Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-09-13
Mr.. Littleton's address,.

l
Secretary Isaac Franklin Russell LID.
| a general discussion followed
Mr.. Littleton's ADDRESS.
| Mr.. Martin w. Littleton spoke on The
Drift of Events. He said, in part:
| In the development of a little more than
a hundred years We have passed from a
moral revolution to national and internal
| tional materialism. Whatever doubt existed
| as to the growing power of the Union as a
| nation disappeared when it how
! lar the government had gone in the asser-
/ ton or It's authority in carrying on and
cChcludlns the war between the states.
| Throughout all the years of our history the
| work of bringing forth our great resources
| had gone on. This steady growing. insist
| ent force, driven by the most natural and
| powerful of human impulses-that is, the
| desire for enthusiastically grew up beneath
every other question and pushed them out
| o. the way of It's development. Now it
| reaches the reTOteSt corners of the country
| and stimulates the energy of our people
| native and foreign born. 1t is simply and
| pla My an irrepreSsibe desira to get wealth.
| AS a result of this almost universal desire
ana as the outcome of experiment and years
| of evolution many Industries of the coun-
! try have come under the absolute control
| OF little groups of men. who have managed
| frally to make complete conquest in their
! particular field of activity.
AT the present time ara witnessing a
| period of investigation and restraint. which,
following so closely on thu heels of a great
campaign for restored confidence. seems
TO prove the sporadic nature of our eco
nomiC reforms. There were certain great
, industries in the country which required
some sort of checks upon some branches of
Their activity They had come to feel that
they We're securely intrenched and were not
subject to any authority except the self
regulating influence of trade and rivalry.
when President Roosevelt came to power
with a direct commission from the people
he came at a time when these questions
had to be met or evaded. President Roose-
welt was confronted with three distinct
dangers when he undertook to apply the
remedy. The first was. that he would pre-
cipitate a general war on thrift and enter.
prise in effort to lop off the evils mani
fest in some industries. The second was,
that he would wrench the power of the
national government in his effort to extend
its jurisdiction of the new subject matter
The third was that in his resolute endeavor
to make government an instrument for the
betterment of mankind he would unwit-
tingly recognize the most advanced forms
OF socialism and give to them great
couragement.
The stripping of the states of their
power by the exercise of the same power
the part of the federal government may
effectively correct existing evils. bat no
amount of work or reconstruction will ever
restore to them that which they have lost.
If what they lost is held and exercised by
the federal government. The procession
thus set in motion toward the center will
not turn back until it has been resolved
into it's original elements under a new
governmental adventure,
Yesterdays Session.
'Is Socialism a Threatening Calamity"
was the general topic announced for discus
sion at yesterdays session. DR. A. +. Weber
of the New York state department of labor
spoke on Labor Legislation. National and
International. and w ]. Client on In
ternatonai Socialism; Its Aims. Methods
and Progress" These addresses were fol-
lowed by a general discussion.
Mr.. Clients paper was a plea for the
socialist party in its efforts to abolish pres
ent-day evils by ira asferring the means of
production from private to municipal own
ership. Non-socialist efforts at reform he
criticised as barren CT positive benefit. as
tending to insure she dominance OF the
capitalist class and to continue the social
evils now prevalent. That petty changes
for the better were made here and there by
these efforts he conceded. but he denied
that any general improvement of the condi-
ton of the working classes or any general
advance Of society as whole had been
made in America In twenty years.
John Martin. secretary of the department
of social economies, Wednesday night spoke
on industrial Democracy at Home and
Abroad" He declared that America was
moving steadily TOWARD socialism; that in
Idaho Wyoming and Utah the greatest in
dustries were socialist Industries. and that
millions for socialism. but to the galows
with socialists. was the slogan In some
parts of the west
An address on Policies, Reaction and the
Constitution was delivered by Frank Hen
drtck He said the American system of
government by law under a written Con-
stitutiOn was never more seriously threat
ened with eclipse its necessity to pop
ular government more clearly shown than
at the present time. He predicted. how
ever, that ultimately free republican gov
eminent would triumph.