The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1906-05-15
ROOSEVELT ATTEMPTS
TO JUSTIFY HIS COURSE
contInued from Paae I

continued from rage l.
During the same period saw other gen.
tlemen who prOfeSsed to give the views
of other senator's
Held Many Conferences.
/ In addition I saw numerous senators.
both Republican and Democrats. some of
/ them once or twice, some of them many
times l also saw numerous outsiders.
railroad men, shippers, newspaper men
and students of traffic regulation. in
/ Guiding especially the attorney general
and the members OF the interstate COM
merce commission, and on two occasions
| saw groups Of newspaper men in a
mass To all of these, senators, represen-
| tatives OF senators and outsiders alike,
I made the same statements; those that l
made TO Mr.. Chandler being the same in
| substance that made to you and to
! those Of your colleagues of both politi-
| cal parties with whom I had any eX-
| tended conferences on the subject. The
/ enclose, shows fully the facts as to the
conferences which at my instance he
Those conferences were precisely such
as, at my instance, he held with many
0iosy snd discuss n9 the efet tef Of me
ments proposed by them.
Believed in Hepburn Bill.
To all whom I saw I stated that the
Hepburn bill was in its essence entirely
satisfactory to me. The Hepburn bill as
right of review by the courts-that is,
the Jurisdiction of the courts-but did not
courts to prescribe the limits of theif own
jurisdiction. This was in accordance with
the IDEAS of the attorney general, MS be- 1
danger OF the bill being declared uncon-
Stitutional because of attempt to confer
either too much or too little jurisdiction
| TO the courts.
/ 1 also repeatedly stated that while it
was entirely satisfactory to me simply
to leave the Hepburn bill in substance as
it was; that is, with the recognition OF
the jurisdiction Of the courts but with
| o4N 20 zAff hat frr-f1 10
/. ton, yet that ] was entirely willing that
there should be a definition. provided that
broad review, but explicitly narrowed it
, to the two subjects which as a matter of
fact l believe that the courts would alone
/ consider in case there was no attempt TO
define the limits of their review that 1t
would limit it to the question as TO
whether the commission had acted ultra
| wires, and as to whether any mans con-
i stitutional rights had been impaired
p | limiting the review was brought up at all
r | | personally felt that this was the way
in which it should be limited or defined.
: Scores of Amendments.
At different times at least score of
tentative amendments We're either pre-
pared by the attorney general at the re-
quest of senators or submitted to me by
senators. As to many of the amendments
Including among others the substance of
l Spooner amendments) stated that l
should be entirely satisfied to have them
1
ifications which would make them salts
, factory; as to none did I ever say, either
should insist upon having them in the
{ bill as a condition of my approving it
On the contrary | was always most care
ful to state that l was not trying TO die
) tate any particular programme OF action
!, In no case, either in the case of Mr..
! Chandler or in the case Of any one else,
was there the slightest opportunity for
any honest m1SconceptlOn OF my attitude
or any belief that 1 had pledged myself
, len 70 ma nd only ono IL
ment or set of amendments, that l
would not be satisfied with any amend
ment which preserved the essential fea-
ture of the Hepburn bill as it came from
2 the house You will doubtless recall that
D in the course Of the several visits that
[ you personally made me, we discussed a
e number of these proposed amendments,
trying to find out for which one there
! could be obtained a sufficient BODY OF
assent to secure its passage and the pas
: sage of the rate bill.
He Was Informed, Etc.
To almost every amendment proposed
by any one 1 found that there were other
, least wished to change it, and finally
became convinced that 1t was impossible
- for senators with advantage to use me
! as the intermediary in coming to an
= | agreement with their colleagues, especial
= ly when they only communicated With me
= | through another intermediary, and
:. earnestly suggested 10 all to whom
s spoke that they should communicate with
A you, whose purpose and mine were
= Identical About this time 1 was Informed
u by various Democratic senators that they
Y could not come to an agreement upon any
Il amendment, and that the best chance fol
:, success lay in passing the Hepburn bill
/ substantially unchanged 1 was informed
. and believed that this was Senator Bal
- leys view, and number OF the Repub
lican senators who favored the bill ex
pressed the same opinion. Shortly after
this you, in company with Senator Cul
lon, called upon me with the amendment
i which is now commonly known as th'
IL Allison amendment tod you that while
1t | should prefer the Long and Overma1
It amendments. yet that your am amendm nea
- ment does not in the slightest degre'
weaken or inJure the Hepburn bill.
ALWAYS asserted was implied by the term
q of the bill. L may add that my own opin
+ ion that your amendment In no wa!
! changed, whether by diminishing or en-
II larging. the scope of the court review q
l. provided in the original Hepburn bill i
2 Of Mr.. Root and Of Mr. Taft. Their judg
- ment is that the amendment merel!
avoids the criticism that the Hepburn bill
; would be constitutionally invalid in no
q expressly proyiditng the the, court court reyie vie.
- tended was plaintly implied in the orig
mi The 'a original Hepburn bill stated tina
the venue OF certain actions was in Ger
tain courts: the amendment states tina
these courts. shall have jurisdiction, t
seems difficuit to assert that this work
any change whatever in the principle o
the bill Yours T3r slneeTslgy' poosEvr,1T
Hon. William b Allison United State
Senator.
Moody's Letter.
The attorney generals letter to tn
president:
office Of the Attorney General, Wash
ington, D. c., May il, 1906
Ny Dear Mr. President: / send. a
your request, an account Of the confer
ences which I had by your direction wit
Senators Tillman and Bailey upon tn
subject Of the court review feature of tn
| pending rate legislation.