Evening journal., 1905-01-31
ood1ie49
PRESIDENT TALKS
ABOUT REBATES
He Advocates Government
Control Of Interstate Rail
road Lines
MUST Be RIAL .ii Effective

Philadelphia, Jan 81. - President
Roosevelt was the guest of honor and
principal speaker at the 42d anniver
cary banquet of the Union League
The banquet room was a marvel OF
the decorators art The national col
ors predominated in the floral and
electrical effects, and the tables were
designated by letters in red, white and
blue. forming the name Roosevelt"
President Roosevelt occupied a seat
in the centre of the guests table, with
President +. T. stotesbury. of the Un-
ion League on his right and United
States Senator Penrose on his left
Seated at the same table we're former
Postmaster General Charles Emory
Smith, Congressman Bingham Sur
geon General Rixey, Major General
Frederick ID. Grant, Lieutenant Gen
eral S. B. NJ. Young Governor Lea.
Of Delaware; Governor Stokes. of New
Jersey, and Mayor Weaver, of this city
When President Roosevelt arose to
make his address he was greeted with
long.continucd applause He said in
part:
This club was founded to uphold the
hands Of Abraham Lincoln when he stood
as the great leader in the struggle for
union and liberty. The principles which
Lincoln applied to the solution of the
problems OF his day are those which we
must apply If we expect successfully to
solve the different problems OF our own
day-problems which are so largely in
dustrial. Unquestlonahly the great de-
velopment of industriallsm means that
there must be an increase in the super
vision exercised by the government over
business enterprises. This supervision
should not take the form of violent and
ill-advised Interference; and assuredly
there is danger lest II take such form II
the business leaders of the business COM
munity confine themselves TO trying to
thwart the effort at regulation instead of
guiding II Alright.
Neither this people nor any other free
people viii permanently tolerate the use
Of tho vast power conferred By vast
wealth. and especially by wealth I'm it's
corporate form, without lodging some
whore In the government the still higher
power of seeing that this power i'm addi-
tion to being used In the interest Of the
individual or individuals possessing it, is
also used for and not against tho inter-
ests Of the people as a whole our pecul-
lar form of government. n government i'm
which the nation Is supreme throughout
the union In certain respects, while each
I of nearly half hundred states Is SUI
premc In its part of the union in certain
other respects, renders the task OF deal
ing with these conditions especially diff
cult No finally satisfactory result can
be expected frol@ merely state action
/ The action must come through the fed
oral government The business OF the
country * now carried on I'm "a way of
which the founders of our constitution
could by no possibility have had any idea
All great business concerns are engag-
| ed I'm interstate commerce and II was be-
/ yond question the intention Of the found
ers OF our government that Interstate
! commerce In all its branches and aspects
/ should be under national and not state
/ control II the courts decide that this in
| tcntlon was not carried out and MADE ef-
/ fectve I'm the constitution. as it now
stands, then i'm the end the constitution
/ II not construed differently. will have TO
be amended so that the original undoubt-
/ ed intention may be made effective But
1 a constitutional amendment is only TO be
used as last resort, If every effort OF
3 legislation and administration shall have
! been proved inadequate.
The railroad, which was utterly un-
/ known when our government was formed
and when the great principles of our
/ jurisprudence were laid down, has now
| become almost everywhere the most inn
/ portant and only form of highway for
commerce The man who controls it's
use cannot be permitted to control It in
I his own interest alone IL IS not only
just but # is In the interest of the public
that this man should receive ample pay
ment for the business capacity which en-
ables him to benefit himself while bene-
fitting the public; but In return he must
himself recognize his duty TO the public
He win not and cannot do this II our
laws are so defective that IN the sharp
competition OF the business world the
| conscientious man is put at a disadvan-
tage by his less scrupulous fellows. 1t is
in the interest Of the conscientious and
public spirited railway man that there
/ should be such governmental supervision
Of the railway traffic Of the country as
TO require from his less scrupulous COM
petltors and from unscrupulous big ship
pers as well, that heed to the public well
fare which he himself would willingly
give. and which Is Of vital consequence
TO the small shipper. Every important
railroad is engaged In interstate COM
merce. Therefore this control over the
railroads must come through the ma
tional government.
The control must be exercised by some
governmental tribunal and it must be
real and effective.
The details must rest with the law
makers of the two houses Of congress;
but about the principle there can be no
doubt. Hasty or vindictive action would
merely work damage; but in temperate,
resolute fashion, there must be lodged In
some tribunal the power over rates and
= especially over rebates-whether secured
by means OF private cars, of private
tracks, in the form of damages or COM
, missions, or in any other manner -
which will protect alike the railroad and
tho shipper. and put the big shipper and
the little shipper on an equal footing.
In some such body as the Interstate
commerce commission there must be
lodged in effective shape the power 20 see
that every shipper who uses the rail-
roads and every man who owns or man
= ages a railroad SHAH on the one hand be
given Justice and on the other hand be
required to do justice. Justice-so Tar as
IL is humanity possible 10 give and 10 get
j. iusuce-is the foundation OF our govern
4 ment We are not trying TO strike down
che rich man; on the contrary. We win
not tolerate any attack upon his rights
+ We are not trying TO give an improper
e advantage 20 the poor man because he
is poor, TO the man OF small means be-
cause he has not larger means: hut We
. are striving to see that the man of small
i means has exactly as good a chance. so
e far as we can obtain il for him. as the
g man of larger means; that there shall be
= | equality of opportunity for the one as
e for the other.
Letters Of regret we're read from
Joseph G. Cannon, speaker of the
house, and Governor Pennypacker OF
: Pennsylvania