The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1907-10-02

/ pie, should assume much the same super
vision and control over the management
OF Jne interstate common carriers that it
/ now exercises over the national banks
! You know furthermore that I believe
/ that this supervision and control should
/ De exercised in a spirit of rigid fairness
toward the corporations. eXacting Justice
from them on behalf OF the people but
giving them justice in return
We are trying 10 shape things so that
as lar as possible each man shall have q
I lair chance in life: so that he shall have
so far as by law this can be accOm-
/ that there Is in him. We have no inten-
/ ton OF trying to work for the impossible
! and undesirable end Of giving to the lazy
! the tlFTittleSS, the weak. and the vicious
! the reward that belongs 70. and IN the
long run can only come 20, the hard
working, the thrifty, the resOlute, and
! the honest.
Give All n Fair start.
! But We do wish to see that the neces-
sary struggle in life shall be carried on
under genuinely democratic conditions;
| that so far as human action can safely
provide it, there shall be an approx
mately fair start; that there shall be no
/ oppression of the weak, and that no man
shall be permitted to acquire or 20 use a
l vast fortune by methods or IN ways that
are tOrtuOus and dishonest.
I
need TO have them rCSolutely admins
tered. At intervals during the last few
months the appeal has been made 20 me
/ not 10 enforce the law against certain
Wrougdoefs Of great wealth. because 80
! DO so would interfere with the business
/ prosperity of the country Under the ef-
iects Of that kind of fright. which. when
sufficiently acute, We call panic this ap-
peal has Been made TO me even by men
who ordinarily behave as decent citizens
rsLrt
/ iy advanced this view gave prominence
/ 90 the statement Of a certain man Of
great wealth to the effect that the So
called financial weakness was due en-
/ tiTeiy 70 the admitted intention of PreSi-
dent Roosevelt 10 punish tbv large
moneyed interests which had trans
gressed the laws" I DO not admit that
/ this has been the main cause Of any
/ business troubles we have had. but il is
I possible that il has been contrihutOry
cause. IT so. friends. as far as 7 am
concerned. il must be accepted as a dis
agreeable, but unavoidable. feature in a
/ course of policy which. as long as I am
/ President, viii not be changed
Wants Rivers Made NavignbIe.
/ We should utilize the great river nigh
/ ways which have been given us bv ma
ture as an aid 20 commerce. From a
variety OF causes these highways have
In many parts of the country been al
most abandoned. This is not healthy.
! Our people. and especially the represent
atives of the people ig the national Con-
gress. should give their most careful at
/ tent0n 10 this subject We should be
! prepared 10 put the nation collectively
J back of the movement to- improve them
/ Tor the nations use Our knowledge at
/ this time is not such as 70 permit me
/ 70 go into details. or TO say definitely
gust what the nation should do. but most
! assuredly our great ravigablc rivers are
/ national assets just as' -Jch as our great
/ SeaCoast harbors
! Exactly as Il is for the interest Of all
! the country that our great harbors
should be fitted 10 receive i'm safety the
/ largest vessels of the merchant fleets of
! the world. So by deepening and otherwise
our rivers should be rrted 10 bear their
part in the movement of our mgTChau-
disc. and this is especially true of the
! Mississippi and its tributaries which
drain the immense and prosperous rp-
giOn which makes in very fact the heart
OF our nation. the basin Of the Gre
Lakes being already united with the
I basin OF the Mississippi. and both regions
being Identical i'm their products and in
terests. Waterways are peculiarly fitted
Tor the transportation Of the bulky COM
mOdities which come from the soil or un-
der the soil, and no other part Of our
country IS as fruitful as is this IN such
commodities.
Favors Small Farms.
Nothing is more important TO this coun-
try than the perpetuaron Of our system
OF mediUm-siZed farms worked by their
owners. We do not want to see our
farmers sink 10 the condition of the peas
ants of the Old World. barely able 10 live
on their small holdings. nor do we want
TO see their places taken by wealthy men
owning enormous estates which they
work purely bye tenants and hired seTV-
ants
At present the ordinary farmer holds
his own in the land as against any pos
siblo representative Of the landlord class
Of faTmeT-that is, Of the men who would
own vast eStateS-becaUse the ordinary
farmer uuites his capital, his labor. and
his brains with the making Of a perma-
nent family home. and thus can afford
. TO hold his land at a value at which il
cannot be held by the capitalist. who
would have 20 run il by leasing II or by
cuitIvaung it at arms length with hired
labor
In other words. the typical American
farmer Of to-day gets his remuneration
in part I'm the shape Of an independent
home for his family, and this gives him
an advantage over an absentee landlord
Now. from the standpoint Of the nation
as a whole. It is pre-emincnty desirable
10 keep as one of our chief American
types the farmer the farm home maker
Of the medum-slZed farm.
strongest political and social bulwaTks.
Such a farm worked by the owner has
proved bv-pNperipnCe the best place In
(which TO breed vigorous leaders alike for
country and city. It IS a matter Of prime
economic and civic Importance to en-
courage this type of homecoming farmer.
Would Educate the Farmer.
Therefore. we should strive in every
way TO aid in the education of the farmer
1-, !
system with this end in view; and so
vitaIly important Is this that. in my opin-
ion the Federal government should CO.
i operate with the State governments 10
secure the needed change and improve
ment in our schools. It is significant that
both from Minnesota and Georgia there
have come proposals in this direction in
the appearance Of bills introduced into
the national Congress
The Congressional land-grant act of 1852
accomplished much in establishing the
agricultural colleges in the several States.
land. therefore in preparing TO turn the
system Of educational training for the
young into channels at once broader and
more praCtiCable-and what I am say
ing about agricultural training really ap-
plies to all industrial training But the
colleges cannot reach the masses, and II
is essential that the masses should be
reached. Such agricultural high schools
as those I'm Minnesota and Nebraska for
farm bows and girls. such technical high
schools as are 10 be found. for instance.
IN both St Louis and Washington, have,
by their success. shown that ii is en-
tirely feasible to carry in practical fash
ion the fundamentals of industrial train
ing into the realms of our secondary
| schools
Need Practical Training.
At present there is a gap between our
primary schools in country and CITY and
the industrial collegiate courses, which
mus be closed. and if necessary the ma
ton must help the State TO close Il. Too
often our present schools tend to put al
together too great a premium upon mere
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