Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-01-20

can control to secure the adoption of their
recommendation. The personal character
1SticS of President Roosevelt; his earnest
ness and determination, and his ambition
to accomplish things will undoubtedly ex-
cite more criticism in this particular than
has been directed to any of his predeces-
sorS. He does not send for a member of
the House and tell him bluntly that he will
appoint So-and-So to office if the repreSen-
tative will vote for such-and-such a bill, or
vice-versa His method is to make known
to the representative that he wants such
and-Such measure passed and that he ex-
poets his friends to vote for it. And it
does not require a surgical operation to
convince the average representative that
the President gives tit for tat. No Presi-
dent will consciously urge representative
to vote against the interests of his con-
stituents or the public sentiment of his dis
trict President Roosevelt has too much
sense and diplomacy to do that, but there
is always large number OF members with
out convictions on certain subjects and
whose constituents are not involved on one
side or the other or are divided In opinion,
and these the President will always en-
deavor to reach
Probably no President has used his OFF,
cial influence, and, indirectly, the patron
age of his office to influence legislation, so
much as President Roosevelt, because ne
has had determination to secure certain
legislation which he believes to be required
for the welfare OF the country, and, to use
slang expression, has not wasted
trick since the beginning of his admins
tration. He Is the most energetic and ac-
complished lobbyist ever seen in Wash |
ington. He is the first President to openly
declare his attitude toward certain meas
ures of Importance before they are acted
upon by the Congress. Many and many
time has he told senators and representa-
tves that they had better drop certain bills
they have introduced because he Will veto
them. When Senator Perkins of California
called on him the other day the President
Immediately Jumped on him" for intro
ducing a bill to exclude japanese immi-
grants, and frankly told him that 1t would
never get by the White House. He has
made similar threats and given similar
warnings many time There need never
be the slightest doubt about the attitude of
Theodore Roosevelt toward any PROPOSE
ton or his opinion on any subject. All
you've got to do Is to ask him. He has no
secrets. Just press the button and he'll do
the rest.
Presidents Interest in Legislation.
The reason President Roosevelt has used
so much pressure is that he has been in
terested in so much legislation. There are
pending a number of measures which he is
determined to have passed, and he is using
all the influence he exert on both
houses of Congress to pass them.
First-Railway rate legislation.
Second-Laws for the benefit of the Phil
ippines.
Third-Reciprocity treaties.
Fourth-The ratification of the treaty
with Santo Domingo.
These four matters are on his mind at
present He has not worried about the
Panama canal because he thinks it will
take care Of itself He is perfectly willing
to have thorough investigation of his ad-
ministration of that enterprise, but he
wants 1t done at once. He does not want
the inquiry to be strung along all winter.
He wants the Senate to get 1t off its mind,
so that 1t can attend to railway rate legis-
lation.
While he has taken an active interest
In the joint statehood BILL he is not much
concerned personally as to its fate. He
regards it as a political measure proposed
by republican COMMITTEES and endorsed by
the republican caucus and for that reason,
he wants it to pass. He does not believe
that either Arizona or New Mexico is fit
for admission to the Union, and he does
a. century. He fears however, that the
democrats may get control of Congress
and admit them separately. which will
make two more rotten boroughs and four
more "sage-brush" senators. Therefore, he
thinks 1t is good policy for the republicans
to admit the two territories as one state on
the theories that one rotten borough is bet
ter than two and that two ''sage1brush"
senators are better than four.
Pressure on New Mexico.
That is his position and he does not care |
who knows it. He has endeavored to i'm
press it upon all of his friends. and par
ticularly upon the Office holders down in the |
two territories. He refused to reappoint |
Governor Otero of New Mexico and selected |
a young man from New York named Hage-
man, who has been in the territory only a |
short time, as Oteros successor. Imme- |
diately upon the announcement of that ap-
poiutment almost every federal official in |
New Mexico turned a double somersault !
and landed on the joint statehood side. One /
of them wrote me-
81 hated to do It; / don't believe In It; |
but I could not stand the pressure from |
the President"
Almost every postmaster In New Mexico |
was opposed 10 joint statehood until Hage- |
mans appointment as governor, but every |
one of them Immediately came out on the |
other side, and when somebody accused the I
President of compelling them to do SO, he |
denied 1t emphaticaHy and declared that |
all he ever said to Hageman was that he |
hoped every federal official in New Mex
leo would stand by the administration. The |
subject of joint statehood was not men
toned"
He tried the same tactics In Arizona, but /
they did not work, and he was rather more
pleased than otherwise He admires the /
Independence of the officials down there. /
most of whom were members of his regi- I
ment. The other day he said. to one of L
their friends that he does not have the /
slightest feeling of resentment against them
for opposing his wishes, will treat them
just the same and recognizes their right to
follow their own judgment and convictions.
We do not know what he wrote to Gov.