Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1906-08-08

publican ticket. General McAlpin and
those Of his club members who are in
dependent enough to fight the Repub-
lican rings in the several States must
resign their membership in the Repub-
lican clubs before they will be free to
espouse the great principles sounded
by Lincoln"
Does any honest man doubt that Lin
coin would be found II on earth to-day
fighting with reformers and against the
Republican machine?
Pretense VS.. Performance.
In 1904, Judge Parker said in his let
ter of acceptance, substantially, that we
had enough law to stop every corporate
abuse. The common law was available
for the use of the State authorities;
and besides that there were plenty Of
State statutes and plenty Of Federal
statutes. The. Sherman antitrust law,
and the Interstate Commerce law had
been on the statute books for many
years, But the President, his cabinet
officers, and all the Republican spell
binders loudly called for new laws to
enable the government to curb the cor
porations.
The coal trust, the oil trust, the beef
trust, and the railroads had been vlo-
lating existing laws with the regularity
and audacity that is born of COLLISION
with the officers of the law. They were
not at all hostile to Mr.. Roosevelt or
his administration. They furnished
money to secure his reelection. They
evidently preferred the making of new
laws, dictated by themselves, to the en-
forcement of the old laws made to pun
ish their crimes and check their rapac-
| lily.
All that has been done towards pres
ecuting the trusts has been done under
those old laws. Some of the Western
States forced the Attorney General to
prosecute the Northern Securities Com
pany under the anti-trus and Inter
state Commerce laws. And according
to Secretary Taft that prosecution Is
the chief glory of the Roosevelt admin
istration, and 1t is practically the only
act of the administration which reflects
any credit upon it. The recent action.
of the Interstate Commerce Commits
sion against the oil trust and the rail-
roads. was due to the Tillman-G illespie
resolution, which Roosevelt signed with
express reluctance" That resolution
merely authorized the commission to In
stitute Investigations looking to the en-
forcement Of the old laws; and 1t was
necessary only because the administra-
ton had not enforced those laws except
when compelled to do so by reason Of
Exposures made by the State authorities
or by other instrumentalities outside
the Department of Justice.
1t is known that the railroads and
the oil and coal trusts had been yio-.
latlng the law. The letters of Gov.
Dawson of West Virginia, and certain
Independent coal operators, read in the
Senate by Mr.. Tillman, proved that the
Department of Justice could not be de-
pended upon to investigate conditions
and enforce existing laws. Why did the
President wait until Gov. Dawson had
been forced to appeal to a Democratic,
Senator for help against the railroad
and coal combine before he made his
felnt of attacking the oil trust? Rookie
Teller very properly says of this new
spasm of virtue: Business methods
lave nothing to do with 1t. 1t Is all
politics. So far ms Roosevelt ls con-
cerned, it is certainly nothing but poll
| tics.
| Ii the law had been enforced there
would have been no beef scandal, no
railroad scandals, no coal or oil scan
1als, no grain inspection scandals. The
very existence of these scandals, aris-
ling as they do from long-standing vio-
laiions Of the old laws referred to l.y
Judge Parker in 1904, proves that the
administration has been either ineffi-
cicnt, or else particeps criminis. In alI
this scandalous business, and that It's
pretense of righteous indignation is "all
politics"
Mr.. Taft Numbered, therefore, when
he said at Greensboro, on July 9th, that
the President "by act" as well as by
word. had manifested to the people
his determination to pursue the middle,
lust, and impartial course by which the
rich and the poor should enjoy the
equal protection, and suffer the equal
and Just enforcement Of the laws"
This is "all politics." The record proves
the contrary to be the truth. Judge
Parker has shown the contrary to be the
fact by citing the record in all cases
where there have been prosecutions, all
of which have been under the old laws.
Armor Plate Trust Gets Half.
The armor plate trust won out In it,
fight with the rival Niidvale company
and has been awarded one-half the
armor plate contract. The Midvale
company's bid was SAT ton lower!
than the. lowest competitors bid and
$58 a ton lower than the highest bidder
proposed to supply plate for, but, of
course, the powerful trust interests
We're too potent with Republican adj
mlnistratlon to be turned aside. There
is some satisfaction that the trust had
to accept the same price as the Midvale
company offered, which Is $500 ton
less than was charged the government
before there was competition.
1t is almost as difficult to dislocate a
trust from connection with the United
States treasury when in charge of a
Republican administration, as 1t would
be to remove mountain. Remember
that this is reform administration
which boasts of Its square dealing on
all occasions, but when 1t comes to
squelching trust there is compro-
mise, by which the defeated trust IL
given half the profit. Is that square
deal for the Midvale company
A Trip for the Big sticks.
President Roosevelt is to visit Pan.
anna In state; the ship chosen to carry
the President Is the new 10000 ton bat