads, but runs
counter to their determination to de-
mand the highest freight rate the
traffic will bear" and to run their
business independent of any regula-
| ton except their own sweet will. The
railroads have entered this fight to
finish They seek to destroy the fun
damental principle by substitutes or
amendments that would make legisla-
| ton abortive, and to that end they
are already crowding Washington with
| a lobby that is enough to disgust hon
est men. They are already so pernic-
iously active as to call forth this edl-
| toriaI warning from the Washington
Post:
"Adyice to the Railroad Companies.
"If our esteemed contemporaries,
| the railway corporations, would be
wise in their generation, they Will lose
| no time in calling off the lobbyists,
emissaries, and assorted agents VINO
ARE now infesting Washington, annoy
ing everybody. including the newspa-
pers, with their untimely and offensive
| OPPORTUNITIES. Nobody wants to hear
what they say They have their little
| lesson to repeat, and we know 1t all
beforehand. They convince none, in
| huence none, and serve no useful pur-
pose for their employers. The news
papers of this city understand the
question perfectly and need no advice
| or light from SalareG advocates. What
| the country wants Is to have the bat
| tie fought to finish on its merits.
These volunteer advisers do no good
for their cause. They merely perse-
cute innocent third parties. Call EN-
| in. and do it without the smallest loss
/ of time. They have no function i'm
| this problem save that of general 1rr1-
tation."
The advice may be taken in telling
the lobbyists to get out from under to
! calcium light and work in the dark,
| but so long have the heads of the
| transportation monopoly been per-
suaded that "every man can be con-
trolled" that they will keep up their
work, and if past experience is to be
repeated. this army of lobbyists Will
get in their work unless courageous
newspapers continue day by day to
expose their schemes and go TO the
point of giving their names to the
public. In a like emergency in Raj
eigh. when certain railroads filled the
capital with their hireling monopolists,
told the public that they had been
brought to Raleigh to try to thwart
1.-THE will of the people. Publicity and
exposure man by man is the only med
| icine that is effective with this shame
less gang that lives by corrupting men
charged with serving the public. We
are glad the leading paper at the ma
tion's capital has given them fair
warning and told the public thus early
of their presence and their mission.
| The Post is entirely right too, in
| its view of the legislation proposed,
and thus disposes of the claim that
such legislation is not demanded by
| the people and would not be legdl IL
granted:
| mo one can doubt that majority
| of the people of the land support the
Presidents policy. The judiciary and
| the bar agree as to- it's legality. IL
1.-THE power which the President pro-
poses shall be given 10 a commission
should be so abused as to invade the
constitutional rights of property, the
courts of the country Will be open
as they always have been, to remedy
any wrong"
If the President stands firm and
uses all the great power that his office
gives him to secure legislation, refus-
ing to yield an inch, the battle will
be royal one, for the power and the
resources of the transportation monop-
oily are second only to that of the gov
eminent, if, indeed, 1t does not so
| To II a