The Morris County chronicle., 1907-12-03

L "
temporary injunction to accomplish
what is in fact permanent decision.
The president urges the passage of
model employers liability act for the
District of Columbia and the territories.
| to encourage corporations to treat in
jured wageworkers better. He en-
phatically indorses the eight hour day.
| The president urges the states to
fight the child and woman labor evil.
| He says:
The national government has as an
ultimate resort for control of child la
Dor the use of the interstate commerce
clause to prevent the products of child
labor from entering into interstate COM
merce. But before Nusing this it ought
certainly to enact model laws on the
subject for the territories under its
own immediate control
Presidential Campaign Expenses.
Under our form of government vots
ing is not merely a right, but a duty,
and, moreover, fundamental and nee
essary duty if man is to be good
citizen. 1t is well to provide that cor
porations shall not contribute to presi-
Dental or national campaigns and, fur
thermore, to provide for the publioa-
ton of both contributions and expendi-
lures. There is, however, always dan
ger in laws of this kind, which from
their very nature are difficult of en-
forcement, the danger being lest they
be obeyed only by the honest and dis
obeyed by the unscrupulous, so as to
act only as penalty upon honest men,
Moreover, no such law would hamper
an unscrupulous man of unlimited
means from buying his own. way into
office. There is a very radical meas
ure which would, II believe, work
substantial Improvement in our sys-
tenn of conducting a campaign, al
though am well aware that it will
take some timeSfor people so to famil-
iarize themselves with such proposal
as to be willing to consider its adop-
ton. The need g for collecting large
campaign funds would vanish If con-
gress provided an appropriation for the
proper and legitimate expenses of each
of the great national parties, an appro-
priation ample enough to meet the ne
,essity for thorough organization and
machinery, which requires large ex-
penditure of money. Then the supu-
lation should be made that no party
receiving campaign funds from the
treasury should accept more than
fixed amount from any individual sub
scriber or donor, and the necessary
publicity for receipts and expenditures
could without difficulty be provided.
The Army.
The president recommends legisla-
ton to increase the number of officers
in the army, especially in the medical
corps. The rate OF pay of officers
should be greatly increased, he de-
clares. There should be relatively
even greater increase in the rate Of
pay Of enlisted men If we are to keep
the army in shape to be effective in
time of need. The president recon-
mends severe examination of officers
for promotion up to the rank of major
From that point promotion should be
purely by selection. He speaks of the
recent physical test of army officers
with emphatic appreciation and recon-
mends bill equalizing the pay Of
officers and men of the army, navy
marine corps and revenue cutter serv-
ice.
The Navy.
Concerning the navy the president
says:
In my Judgment, we should this
year provide for four battleships. But
it is idle to build battIeships unless, in
addition to providing the men and the
means for thorough training, we pro
vide the auxiliaries for them-unless
we provide docks. the coaing stations,
the colliers and supply ships that they
need. We are extremely deficient in
coaling stations. and docks on the Pa
cif1c, and this deficiency should not
longer be permitted to exist Plenty
of torpedo boats and destroyers should
be built. Both on the Atlantic and Pa
| cific coasts fortifications of the best
| type should be provided for all our
greatest harbors.
Until our battle fleet is much larger
than at present it should never be split
into detachments so far apart that they
could not in event OF emergency be
speedily united Our coast line is on
the Pacific just as much as on the At
lantic. The battle feet should now
and then be moved to the Pacific. just
as at other times it should be kept in
the Atlantic When the. isthmian canal
is built the transit of the battle feet
from one ocean to the other will be
comparatively easy. Until 1t is built
l earnestly hope that the battle feet
will be thus shifted between the two
oceans every year or two. The battle
feet is about starting by the strait Of
Magellan to visit the Pacific coast
Sixteen battleships are going under the
command of Rear Admiral Evans, while
eight armored cruisers and two other
battleships will meet him in San Fran
cisco. whittier certain torpedo destroy
ers are also going. No Aeet OF such
size has ever made such a voyage, and
/ It will be Of very great educational use