The Washington times., 1908-08-25
RooSevelt's Last Message
May Unload Enormous
Pile of Suggestions.
JULY MAY NOT END
SPECIAL SESSION
Much Speculation Whether Presi-
dent Will Open Up Some
New Issues.
Bv 7. c. wELLIvER.


ton in December 10 face the prospect
of eight or nine months of the most
strenuous legislative experience that
body has ever known.
1t VIII have in anticipation the three
climactie months OF the Presidency of
Theodore Roosevelt. and everybody an
tcIpates that Mr Roosevelt. as a sort
of parting memento. viii unload on the
legislative branch the choicest collec-
tiou Of suggestions and tnsistences that
me has ever put forward. Then, once done
with Mr.. Roosevelt. Congress viii find a
new man al the other end Of Pennsyl-
vania avenue: either Mir. Taft or Mr..
Bryan. and really it doesn't make much
! difference TO Congress, for either of
them will call an extra session, and in
sist on the tariff being attended to. Mr..
Taft has definitely announced his inten-
tIoE. and Mr.. Bryan is Weu known 10
have the same purpose in mind.
1t Is not too much TO say that If the
country could see the advance copy of
the message which Mr.. Roosevelt will
send to Congress next December. II
would go far to determine how the No
vember election will result
Will He Be Modesto
VIII the President conclude that. as
this is his last Congress session, and
short one. he ought to be modest ard
/ conservative in his demands? or viii
he decide TO unload one huge burden Of
/ troubles on Congress and his sue
cessor? VIII he decide to let Mr.. Taft,
/ or AIr. Bryan. as the case may be, make
the policy of the next administration
I or viii ne. as last feeling reminder,
ldeliver a gatIing gun broadside of ideas
/ full of the spirit OF innovation and rad
icalism?
/ These are the questions which public
men are asking themselves II the Pres
ident should decide 10 au1ass into one
broadside deliverance all the unenacted
I lprogressiVism which he has suggested
lin speeches or messages, ne would have
outlined. in "a sort of farewell address,
enough work to keep the legislative
branch OF the Government busy for two
I or three administrations. He would
have set mis- stamp on about all the pro-
gressivism that could reasonably be ex-
4 pected to be brought forward in the
IHext two quadrienniums.
Leaves Legacy Of Ideas.
The legacy of ideas which Theodore
/ Roosevelt will leave TO the public to
consider and To Congress to wTestle with
will be second only TO that which
| George Washington and Alexander
| Hamilton aggregated together into the
1 Farewell Address. President Roosevelt
may decide to bequeath some such ut
| terance. setting forth I'm general his
! ideas of the demands which present
| economic and social conditions force up
| on the consideration of the legislative
i branch of Government. tt is reasonably
plain that if he does this, he viii pro-
/ vide all the program that the Govern
ment will need for some time to come;
vastly more than 1t viii consider. If un-
/ der the new order of things it decides
to be. less pushing about it's pro-
s1ch a great eIinactic state paper
I would probably. in the end. be the docu-
ment by which the fame Of Theodore
/ Roosevelt would be marked UP or down.
Marked up. if it should prove that he
/ were a prophet; marked down, If events
/ should decide against him, and If his
| recommendations should be rejected
New President to Call Il.
To begin with, It will not be for Presi-
ldent Roosevelt to call the special session
| Of Coz gress which viii deal with the
tariff. The new President viii do that;
/ therefor, il cannot be called till after
| inauguration on March l. But whoever
/ Is elected President, 1t is well under
stood that Congress viii receive an ad-
| vance intimatiOn that a special session
call may be expected, and members will
have no excuse for being taken by sur
/ prise, and getting their summer vaca-
ton plans disarranged and their
ChautauQua speaking dates pied by rea-
son of an unexpected call to look after
the tariff woodpile. No, there Will be no
shock, no surprise, no ''this IS so sud
den'' business about it.
| With the assurance that his successor
viii look after the tariff, President
! Roosevelt will be at liberty 70 present
/ his views about a vast array of other
questions. There are, for example, the
/ Questions of inheritance tax and income
/ tax. The President has declared himself
as favoring both those methods of
/ siphOning off some or the substance
! of swollen fortunes. If, IN his message,
he should seriously discuss these issues,
and present some ideas as to the prog
| ress other nations have made along
these lines. he would be leaving a legacy
| of working opportunity which statesmen
would not soon forget.
Good Excuse At This Time.
There is especially good excuse for
such a announcement at this time. be-
cause the Government is going to need
] the money.
/ It win be recalled that when the Pres
idert first suggested these means of
raising revenue and also of checking
the aggregation of wealth. the Treas
ury was showing an annual surplug
which a couple Of generations ago would
have been ample to meet the annual
budget of the republic There was
mighty little apparent excuse for levy
| ing new taxes.
But today II is different Net only is
there a troublesome deficit, but there is
! prospect that it will continue for soms
/ time. sien top of this, tariff revision
downward, as both parties indicate Il
; -kcoatipued On Third Pagel