The daily sentinel., 1907-08-20
ALL HONOR TO
THE PILGRIMS
CONTINUED FROM FIRST PAGE

troll to that which 1t exercises over
national banks. We can 10 this by
proceeding farther along the lines
marked out by the recent national
legislation
Continuing, President Roosevelt
declared that in dealing with any
totally new set of conditions there
must at the outset be hesitation
and experiment. Our experience
in dealing with the trusts has been
along this line. He believes that the
courts and people should be gradual
ly educated as to what the real
wrongs and remedies are. The presi-
dent declared that the American peo-
pie ara firmly convinced of the need
of the control of trusts. He then call
ed attention to two remedies, the in
terstate commerce and law the Sher-
man, antitrust law which have been
only partially successful, but which
he calls a good beginning. He dis
eussed the virtues of the two laws at
considerable length He said that Of
ten men who had been guilty of viol-
ating these laws have really acted in
criminal fashion and If possible
should be proceeded against crimin-
ally: and. to quote Mr. Roosevelt;
therefore 1t is advisable that there
should be a clause in these laws pro-
viding for criminal action, and for
punishment by imprisonment as well
as by fine. But. as is well known
in a criminal action the law is strict
ly construed in favor of the defend
ant and in our country, at least both
Judges and jury are far more inclin-
ed to consider his rights than they
are the interests of the general pub
lie; while in addition it is always
true that IA mans general practices
may be so bad that IA civil action will
lie when IL may not be possible to
, convict him of any one criminal act.
There is unfortunately certain num-
ber of our fellow-countrymen who
seem TO accept the view that unless
n man can be proved guilty of some
particular crime he shall be counted II
good citizen, no matter how infamous
the life he has led, no matter how per-
nicious his doctrines of his practices.
This is the view announced from
time to time with clamorous insis-
tence, now by IA group of predatory
capitalists, now by group of sinister
anarchistic. leaders and agitators,
whenever special champion Of Ell
ther class, no matter how evil his
general life, is acquitted of some one
specific crime. Such view is wick
ed whether applied to capitalists or
man But we have to take this feel
ing into account when we are debat
ing whether 1t is possible to get a
conviction in a criminal procee ling
| against some riih trust magnate.
many of whose actions are severely
, to be condemned from the normal and
Ibcial standpoint but no one of
whose actions seems clearly to es-
tablsh such technical guilt as will
ensure a conviction AS a matter of
expediency. in enforcing the law
against a great corporation. we have
continually to weigh the arguments
pro and con as to whether a prose-
cutiou can successfully be entered In
TO and as to whether we can be sue
cessful in a criminal action against
| the chief individuals in the corpora
ton, and II not whether We can at
least be successful In a civil acton
against the corporation itself. Any eff
fective action on the part of the gov
ernment is always objected to, as n
matter OF course, by the wrong doers
| by the beneficiaries of the wrong To-
| ers, and by their champions and Of
ten one of the most effective ways
of attacking the action of the govern
n,hen is by objecting to practical nc
| tion upon the ground that 1t does
not go far enough. One of the fav-
orite devices of those who are real
ly striving to prevent the enfurce-
ment of these laws is to clamor Tor
arson of such severity that il can
not tie undertaken because 1t will
] he certain to fail If tried. An in
stance of this precautions where such
| prosecutions would be certain to fail.
We have found by actual experience
that q jury which will gladly pun
ish a corporation by fine, for instance
will acquit the individual members of
that corporation If we proceed again
81 them crimlnally because of those
very things which the corporation
vlloh they direct and control has
done. -
Mr. Roosevelt illustrated this
statement by references to the licO-
rice trust case of recent date. The
president declared that II is the pur-
pose of the administration to punish
all wrong doers, be they powerful
corporations or individuals. To do
something effective he says is the
aim of the administration.
The chief executive in passing
spoke of the rights and interests of
the wage workers, referred to the
national employers liability law He
wants to see more legislation dealing
with the health of the nation and the
war against the dreadful scourge Of
tuberculosis.
In closing his great address Prcsi-
dent Roosevelt declared that while
legislation is necessary. the all im-
portant factor most of us must be
his own individual character. at
is a necessary thing to have good
laws, good institutions, but the most
necessary of all things is to have
a high quality of Individual citizen
ship" He made a plea tor the peo-
pie to be conservative and regardfulI
of the rights of others
1--WE should all of us work heart
and soul for the real and permanent
! hetterment which will lift our dem
ocratic citizenship to a higher level
of safety and usefulness. Such bet
tsrmeut can come only by the slow,
steady growth of the spirit which
metcs a generous, but not a senti-
mental. Justice to each man on Ills
/ laelits as a man. and which recog-