Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1905-07-20
BRUSH and PAIL
RELOCATED Job of Whitewashing
Resuscitated.
THE vIND1oAT1oN OF MORTON

THE vINDIoAT1oN OF MORTON
Nation Amazed at Artistic Manner In
Which the Coat Was Laid on For
mer Head of the Navy-Hue of the
Ethiopian Suddenly Changed to
Whiteness of Snow.
When the square deal' was in
augurated it was expected that the
whitewash brush and pail would be
relegated to the political property
room, and for awhile it was like the
big stick so laid away. But the ext
gencies of party politics have compelled
whitewashing to be again resorted to-,
and, as if to make up for lost time, the
coat laid on to Paul Morton, the late
secretary Of the navy, is the primest
and most artistic 9ob that has probably
ever been accomplished. 1t has amazed
the nation by the masterful way in
which the wash was applied, and it
has staggered the old politicians Of the
national capital by the sudden change
from the hue Of the Ethiopian to the
vivid wilderness Of the v%indication. 1t
is seldom that trim political barometer,
the Washington Post, becomes ratified
at any sudden change Of the political
temperature, but ever its general state
Of ~contentment and sang froid was
overcome, for in its comment on this
latest strenuous job Of President
Roosevelt it said:
"a fact that stands out in terrifying
sharpness in the correspondence Of the
president and Attorney General Moody
regarding Paul Morton and the Santa
Ee rebate scandal is that the Santa Fe
is a corporation Of uncontrollably evil
propensities-a cold blooded, ~calculat-
ing, persistent violator of the law. On
the other hand, the officers Of the San
ia Fee are not only observers Of the
law, but one Of them, Mr.. Morton, is
the champion who made it possible to
secure an injunction against the mon
ster. The officers Of the Santa Fe
have done the best they could to curb
the lawlessness Of their corporation,
but 1t plunged wildly on, while they
stood powerless and aghast. They are
no more to be blamed, says Mr.. Nor
ton, than If it were a case of a mis-
placed switch resulting In a bad wreck.
They did their duty, and if there was.
a violation of law nobody is to blame.
All Of our orders were carefully con-
sidered and carefully issued he says,
but, so far as this particular case is
concerned, seem to have been over
looked
when Attorney General Moody
went outside Of his department to Sc
cure the services of two eminent law
yers for the investigation Of the Santa
Fe scandal, it was Il commentary Oh
the evident scarcity of good material
In the department Of justice for such
work. But the bold, almost OVERLOAD,
official statement that these able gen.
tlemen had been instructed to probe
the matter to the bottom was an as
surance that the task was a grave
one, too difficult for the regular Off
GERS of the department Of justice. 1t
was also taken to mean that the in
vestigation would be made without the
possibility Of a whitewash, which
might have been the cas- if subordinate
officials were to investigate a scandal
involving a member Of the cabinet.
"Messers. Harmon and Judson did
their work thoroughly-too thoroughly
by far. They appear to have taken
their instructions too literally. They
made the mistake, too, Of confounding
the Santa Fe al a corporation with
the Santa Fe officers. Obviously they
had no idea that the Santa Fe had
burst from the control Of it's officers
and was dashing headlong on its own
pathway. we have no doubt they re-
ported, that the laws have been VIC
lated by the traffic officers Of the Atch-
ison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad
proceedings against them. Of curse
the investigators were set right by At
torney General Moody, and, their report
being palrably disappointing. their res
ignations were accepted.
ut is difficult to tear q monster away
from it's feast. but Mr.. Morton must
learn to rule ven if he is forced to
wean his company from a good thing.
1t is to be hoped that he will be Sue
cessful in preventing a mutiny among
his subordinates in the Equitable such
as that which made the Santa Fe so
uncomfortable.
"As for the Santa Fe, it is a bad,
wicked diaholical cnrn0ration which