Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1908-09-14
CONTINUED from Page One.)

man OF means, the honest and law
abiding business man. can feel safe in
his hands because of the very fact
| that the dishonest man of great
| wealth, the man who swindles or robS
his fellows, would not SO much as
dare to defend his evil-doing in Mr..
| Tafts presence The honest wage
worker the honest laboring man, the
| honest farmer, the honest mechanic or
| small trader or man of small means,
can feel that in q peculiar sense Mr..
Taft will be his representative because
of the very fact that he has the same
scorn for the deTagOg that he as for
the corruptionist. and that he would
front threats of personal violence
from mob with the unquailing and
lofty Indifference with which he would
front the bitter anger of the wealth.
lest and most powerful corporations
| Broad though his sympathies are, there
| is in him not the slightest tinge of
| Weakness No consideration of per-
sonal interest. any more than of fear
| for mis- personal safety could make
him swerve a hairs breadth from the
course which he regards as right and
in the interest Of the whole people.
I have naturally a peculiar interest
in the success of Mr.. Taft and in see
irg him backed by majority in both
houses of Congress which will heartily
support his policies. For the last ten
years. while | have been Governor of
| New York and President. | have been
| thrown into the closest intimacy with
| him, and he and / have on every es-
Sential point stood in heartiest agree
mcnt, shoulder to shoulder We have
| the same views as to what is demand
ed by the national interest and honor.
both within our own borders, and as
regards the relations of this nation
| with other nations. There is 10 fight
| for deCenry and fair dealing which |
| have Waged in which | have not had his
| hrartiest and most effective $ynpa-
| tiny and support and the policies for
which stand are his policies as much
| as mine.
| 1T is not possible in tho space of this
| letter to discuss all the many ana in
finitely varied questions of moment
With which MIR. Taft as President
would have to d, al; let him he Judged
by what he has lin,Self done. and by
What the administration. in Mh"h he
has played SO conspicuous a part, has
done. Bat to illustrate just what his
| attitude is, let me touch on two mat
ters now prominent in the public mind
Mr. Taft can be trusted to exact jus
ticc from the railroads for tn" very
reason that he can be trusted to do jus
tice to the railroads The railroads are
| the chief Instruments of interstate
| commerce in the country and they
car neither be held to a proper accoun-
| a
proper protection on the other. save by
| the affirmative action of the Federal
| Government. The law as laid down by
| the Federal courts clearly shows that
the States have not and cannot devise
| laws adequate to meet the problems
caused by the great growth of the
| railroads doing an interstate commerce
business, for more than four-ffths of
the business of the railroads is inter-
state. and under the Constitution of the
| United States only the Federal Govern
| ment can exercise control thereover. 1t
is absolutely necessary that this control
should be Affirmative and thorough go
ing. All interstate business carried on
by the great corporations should. in the
| interest of tho whole people. he far
| more closely supervised than at pres
ent by tie National Government; but
this is especially true of the railroads. |
which cannot exist at all save by the
exercise of powers granted them On be
half of the people. and which. there
fore. should lie held to peculiar ac-
cuuntahihty to the people 1t is IN the
interest Of the people that they should
rot he permitted to do injustice: and
it is no less to the interest of the peo-
Ile that they should not suffer injus-
tice. Their prime purpose is to carry
the commodities Of the farmers and
the business men; they could not be
built Save for The money contributed |
to them by their shareholders; they
could not be run at all save for the |
money paid out in wages to the rail |
road employees: and, finally, they could |
not be run iudiciouslv. or protitabIy to
any one, were it not for the employ
ment by them of some masterful guild |
ing intelligence, whether of one man
or of group of men. There are there
fore several sets of interests to be con- |
Sdered. Each must receive proper
consideration. and when any one of |
them Seltishly demands exclusive con
5ideration the demand must be refused |
Along certain lines all Of these groups
have the same interest. 1t is to the
interest Of shipper, farmer. wasc-work-
or. business man. honest shareholder, |
and honest manager alike that there
should be economy. honesty. inteli- |
eence. and fair treatment of all To |
put an effective stop to stock watering
would be benefit to everybody except |
the swnders who profit by stock |
watering: it would benefit the honest |
shareholder because hopest invest
nentS would not be brought into com
petition with mere paper; it would ben
eft the wage worker because when the |
money earned does not have to go paw
ing interest on watered capital. more
of it Is left. out of which to pay wages:
It would benefit the shipper because |
when only honest stockholders have to |
pc paid interest. rates need not be i'm |
properly raised; it would benefit the
public because there would be annie |
money with which to give efficient ser
wee Similarly. the prevention of ia
NorltlSm as among shippers does no
g. tn