The Washington times., 1906-05-12
WISHES PRESIDENT
HAD KEPT HAND OUT
Change of Ground Defeated
Broad Review, Rayner Says.
FOOLED WITH THE TRAP
Abandonment of Narrow Review a
Complete Surrender to the AID
rich Proposition.
FOOLED WITH THE TRAP

81 wish very much that the Presi-
dent of the United States had not in
terfered in this legislation and had per-
mitted us to settle this case right here
in this body. where the responsibility
devOlves. I do not say that anyone has
set a trap for the President Of the
United States. but I do say that the
President. unfortunately is so consti-
tuted that he can not look at a trap
without fOOling with the spring"
In this manner Senator Rayner. chief
lieutenant &C Senator Bailey, paid his
respects to the Presidents Interference
with the rate regulation problem now
being disposed Of by the Senate. Pre-
ceding Mr.. Rayner. Mr.. Bailey had
charged the President with completely
surrendering to the Aldrich crowd for
the sake of party harmony. Mr.. Rayner
went further. He asserted that the
move Of Senator Allison was only
cloak to hide the handiwork of Senator
Aldrich, and that the President had
abandoned his narrow or const' .utional
review proposition as introduced by Sen
ator Long.
Reviews Differ Widely.
The President tells us" said Mr..
Rayner, that these two reviews which
he has sent in here are one and the
same thing, but they are as widely diff
ferent as IL is possible for two divergent
propositions TO be. The one is the re-
view under the Constitution, which you
cannot eliminate without invaIidating
your law; the other is the broad statu-
tory review, which permits the courts
TO try the cases de nOvO and in the
same manner as If no such body as the
Interstate Commerce Commission had
ever existed upon the face of the earth
The one. the review OF the Senator
from Kansas. confines the court within
a given compass-the compass of the
Constitution; the other extends to the
utmost limits OF their jurisdiction. The
one leaves the rate-making power with
the commission, the other transfers the
whole controversy to the court and rem
deTS the commission absolutely impO-
tent and powerless to accomplish the OBJ
Ject and purposes of its creation.
I say. Therefore. when you give the
fun venue and full Jurisdiction all that
the courts viii do viii be to take up the
case and try it over again; there is
nothing else for them TO do
An Absolute Surrender.
at is an absolute surrender upon this
entire subject, and 1 want to congrat-
ulate the Senators whS arc IN favor of
this broad review upon having achieved
this signal victory, and in congratulat-
ing them-and I am not impugning the
motives of any one in favor of the broad
Teview-I want to say that tho Presi-
dent ought not to have changed his
ground as precipitately as he has done :;
but l want to congratulate them on the
signal victory they have gained, and
want to congratulate every railroad
president in the United States and all
their cOnquering retinue of counsel upon
the great triumph they have attained
1t Is an unfortunate thing-deplorab BILE
that just at the very moment when
political considerations were being elm
mated. when elements in both parties
were uniting upon a proposition that
was acceptable 70 the people, and when
the prize was within our hands that
We he'd been struggling for for months.
the the President, through executive in
reference upon the most vital point in
the bill, should compel his party and
compel us 10 accept subterfuge and
proclaim an unconditional surrender"