The Washington herald., 1907-04-11
coNrlNrEp FRoM rIRsr pAaE.


the Interstate Commerce Commission.
Il did not believe either that II Con-
gress had the power to make rates, Il had
the right to delegate that power to an
| administrative board Whether I was
right in entertaining this opinion viii be
determined when the Supreme Court Of
the United States passes on the question,
as, sooner or later. 1t must.
Il was opposed to the Hepburn law be-
I cause l also thought it unnecessary to
/ enact legislation Of such serious character
! that was of doubtful constitutionallty.
when we already had on the statute
/ books another law under which all the
/ evils complained of could be Femedied If
il shauld only be enforced.
In February, 1903, the Congress passed
what Is known as the Elkins law. /
helped as a member OF the subcOmmit-
/ tee having the bill in charge to put it
] into the effective form In which ii became
a law. When the Hepburn bill came I'D
it was my contention that the EIkins law,
which the Supreme Court had already
! held was constitutional. would he found
/ sufficient to prevent all rebates and dis
ordinations and other evils complained
/ Of If it should only es earnestly applied
and enforced.
Feels Himself VindIcated.
Since that debate. all that I said in
that behalf has been abundantly vindl-
Gated.
An the prosecutions of which we have
heard so much against the railroads, and
the sugar trust and the beef trust, and
the Standard oil Company. and numer-
Gus other corporations have been brought
under this Elkins law, and In no instance
has the government failed TO speedily
secure convictions, except only where its
own testimony has failed
There are pending to-day against the
Standard OIL Company. under this Elkins
law, numerous indictments, amounting in
the aggregate 40 more than IG0l0 counts
NO suit Of the kind has been brought
under the Hepburn law. No suit of the
( kind ever viii be brought under the Hep
burn law as long as the Elxins law
stands on the statute books by the side
Of it, for, under the EIkins law. the rem
edy Is simple complete, and beyond ques-
tion as 10 its eonstituuonality. while the
Hepburn law lacks all of these qualities.
Now that We have the Hepburn law,
we viii get out of fl al the coed We can.
but / predict that as time passes the OBJ
jections TO IL will be further vindicated.
not only by further good results under
pointing results Of its operation that viii
be realized generally by shippers and
business men all over the country
supports RooseveIt's Measures.
Another session of Cong1 IS has lust
closed. There were numerous measures
pending. and acted upon. with which tho
President was prominently Identified. SO
far as l can recall. ] supported every one
Of them. There was one matter, how |
ever, about which I have taken a differ !
ent view from him. ] refer TO the dis !
charge, without honor Of the members /
of Companies b. c. and D. OF the Twenty /
nth United States Infantry. on account /
of the shooting ARRAY at Brownsville. /
Tex.
This was an Incident. lot policy But /
it was an incident Of such character that
1 felt it my duty as "a representative of /
the people Of Ohio to do with respect to
Il what ! have done.
1T was charged-aud the President was
made 10 believe-that certain men Of the
Twenty-ffth Infantry had made muir /
derous midnight assault upon The sleep /
ing men, women, and children OF Browns /
vile; that they had shot up the town. 4
as the expression goes. and that they had 4
killed one man. and wounded another, /
and put in jeopardy the lives of many /
He believed that this was done by few /
but that others of the battalion knew aud /
refused TO disclose the identity of the men /
who did IT,
''As "a result, he ordered that the whole /
battalion should be dismissed without /
honor the innocent and the guilty alike /
the guilty because they were guilty, the 4
innocent because they could not be dis /
tinguished from the guilty.
Many Faithful Soldiers.
Among these men were old soldiers 4
who had seen many. years Of service !
Their services had been honest, faithful.
gallant. and distinguished. One Of them
had served continuously for twenty-six 4
years. IN fifteen months more he could /
have retired on a pension for life. His /
service had been rendered not only on the /
frontiers OF this country, but in Cuba /
and in the Philippines It had covered /
both war and peace. In all that long
period not one single black mark had 4
been registered against him. He had new
er been couTt-martialed he had never
been punished: he had never been even
On every one of his nu-
merous discharges It was recorded that
his character was excellent, and that
his services had been efficient.
His case is but an illustration. in
little stronger degree, OF many others. A
number had served more than twenty
years; many Of them almost twenty
years: all had acquired distinct and val
liable rights. and all these rights were
swept away from them in an instant by
q fT-o YErh rarrf
alike in common disgrace and sent them
they had done so much to defend brand
ed as criminals who had either partici-
pated Ia the shooting, or who had become
accessories after the fact by protecting
criminals who had.
These men had been given no oppor-
tunity TO be heard. 1t seemed 10 me
that no man in this country was so hum
BILE that he should not be given a day in
court somewhere or some time, or some
place to make his defense, confront his
accusers, and refute their testimony
against him. and especially should soil
siers have the benefit of such hearing.
Acted without Right.
Il believed that this was their right
under the Constitution. I did not believe
that even the President. as Commander
in-Chief Of the army. had power to de-
prive them Of this right.
But without regard to that question.
felt that they should have this opportun-
ity. I secured It for them. It was long.
hard contest in the Senate which resulted
in the adoption Of a resolution ordering
an investigation.
Il spoke repeatedly in favor of the