The National tribune., 1906-11-15

i for the Northern Securities Holding
Company to do.
4 Because of the futility of the North
Il ern Securities and the beef trust prose
cutionS the Government has been exer-
cising special care in preparing for the
Standard Oil prosecution The Attor-
Iney-General has been in doubt right ur
to the last moment whether to appl!
| for an injunction to tear the tentacleS
| from the oil octopus or to institute 4
I criminal prosecution. The legal battle
over the case will be one for giants
and will probably last for two or three
years.
| But whether the antitrust suits all
i break down and the arduous work OF
| the Attorney-GeneralS Office for the
| last seven years amounts to anything
or not in actually breaking up the bad
| trusts there Is no question that the
| prosecutions indirectly have had 4
splendid and farreaching effect upon
the business of the country Transac-
tions of a probable criminal character
that We're thought little of five years
/ ago and were of frequent occurrence
are entirely tabooed now in the busi-
ness world. The possibility that such
| transactions will get men into legal
| difficulties is sufficient reason for avoid
ing them.
A prominent New York lawyer, who
visited the Department of Justice with
| in the past week, emphasized the ef-
! facts of the antitrust prosecutions as
farreaching. Almost every week day, -
| said he, clients come into my Office
with propositions which / would have
| favored few years ago, but which ]
now advise them against"
| The Presidents fervent hope un,
| doubtedly is to correct the trust evils
by his own methods so effectively that
the people will be satisfied by 1908. and
will not 1ant to wreak vengeance upon
| the Republican Party for not havinr
done enough. He is well pleased with
what has already been accomplished.
and also that it has been accomplished
without disturbing business or under
mining prosperity. His program for an
income tax and possibly for other leg
| islation that will tend to curb swollen
| fortunes contemplates no violent effect
upon the business world.
1t is his purpose to begin the agita-
| ton for these further reforms at the
| coming session of Congress. not with Il
| view that Congress this Winter can
enact any of his important recommen-
| dations into law, but that the agitation
| for the legislation will begin. that ed
| itors will write about it, public men
talk about it, and public sentimen,
created to demand the law. This was
/ the identical program followed by the
| President in bringing about the rail-
road-rate legislation. He virtually
created the issue. and then used the
! public sentiment he had aroused to
force Senators and members to act
Joe Cannon rs n Brake.
Speaker Cannon is coming down to
Washington late in November to urge
| the President to make no more radical
4 recommendations to Congress. He
hopes the President will eliminate the
| income tax and other like recommen-
dations from the Message to Congress
| in December. If the President had not
| hastened away to Panama so soon
4 Speaker Cannon would have come
down to Washington at once to urge
that Congress this Winter be left free
| from agitation and be allowed simply
to pass the appropriation bills and ad-
journ. The turmoil of the last session
| over Statehood, railroad rates, pure
| food and meat inspection We're not al
together to the Speakers liking IT
made a heap of trouble for him in
keeping his big and unwieldy Repub-
| lican majority in line. when their ranks
were torn with dissensions The Speak
| er is greatly pleased with the abund-
ance of income the Government is de-
irving from its revenues. and that this
income is more than sufficient to cover
the enormous expenses of the Govern
ment-expenses that have been grow
ing at an amazing pace in the recent
4 Congresses. The Speaker is willing
that the pruning knife should be APP
!. piled as vigorously as possible and that
methods of expenditures should be re-
viSed.
1t is unlikely that the President will
heed the Speakers request in any i'm
portant particulars. His face is firmly
/, set toward accomplishing certain re-
forms, and he regards the continuous
: najorities the people have given him
, and Congress as their verdict that they
want this work done. The aversion ol
Congress to undertake further reforms
will haze little weight with the PresI
dent
He has already indicated that there
; is to be further cleaning in the Ex-
ecutive Departments by designating
Commissioner of Corporations James Z
Garfield. son of the late President Gar
field. to be Secretary Of the Interior
This is no reflection upon Secretary
Hitchcock, who is to retire on tha
date. Secretary Hitchcock has beer
chasing grafters and Furnishing evil
Goers ever since he got into office. Tho
, task was great. and altho he has ac.
cOmDlished wonders there is still
: deal to do. The Secretary is now ar
old man, altho mentally and PHYSICAL!
. vigorous and would like rest fror
exhaustive labors. The President. ap
preciative of all that Mr. Hitchcock ha!
done. is willing there should be
young and aggressive man at the heat
Of the Interior Department. Mr. Gar
field is a favorite of his and Of the en-.
, tire Roosevelt family. He has made {
: distinct success of the investigation o
the Standard Oil Company. and the evi
: dence Mr.. Garfield gained viii be useC
! by the Department of Justice largely in
4. the forthcoming prosecutions of th'
l Standard OH. He failed in the bee
/! trust investigation, but that class o
4 work was then new. and Mr.. Garfield
. learned lot during that investigation
/ from which he profited when he tool
: up the Standard Oil probe. Now ne i
= expected to make a feature of the in
t vestigation of coal lands. and TO he'll
d save 10 the Government millions o
d acres Of this mineral property that til
{ big railroads have been trying to COB
bic up.