The Washington times., 1905-11-16
Destroying Men of Straw.


The ingenuousness of some of the
newspaper organs of corporate inter
especially those which hold the
tender destinies of the railroads close
to hearts as refreshing sometimes
as an April shower, and nearly al
ways quite as delightful as the flow
ers that bloom in the spring. Read
their naive utterances and believe
them, and one is convinced at last
he has found the fountain of per
petual youth. Otherwise he could
not believe.
Take the New York Times. for ex-
ample-and a stately and imposing
example it is. There is nothing
groveling about that paper When
1t speaks 1t is with the voice Of one
having authority, and when it dis
misses 9 subject it is evidently with
a profound conviction there is moth
ing more to be said. It dwells, more
over. IN high moral attitudes. To
preserve all the unities. absolute and
inviolate. its deliyerances should be
written on tablets of stone.
There was a deiiverauce the other
morning that was impressive-even
unusually impressive. 1t had regard
to a visit made by certain railway
employees to the President and il con-
cluded a rebuke from which the Pres
ident must still be suffering with this
outburst OF scornful indignation:
The railway employees are right. The
new laws the President asks Tor, II
had any force or validity, would we'll
nigh Inevitably result IN the lowering
OF wages. They would diminish the
by directly affecting its inooms br=
by impairing the control of It's own
ers over their possessions. The Presi-
dents answer to his visitors may puz-
zle and mysttfy, It viii not satisfy
them. Even in the House of Repre-
sentatives. where many members have
felt free 70 vote for rate-f1xing bill,
well knowing that the Senate would
never pass Il, there Will be, we imagine,
some notable changes OF heart when
ideas begins to make itself felt
This is as it may be What effect
the alleged opposition of labor tc
railroad rate legislation is going tc
have upon members of the House ot
Representatives is certainly a ques
ton, dependent, 1t would seem, large
" upon the development of this op
position. Had not the American
Federation of Labor. by vote prac
tically unanimous. decided yesterda,
10 table a resolution in which rats
legislation was condemned, conf
dence IN the New York Times In
formation on the subject would b,
more profound.
The argument of the Times. o
course, is the argument ad hominem
q method of logical demonstration i
denounces bitterly. and often almos
profanely, at least a dozen times
day. Especially is 1t severe when /
detects Mr.. Hearst and his news
papers in the act of making these In
genious and oft effective appeals. In
deed, there is no reason to conclud,
the Times has made consistency an,
less a jewel than It has been in tn,
past
That the Presidents policy Of rat
regulation does not involve neces
sarily the decrease In the averag
rate charges of American lines dir
not require the authority OF hi
statement. Men who want to know
have understood that all along. !
is the injustice OF the existing sys
tenn, the methods of destroying on
individual or one community at tn
expense OF another. which has arous
ed public sentiment and attracted tn
leadership OF the President It /
this evil which it is hoped viii b
remedied.
But why inform the Times? L
these dull hours OF the election
aftermath It Graves and demand
mental excitement. II the cravin
IS satisfied by spirited destruction G
men Of straw why should the publ
lament? A brotherly feeling. how
ever. impels the suggestion that Nj
Roosevelt Is by no means a man @
straw.