Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-10-01
JUSTICE FOR ALL
NO DISCRIMINATION
Continued from First Page


who ordinarily behave as decent citizens
One newspaper which has itself strongly
advanced this view gave prominence to
the statement of a certain man of great
wealth 10 the effect that the so-called imam
cial weakness was due entirely 10 the
admitted intention of President Roosevelt
TO punish the large moneyed interests
which had transgressed the laws / do
not admit that this has been the main
cause of any business troubles we have
had: but Il is possible that 1t has been
Contributory cause. If SO, friends, as far
as | am concerned it must be accepted as
a disagreeable but unavoidable feature In
a course of policy which as long as l am
President will not be changed. In any
great movement for righteousness. where
the forces of evil are strongly intrenched
II is unfortunately inevitable that some I'M
offending people should suffer In company
with the real offenders. This is not our
fault. 1t is the fault of those to whose de-
ceptive action these innocent people owe
their false position. A year or two ago
certain representatives of labor called upon
me and in the course of very pleasant
conversation told me that they regarded
me as the friend of labor" / answered
that | certainly was and that l would do
everything in my power for the laboring
man except anything that was wrong l
have the same answer to make to the bust
ness man. / will do everything l can do
to help business conditions. except any
thing that is wrong And il would be not
merely wrong but infamous to fail to do
all that can be done to secure the punish
ment of those wrongdoers whose deeds are
peculiarly rtprehensible because they are
not committed under the stress Of want.
Whenever serious effort Is made to cut
out what is evil IN political life,
whe Their the effort takes the shape of war
ring against the gross and sordid forms OF
evil in some municipality, or whether II
takes the shape of trying TO secure the hon.
ct ont n q
very powerful and wealthy people, there
are sure to be certain individuals who de-
mand that the movement stop because 1t
may hurt business. In each case the an
swer must be that we earnestly hope and
believe that there will be permanent
damage to business from the movement
but that II righteousness conflicts with the
fancied needs of business, then the latter
must go to the wall. We cannot afford to
substitute any other test for that of guilt
or innocence. of wrongdoing or welldoing,
in Judging any man. II a man does we'll
&c he acts honestly. he has nothing to fear
from this administration. But SO far as
in me lies the corrupt politician. great or
Small. the private citizen who transgresses
cha IaY-be he rich or poor-shall be
brought before the impartial justice of a
court Perhaps / am most anxious to get
at the politician who is corrupt, because
he betrays a great trust; but assufedly l
shall not spare his brother corruptionst
who shows himself swindler in business
life: and, according to our power. crimes
of fraud and cunning shall be prosecuted
as relentlessly as crimes of brutality and
physical violence
Good Laws and Good Citizens.
We heed good laws and we need above
all things the hearty aid OF good citizens
in supporting and enforcing the laws.
Nevertheless men and women Of this great
state men and women of the middle west,
never forget that law and the administra-
ton Of law. important though they are.
must always occupy wholly secondary
place as compared with the character of
the average citizen himself. On this trip
/ shall speak to audiences in each Of
which there will be many men who fought
In the civil war You who wore the blue
and your brothers OF the south who wore
the gray know that in war no general
no matter how good. no organization no
matter how perfect, can avail II the aver
age man in the ranks has not got the
fighting edge. We need the organization.
the preparations; We need the good general;