The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1907-07-11

DuSlhCcS. hOiO oaO AAO 800
Germs for it to fight, and it follows
much the methods of the Standard
Oil Company in keeping spies on its
enemies. When the prosecution is
brought against it by the govern
ment it probably will be under the
Sherman Antitrust law, for the
Smelter Trust has violated that law
in every possible direction. People
in the east do not understand as a
rule how thoroughly the trust has its
grasp on the whole of the ore min
ing industry of the west, and how
thoroughly it is hated. But the
prosecution is apt to bring out a
good many facts that will make in
teresting reading. It is not likely
that the trust will be much easier to
grapple with than the Standard OIL
Company, for it is almost as rich
and powerful. It has been long
time getting round to the point of
being Investigated, and possibly the
belated move of the government
may have had some connection with
the fact that the trust in the past
year took two of the very good and
much underpaid members of the
Geological Survey out of the serv-
ice of the government and employed
them in mining work at from four to
five times the salary that the gov
eminent had been paying them.
Worms (even the United States)are
long suffering, but they will turn
sometimes.
There has been lot of talk in the
past week over the report that the
government was going to send
large section of the battleship squad
ron from the Atlantic to the Pacific
coast to strengthen the naval arm
there and be ready for any aggres-
sion on the part of the japanese.
There is just truth enough in this
story to make it interesting. The
immediate reply of the Navy De-
partment was that the story was
made out of the whole cloth. This
might have been good enough for
lay consumption, except for the fact
that the department admitted that
the ships were going But it ex-
planned that the arrangements for
their departure had been made years
ago, and that the government had
been waiting to make the move only
till we had ships enough to spare
some more for the Pacific coast.
This was true enough in way, but
we have not added any battleships
to the navy in the past few weeks,
and the move would not have been
made now except for the fact that
the japanese situation has been
strained enough to warrant consid-
Grafton, if nothing more. No fleet
that we could spare for Pacific serv
ice just now would be effective
against the navy that Japan could
send from her home ports, for she
has all her navy in the Pacific. |
There is no immediate prospect of
our needing an increased naval
force out there, but the move mere
ly indicates how the wind blows. 1t
will look good deal less pointed to
send some battleships to the coast
now than it would if the situation
with japan were really acute.
Secretary Taft this autumn will
make another journey to Manila.
This will have twofold object, and
the second half of the object was
only disclosed last week when it was
suggested that he might come home
by way of the Trans Siberian Rail-
road. The situation in the Philip
pines is not altogether satisfactory.
There was good deal hoped from
the election soon to be held there,
but the registration shows that the
Filipinos do not care much about
voting or else they do not take the
offer of the government to let them
vote very seriously. They evident
ly need generation or two of train
ing before they will develop into in
terested citizens The visit of the
Secretary will do something toward
arousing their electoral interest.
Then he will take another party of /
Congressman along with him and
hopes to educate them to the desir-
ability of passing Philippine tariff
bill. Then for the Homecoming by
way of Russia. 1t will give this
government good chance to patch
up the feeling which should and
does not exist between the people of
this country and Japan. It is just
possible that Secretary Taft might
not be received with the enthusiasm
that his personality warrants in ia
pan, but even if he were not, it
would give the Russian government
a chance to lionize him and would
help the relations of this country
with Russia. This world trip as
the chosen representative of the Ad-