The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1908-06-17
Wednesday. June w
1908.
Editorials BY the People.
What Has Roosevelt Done?

To the Editor OF The Times: l
have been reading with a great deal
of interest Mr.. G.. w. .Lawrie's. com.
munication/ TO your paper entitled
What Has Roosevelt Done?" and
Mr.. Fred X. Marvins reply to same.
Considering the Importance and
timeliness of the subject | take the
liberty of adding to what has already
been said. by discussing another phase
OF the subject.
To what extent have the Roosevelt
policies increased the national wei
fare and happiness of the American
people and TO what extent nave our
problems been solved or are on the
way OF being solved. through the
Roosevelt policies.
make no attempt TO attack the sin
certify OF Roosevelts motives. but
simply state the facts as they are.
The one great question before the
American people. a question before
which every other problem sinks into
insignificance. Is the trust question"
SO in asking what has Roosevelt done.
the answer must be. TO what extent
has the trust question been solved: Is
the power OF the trusts. the number OF
the trusts, the capitalization OF tho
trusts less today than when Roosevelt
took hold?
IL someone would have declared TO
admirers of Roosevelt in 1901 that
seven years from that date the power
and the number OF the trusts and the
Capitalization OF wealth would be far
greater than ii was then. what would
they have said?
Roosevelt is ready to step cut his
work Is nearly finished. and not alone
Is the trust problem not any nearer
| TO being solved. but on the contrary.
his successor will find the problem
far greater than when Roosevelt took
hold.
Roosevelt practically declared him
self and some OF his policies TO be
wrong. when. in one OF his messages
to the last congress. he declared that
the trusts are here TO stay" He did
not make that admission seven years
ago, or even one year ago. but after
being nearly seven years In Office he
al last declares that the trusts are
here TO stay"
AS far as solving the trust problem
is concerned. problem that is far
more important than all other prob.
lens combined, Roosevelt Is an abso-
lutte failure: more than a failure, con
sidering that the power OF trusts and
monopolies over the people is greater
today than II was seven years ago.
But his greatest failure does not
lay in the fact OF his not being able TO
curb the power OF the trusts. but in
his inability To see that the evolution
of modern industrial development
makes trusts inevitable, and that he
should have wasted seven years OF eff
forts before admitting that the trusts
are here to stay.
How many more years must pass
before Roosevelt will admit that regu-
lation Is failure and admit that
public ownership" is the only logical
solution OF the trust problem. Pub
lie ownership" OF the railroads. tele.
graph and all industries which are or
ganized on a national scale and in
which competition has virtually ceased
TO exist
In public ownership the problem
of reinvesting surplus profits is solved
because all money received in any
publicly owned industry must be spent
in wages and cost OF service. II there
is surplus II can be used to reduce
the cost OF the service or in necessary
improvements
Neither Roosevelt nor his party has
taken the first step towards public
ownership
And as for increasing the material
welfare OF those that need 1t most,
what are we to think of Roosevelt in
failing to say one word In all his mes.
sages to congress about the great un-
employed problem. or 10 recommend
one single emergency measure to re-
lieve the terrible sufferings OF the mil.
lions of unemployed Of this country.
]. f. STOCKER.
Detroit, June IA. 1908
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
inc m phildrau hp-caugp he iS not