Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1907-12-04

gFounu luiiy, pGt the concentrations
Of the corporations have become so
great and The trusts OF such lnagn..
tudc, that tie Law no longer .coycrs
tho situation in Il satisfactory man
nor But .whno discussing this sub
ject. he goes out of his way 10 say
that all amendments made,
should be SO that the power
be given to the national GOV.
crnmcnt. not to the states, and
In doing SO, Mr. Roosevelt makes
what appears to us a very weak argu
ment and one not worthy OF the p;,gcs
Of tho annual message of President
OF the United states to Congress. He
makes The claim that governmental
supervision over big corporation
VIII make 1t safer and says: I'm the
recent business crisis 1t III noteworthy
that the Institutions which failed
were institutions which were not I'M
dor the supervision and control OF tho
national government. Those which
were under national control stood the
test"
There can be only enc point TO the
argument of the President on this
question. and II 10 that the reason
why corporations would be better off
nnacr governmental control. would DO
becausc of the aid that would be Civ
en- TO them. Casting aside the
nonfcnsical statement that row.
ernmcntai control will mako a
trust safer let ,is for II mo-.
ment take mp the ASSERTION he makes
about the banks. 1t is true that in
New Yorl; the tanks that went To
the wall were not national banks, bu;
Ii the truth wore told, there were ma
t.onal banks in New York city ut that
dmo which were in Just IA prccsrious
n condition IS those which went
~ WV N.'ii, put WHINu Ntlt ShNtU uN
outside and purely selfish influences
The President fails, II might be wo!l
TO rcmariS, TO state that there were
a number OF national bank failures
outside of New York city which were
working under n governmental char.
tor, Tho whole statement and argu-
mont OF tho President in this portion
OF tho message Is so fallacious that
It Is really not worth considering in
n serious light. Vo would, however
ask any sane or sensible person ii
he believes that 1t would be wise for
the federal government TO aid q trust
or railroad or any large corporation
In n financial manner every time It
might happen TO be in distress?
Tho President urges Congress to
give It's attention TO tho question of Il
greater elasticity In our currency
laws and suggests that It might be
well TO Investigate the matter OF bank
directors loanlng money to them
selves, and while he admits there Ia
q grent need to prevent marginal
gambling, though he does not call It
that, he says he cannot see how 1t
can 10 entirely prevented, While ne
does not directly defend tho methods
OF Wall street he daes so indirectly,
and makes no recommendations to
Congress- ON the subject. whatever. II
is true that the solution of this prob
lem Is most dinicuit Que. but 1t 10
q disappointment that President
Roosevelt. tho man who is supposed
to he tho possessor Of the higheRt
sort OF Ideal. should so utterly neglect
this all important question III his mes.
sage. Perhaps he will later on give
Congress and the country at large his
views on the subject IN special
message. Let us hcpe SO anyway.
OF course tho tariff question re-
ceiycd the scanticst sort OF consider
alton. The President by his mega
phone tactics had announced that he
did not believe the tariff should be
touched until after tho presidential
election, and that Is exactly what he
says in his message. The Democrats
cannot amend tho D.ngley law, but
they can come close TO having the
Republican, party place itself on re.