The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1905-10-20
LIKE A bALKY HORSE
Senate's Attitude Towards
Priests. Rate Legislation.
Walter WeIIman Discusses the
Situation as II Is.
Will Roosevelt Be Strong
Enough to Win Out?
Congress to Do Something, But
Will Go 1t Alone.
WALTER wELLMAN IN THE CHICAGO RECORD
HERALD.

LwALTER wELIMAN IN THE CHICAGO RECORD
HERALD.
Washington, Oct. lis President
Roosevelt strong enough to score a
genuine success as a constructive states
man and leader of legislation by his par
ty during the coming winter? This is
question which many public men are
asking today, and one may be sure the
president himself is considering it as
anXiously as anyone. Discussion OF the
outlook from this point Of view as sery-
ed to emphasize the somewhat remark
! able fact that up to this time, broadly
speaking, Mr.. Roosevelt's success as
president has been outside the Const-
| tuition, as it is so often phrased.
In short, the two noteworthy successes
of his career have been the settling of an
industrial conflict in Pennsylvania and
the bringing about of peace between ia
pan and Russia-both affairs with which
| the president of the United States had
no constitutional concern and which did
| not involve any act or responsibility on
the part of this government beyond the
purely personal activities of the head of
| the state himself
Mr.. Roosevelt has been in the White
| House more than four years, and, though
no president has been more prolific of
suggestions to the lawmakers, virtually
the only important act that has come
out of his initiative and leadership is
Cuban reciprocity.
An extraordinary meager result, in
view of the fact that Mr.. Roosevelt is
conceded to be not only one of the abb
est presidents we have ever had, but
perhaps the most popular among the
masses of the people.
During the coming winter Mr.. Roose
velt's leadership of his party in the
broader sense is to be put to the test
again. The three subjects the president
intends urging upon the national legis-
lature in his annual message and other
wise are these:
One. Railway rate legislation.
Two. Federal supervision and regula
ton of life insurance.
Three. Practical application of the
Monroe doctrine by placing power in the
hands of the president to deal effective
ly with international questions which in
volve the Monroe principle.
On all three of these chief subjects
of proposed legislation, the president is
likely to have large measure of pub
lie sentiment behind him. And yet on
all three, it is probable, he is to fail
to secure satisfactory results.
As to railway rate legislation, the best
opinion here is that congress will do
something, but not what the president
wants; that a bill will be passed, but
that it will not place rate making pow
er in the hands of the interstate COM
merce commission or some other body
created by congress to deal with the sub
ject, and therefore meeting the require
ments of the Constitution. The most
| active observers in and near congress
would be much surprised if in the END
the president were able to win out and
secure what he is after.
There is no installing the presidents
earnestness or the sincerity Of his con-
viction that he is right But he is well
aware of the opposition to his plan
exists in both house of congress, nota-
bly, in the senate And the best evil
his steadily increasing skill in handling
his job, to put it colloquially, is found
official announcement that "there is to
be no administration rate bill this win
ter"
:. =
The meaning of this is the president
recognizes the existence in congress of
a continuous and well-defined sensitive
ness as to the interference of the exc
cutive with the constitutional preroga-
tives of that body and he is prudently
trying to avoid giving offense. Whether
he can succeed in this is another ques
ton. For fortnight or more the papers