The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1906-04-06
Government to Get After the
Beef Packers.
MOODY TO NOTIFY PUBLIC
Presto ent Roosevelt to Send Mes.
sage to Congress; Vigorous Lam
gua9e to Be Used.

patch to the Chicago Tribune says:
President Roosevelt and Attorney
General Moody will fire this week the
last Guns in connection with the prose
cution of the beef packers.
The president will send message to
congress calling attention to the gross
wrong which has been perpetrated up
on the people by the escape of these men
from punishment and recommending
legislation to narrow the immunity law
to the limits of the constitutional pro-
vision.
! Attorney General Moody will issue ID
statement giving all the facts i'll the
possession of the government, which he
believes would have resulted in jury
convicting the packers had the cases
ever come to trial.
The documents promise to be dynamic
in character. They will spare no one
not even Judge Humphrey, who render
ed the decision by which the govern
ment was estopped from taking this i'm
portant case to the supreme court of
the United States.
1t is proposed to show that the admin
,stration entered upon the prosecution
in good faith that the facts were col
lected by the department of justice
even before the bureau of corporations
of the department of commerce and Ia
Dor began the investigation ordered by
congress, and that the latter did not
furnish any information upon which
proceedings were institutes; that the
packers never attempted to meet square
ly and fairly the charges filed against
them, but took advantage of the inn
munity provision of the interstate COM
merce act and the law organizing the
bureau of corporations; that, although
Attorney General Moody explained to
Judge Humphrey in the course of his add
dress that it was the duty of the court
to certify the cases to the supreme
court, to certify the cases to the SUI
preme court, he failed to do so and that
in consequence the government has no
means of appealing from his decision.
1t is with keen regret that the presi-
dent and attorney general have come
to the conclusion there is no way of
getting the case before the supreme
court. This was the view taken imme-
diately after the decision was rendered,
but in order that there might be no pos
sible question, Mr.. Moody and his as
sistants made an elaborate investiga-
ton into the laws governing appeals.
The opinion which they have prepared
is now lying upon Mr.. Moody's desk.
1t is found that there is no avenue
Iby which the government can invite the
supreme court to give consideration to
the cases.
The president has been informed of
the nature of this opinion. The official
communication of its character will be
made to him probably tomorrow and he
will then write his message to congress.
The president has determined already
upon the contents of the message. 1t
will he one of the most powerful he has
ever written 1t will call a spade a
spade.
1t will show that the policy of con-
gress in ordering special Investigations
is handicapping the executive branch of
the government in the criminal prosecu-
ton of men who have, and who are,
violating the law.
1t will explain briefly the case of the
government against the beef packers
and will refer i'm terms of sharp criti-
cism to the decision of Judge Humph-
rev. 1t will dwell especially upon the
existing immunity statute and recon-
mend that it be modified in order that
general immunity may not be secured
by all officials of corporation because
one of them testified to facts which
/. show violation of the law.