Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1906-07-04
Congress AGionrns.

I tVh-htHH AhAAkNbAhN-
The FIRST session OF the fifty ninth
Congress ended at 10 o'clock Saturday
might. 1t dragged through its last
day with the President and Senate and
House waiting upon the enrollmen. of
hundreds of bills.
Congress and the President are tax
iug leave of each other in a much
better frame of mind than could have
b -en expected from their meeting last
year. There has been conflict of
strong personalities. and both sides
have won their points to a certain de-
gree, lille the public on the whole
has been the gamer. The President
has managed TO force through certain
legislation that he believed was
needed, an that there was serious
doubt if Cong ess would stand He
has removed the postmssterships
from the realm Of federal patronage,
ard thus done more than any other
p esdent ever dared to do 60 antsgo
niz- he individual members who
looked on these offices as the last
remnant Of the fast disappearing cur
rency with which to pay political
debts.
He has forced through the rate bill,
and while there may be some features
of tire measure that could be improved
and doubtless will he improved in
time, it is vastly in advance OF no
legislation at all, and that was what
was looked for fortnight before
Congress met. The tree alcohol bill
has gone through, promising TO help
the farmers of the whole country
and TO help the public greatly against
one form Of fuel extortion. The
statehood bin has been a com
promise, but has brought satisfaction
and dignity to two commonwealrhs,
and would have brought il to four but
for the unreasonable opposition to the
measure in Congress. The pure food
bin is law, and meat inspection has
been added where 1t was sorely needed,
and where the public did not even
suspect that the need existed.
Altogether il has been most
notable Congress and one that will
necessarily go down in history as a
monument to the for eful personality
of the executive, aside from the per
sonal triumph of the peace confer
ence and numerous other smaller
matters, any one of which would have
been enough to make an administra-
ton notable.
While one is looking over the retro
spect, it is as we'll ID take note OF
the remarkable series of national
scandals and exposures, all of which,
the exposures at least, were more or
less due to the fearless initiative OF
the President. 1t was the most de-
plorable series of public scandals that
nation has ever suffered, but it was
infinitely better that the evils should
come out than that they should eat at
the national lite in secret.
There were first of all the postal
scandals. They were more than half
suspected by those sin the kpowr
before official attention was ever
called to them. But when they were
once brought to the attention OF
the President, the word was passed
that they were TO be ferreted out
without fear or favor, and this was
done, resulting in more than score
OF prosecutions and half as many Jail
sentences, while the end of the legal
proceedings is not yet. But the de-
partment itself is cleansed and chas-
tened as adepartments seldom has been
before.
The crop report exposures followed
with remarkable swiftness, resulting
IN an entire reorganization of that
branch of the department of agricul-
ture. The awakening of the public
conscience was helped by the insur-
ance exposures in New York, which,
while not directly under federal SUI
pervision, were along the line of the