The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1907-04-11

/ COQUflDutlOu Hts DCSu SPi HS <"A'A
no other object Mr.. Hartman
says that he was called to Washing
ton by the President and asked to
help raise money for the campaign
of 1904 The President says he did
no such thing. Now if the Presi
dent had asked for railroad money
to help run the national campaign,
it is not likely he would have been
as severe on the railroads as he has
been, even though his severity has
gone only to the extent of declaring
they must act honestly AS to the
issue of truthfnlness between the
two men. simply as men, there is the
record of the two to look at. The
President has never gambled and he
has never stolen so far as there are
any records to prove. Any cham
pion of Mr.. Hartman on the other
hand can be respectfully referred to
the break in the Colorado River
when he said over his own signature
that the Southern Pacific has no in
terest in the California Development
Company which was responsible for
the break, aud then had to come out
and admit that the Southern Pacific
owned the California Development
Company in fee simple. For the
other thing, his own testimony in
the Alton Railroad inquiry ought to
be enough to satisfy even his most
ardent admirers.
AS to the specific claim that he
contributed $50, 900 to the Republi-
can campaign frnd in 1904, he may
or may not have done so quite with
out the knowledge of the President.
But if he did do so, the cancelled
check with which the contribution
was made would be a good deal
more convincing evidence than any
thing else he could offer. His state
ment that his letter to Sidney Web
ster in which the origin al is made
was published without his knowl
edge or consent is also susceptible of
proof, and now would be a very
good time to get the documents into
evidence. The fact that this charge
was sprung just when the Interest
fight was being made by the rail
roads to discredit the administration
and its railroad policy is something
more than a coincidence.
The railroads are by no means ly-
ing down under the effort made by
the Pre- sident to whip them into
line. They have store of ammuni
ton in reserve OF which the Harri-
man charge is only sample. But
this is by no means the worst they
are contemplating, There was sent
to the Interstate Commerce Com
mission this week a document that
is being circulated by combination
of the trunk lines in Chicago. The
copy in question was sent through
an inexcusable oversight to one of
the strongest opponents OF the rail
roads, namely the National Petrole
UNI Association, that for years has
been fighting for its life against The
secret rebates and open discrimina-
ton with which the railroads all IA
vored the Standard Oil Company
The railroad circular shows in detail
how the lines are working to precip-
tia te commercial panic. It recites
all that the roads have suffered at
the hands of the federal government,
and then states in detail what the
roads are doing IN the way of re
trenchment. 1t points out that they
have cancelled orders for material
for year ahead, that they stopped
construction on over 900 miles of
new track, and that they are daily
throwing hundreds of men out of
employment. In conclusion the pa
per warns the public that this thing
can result only in general depression
and panic such as the country suf-
fered in 1897 AMI it urges every
patriotic citizen to use his influence
in calling off the federal and state
government from their systematic
persecution.
But this paper is not put out as
coming from the railroads. Oh no
1t is an appeal of the business inter
est of the country to the people. It
is headed Cuisines is good-Shall
it remain sO?" At the bottom are
spaces for the signatures of firms
and individuals with the number of
men they each employ. A letter
accompanying the paper asks that it
be signed and re;urned to the Rail
road Exchange in Chicago whence
when a sufficient number of sigma
lures have been obtained, it will be
"given the widest publicity through
the press.
The statements about stopping
work on improvements and throwing