Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1907-03-25
BlNKs AND BUSINESS HOUSES PANIC PROOF
Prosperity Holds sway and Farmer f.
nations BulwarL, and only Those
who Have sinned win Pay
the Penalty,
cFrom a star Correspondent

merce as now exists, and that too in the
face of prosperity which exceeds far and
away anything in the history not only Of
our nation but the nations of the world.
Are we on the. eve Of a financial PANEL
It is a subject of awful import not only
10 the corporations not only to the COM
mercial life Of the nation, but 10 the wage
Garner. the farmer, and the husbandman.
This unrest began just about the time
congress terminated its labors contem-
poraneous with the meeting OF state leg
islatures throughout the length and breadth
Of the land. The state legislatures by their
enactments accentuated and made even
more stringent the laws passed in the
Flfty-ninth congress. And these laws were
primarily directed against the railroads.
Where congress could not fix a rate the
state legislature came along and fixed the
rate which a passenger was to pay for
miles travel. The rates varied, but all
looked to reduction. When the magnates
Of the railroad world saw what had been
accomplished and was in process of &C
complishment there came CONSERVATION
and dire disaster was threatened.
Roosevelt Gets the blame.
Down upon the head of President Roose-
welt anathemas fell. He was charged with
the ruin Of great railroad property. Wall
street. more sensitive to a touch than
boil is to the press Of a finger, responded
either through sympathy or manipulation
and stocks began to tumble, and they tum-
bled and tumbled until the men who had
wrung millions out OF the street" and who
had framed up the game of finance so that
one party was in on the bull side and the
outs took to the woods or were modestly
on the bear side. came to the conclusion
that the wise thing to do was to see the
president and If possible ascertain II by
his individuality and his great personal
following throughout the country he would
not put a stop order" on the shrinkage
in stocks. And the men of the railroad
world, the Harrimans, the Morgans, the
Mellens the Yoacums, to say nothing of
the lesser fry. came to Washington to
see the president and learn from him what
was best to be done to check the avalanche
Of stock depression.
And those who had known President
Roosevelt i'm a somewhat perfunctory way
and who had serious doubts as to his in
innate knowledge Of great railroad prop
critics, to say nothing of the shady trans
actions connected with the manipulation of
the stock OF RAILROAD properties, forcing
one set of of men out and putting another
set OF men IN, learned lndI lne pTeSluenli
who knew his American history as we'll
as any man in the country, who knew the
worlds politics as well as any man in the
country who knew how to hunt and who
Knew how to brand steer knew also
how to brand the magnates OF the rail-
road world when they came to see him on
the question whether President Roosevelt
in his position on the railroad question is
making ready for a financial panic.
"GOOd" Railroads Are Few.
President Roosevelt believes there is more
water than solid rock in the railroad stocks
of the United States. He knows there are
good" railroads and bad" railroads, but
! the proportion of bad to good, according
to one who is near the president, is as
| five to one
Approaching these facts which have been
furnished him not only by the Department
of Commerce and Labor, but by the Inter-
state Commerce commission and the attor-
/ ney general President Roosevelt was
equipped as few men have been in public
= office on great questions Of vast moment
| to meet the representatives Of the railroad
systems Of the United States who have
] seen him during the fortnight just passed
/ Some of them talked after their interview
with the chief executive. Others refused
requested
/ TO tell what actually took place in the room
adjoining the cabinet room of the presiden-
tial office. While each man held to his
individual point Of view they universally
/ agreed that the president insisted upon
/ one thing. namely, that he was but exc
| cutting the law that 80 far as he could
he would distinguish the good railroad com
panies from the bad companies, but that all
were equal before the law. He deprecated
the legislation by commemorative looking
! to the regulation of rates and railroad
properties beyond federal legislation. but
believed it was a natural sequel of railroad
manipulation ana mismanagement
Those who have followed closely the trend
OF events. particularly in the financial cen
/ tiers, realize that a chaotic condition exists
I and that before things settle down to a
stable basis and possibly an honest basis
there win come failures, but only in firms
/ dealing with high finance. There will be no
! failures of business houses, there will be
few failures Of banks because Of the bound
less prosperity which is promised for this
/ year Of grace, 1907, continuance OF many
| individual years Of prosperity and the
| farmer as he has in countless times be-
fore will prove himself the bulwark OF the
nation.
Burt as n ball Fan.
General Andrew s. Burt, whose name will
be presented as national commander Of the
Army and Navy union OF the United States.
/ and who, II friends can make him so. will
be elected TO that Office, has in many par
! tieuars one Of the most interesting careers
OF any ofhcer 'on the retired list OF the
army. ANDY Burt as he used to be
known in the west so many years ago that
/ Il would be a shame 10 speak them publicly.
is the best all around sportsman in the
/ country, and although he is on the retired
I list Of the army, he Is as much Of a base
ball fan" as when base ball was invented
Burt has been insisting that the umpires
should signal strikes and balls to the audi
ence instead OF declaiming a strike or a
ball. He insists that hundreds Of times an
audience has no knowledge Of what the
umpire's decision IS on that most interest
ing question and fights and riots have been
known 10 grow out Of the failure OF persons
/ 10 hear an umpire's decision.
Andy" Burt one OF the best of Indian
lighters, one OF the best cavalry officers
IN the army, whose theater OF Operations
was the vast plains Of the great west, was