Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1908-03-19
CAPITAL CHAT.
Continued From Page One.)

holding that labor unions are RESPONSE
BILE in damages for boycotts. 1t is said
that the United States Steel Trust and
the American Brass Co., both of which
corporations have had representatives
at some of the White House con-
ferences, would be pleased with the
bills because it would remove certain
restrictions over combinations for
legitimate ends
Congressman have not been called in
yet for their opinions of the measures
and it is by no means certain what the
Senate and House will do. Some diff
Guilty may be experienced in getting
those measures out of committee SO
la te in the session. But Congress ex-
poets to De in session at least for six
weeks. In two or three weeks the
House win have it's appropriation bills
out of the way and can devote time to
general legislation if the leaders so de-
sire. Perhaps the House may be per-
sUaded to give these bills from the
President consideration and pass them
while the Senate is concluding its work
on tho appropriation bills. Nobody be-
lieves now that the Senate will enact
any such laws at this session. To do
so might keep Congress here till along
into the middle of the summer. But
if the House should pass the legisla-
ton, the party would be committed to
it, even more than if the President had
simply recommended it. That action
might help Republican candidates to be
elected in close Congressional districts
Therefore all in all one is hardly
warranted in saying that the Presi-
dents measures will be met with de-
fiance all along the line at the Capitol.
Congress, from long experience, has
great respect for the President polit-
ical judgment. It's members. after
thinking it over, are unlikely to dissent
very strongly from what he recon-
mendS. The Presidents programme,
Congressman will remember, would
climate the criticism that this has been
do-rothing Congress. 1t would add
to the record of things achieved, which
the Republicans are always proud Of
putting before the country. Being a
party Of affairs, the Republicans gen.
orally preferred to go into a cam
paign with q record of having done
| things. The people approve that sort
of record. even if an occasional mis-
| take is made in what is done.
| In any event April days are likely to
| find things humming all over Washing
ton. The idea that it was going to be
dull here towards the Tag end of the
| session and that little else than routine
| business would have the boards is be-
| ing dispelled. There will be much
wrestling over what the President
wants. The leaders in Senate anG
House will have to put their heads to-
gerller. The big lawyers of both bodies
will be trotted out to scrutinize what
| the President has wrought. AS it is
practically all profound legal legisla-
ton, the lawyers will certainly have an
| inning and there will be discussion and
| harsplitting of the extended and also
| of the useful kind that lawyers are
| capable Of For such discussion serves
| to fix public attention upon abstruse
matters of legislation as nothing else
can do. and sentiment, On which legis-
lation must be based. is formed.
A year or two at least of campaign
| ing to a specific idea it often essential
| to the enactment of a good law. That
| was The case with the railroad rate
law. The President proceeded with that
very much as he is proceeding with
his new measures now. He had the
| bill drawn and introduced in the
House, where it was passed in rather
perfunctOry manner. That started
| comment and criticism the country
over, men began to study the problems
involved Congressman We're alert to
sift out the best ideas offered and in
the course of a few months, before
another session of Congress convened,
things were in much better shape for
intelligent legislation.