The San Francisco call., 1905-01-31


and principal speaker tonight at the
forty y-second anniversary banquet of
the Union League. The President came
to this city over the Pennsylvania road
from Annapolis, where he attended
the exercises this afternoon incident TO
the graduation of the senior class of
cadets.
An immense throng greeted Roose-
welt at the railroad station, and he re-
ceived an ovation on his way to the
Union League Club. AT the clubhouse
he passed through two lines of cheer
ing members to the reception room,
where from 6:15 to o'clock he stood
and shook hands with several hundred
prominent citizens.
The First Troop, Philadelphia City
Cavalry, acted as the Presidents es-
cort while he remained in the city.
When President Roosevelt rose TO
make his address he was greeted with
long continued applause. Then the en-
thusiastic. assembly stood and sang
The Star Spangled Banner" accom-
President Roosevelt in his address
said:
LINCOLN AS A GUIDE.
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. We have right
therefore to appeal to this club for aid
in every governmental or social EFFORT
made along the lines marked out by
Lincoln. The great President taught
many lessons which we who come after
him should learn. Among the most
important Of these was the lesson that
for veal or for woe we are indissolubly
bound together, in whatever part of the
country we live, whatever our social
standing, whatever our wealth or our
poverty, whatever form of mental or
physical activity our life work may as
sumo.
Lincoln, who was, more emphatic
ally than any other President we have
ever had, the President of the plain
people, was yet as far removed as
Washington himself from the slightest
taint of demagogy. With his usual far
sighted clearness of vision he saw that
in a republic such as ours permanent
prosperity OF any part of our people
was conditioned upon the prosperity OF
ALL and that, on the other hand, any
effort to raise the general level Of hap
piness by striking at the well-being Of
a portion of the people could not but be
in the end disastrous to all.
FEDERAL SUPERVISION.
"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 dif-
ferent problems of our own day-prob-
lens which are so largely Industrial.
"Unquestionably, however, the great
development of industrialism means
that there must be an increase in the
supervision exercised by the Govern
ment over business enterprises. This
supervision should not take the form OF
violent and ill-advised interference, and
assuredly there is danger lest it take
such form If the business leaders Of the
business community confine themselves
to trying to thwart the effort at regu-
lation instead of guiding it Alright. Such
men as the members Of this club should
lead in the effort to secure proper su-
pervision and regulation of corporate
activity by the Government, not only
because it is for the interest of the
community as a whole that there
should be this supervision and regula-
tion, but because in the long run 1t Will
be in the interest above all of the very
people who often betray alarm and
anger when the proposition is first
made.
STATE ACTION INADEQUATE.
Neither this people nor any other
free people will permanently tolerate
the use of the vast power conferred by
vast wealth, and especially by
wealth in it's corporate form, without
hedging somewhere in the Government
the still higher power of seeing that
this power, in addition to being used
In the ir terest of the individual or in
dividuals possessing it, is also used for
and not against the interests of the
people as a whole. Our peculiar form
of government. Government in which
the nation is supreme throughout the
Union in certain respects, while each
of nearly half a hundred States is SUI
preme in it's part of the Union in GER
tain other respects, renders the task
of dealing with these conditions es-
pecially difficult. No finally satisfac-
tory result can be expected from mere
ly State action. The action must come
through the Federal Government. The
business of the country is now carried
on in a way of which the founders of
our constitution could by no possibility
have had any idea.
NAY AMEND CONSTITUTION.
.All great business concerns are en-
gaGed in interstate. commerce, and it
was beyond question the intention of
the founders of our Government that
Interstate commerce in all it's branches
and aspects should be under national
and not State control. If the courts
decide that this intention was not car
ried out and made effective in the con-
stitution as it now stands, then in the
end the constitution. if not construed
differently. will have to be amended
so that the original undoubted inten-
ton may be made effective. But, of
course, a constitutional amendment is
OILY to be used as a last resort. If
every effort of legislation and admin
istration shall have been proved In
adequate.
Meanwhile the men in public life
and the men who direct the great bust
ness interests of the country should
work not in antagoniSm out in har.