Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1908-04-03
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Latest Message a Platform.

President Roosevelt's anticipated mes
sage to congress, March 25, making
specific recommendation of the legis-
lation imperatiyely needed by the ma
ton was noticeably devoid Of heated
denunciation. and generalization and
was generally understood to represent
basis of party agreement on which
the coming Republican platform might
be erected by the friends Of the admin
istration.
OF chief interest at the moment is
the part dealing with the amendment
Of the Sherman antitrust law and ap-
proving the bill for this purpose intro
duced in the house by Hepburn Mon
day. Combinations he takes to be n
necessity of the modern Industrial
world both among business men and
among laboring men, Including farm
ers. AS the best method OF separating
the good combinations from the bad
ones, the president suggests the plan
Of registration contained In the Hep
burn bill. For the specific protection
of labor unions and farmer organize
lions he would have the right to
strike recognized as legal and like
wise the right of employers to com.
bine and contract with one another
and with their employees. Also should
be explicitly recognized the right of
the employees to seek peaceably to
persuade others to accept their views
and to strike for the purpose of peacea-
bly, obtaining from employers satisfac-
tory terms for their labor" But the
president is particular to add that
nothing should be done to legalize
either blacklist or boycott that
would be Illegal at common law"
While saying that 1t is the province
of the house to originate tariff bill,
the president expresses his opinion
that provision for revision Of the
tariff should be made by creating
commission to gather data. He does
make one specific recommendations
that wood pulp be put on the free list
at once and print paper be accordingly
reduced Other legislation nroad in
cludes model child labor bill for the
District Of Columbia, against hasty
court injunctions, giving the interstate
commerce commission more power to
deal with railroad stock issues, for
postal savings banks and for the active
start of work on the waterways.
Evans Upholds Reuterdahl,
1t now comes out that prior to the
voyage of the feet to the Pacific Ad-
miral Evans put on record in letter
to ship commanders his opinion that
the armor belt on our battleships Is
too low, thus sustaining the main con.
tention of Henry Reuterdahl in his ar.
ticle for McClure's. The language Of
the admiral was as follows: It will be
remembered that all our ships are now
Of greater displacements than that Of
their original design, and in conse,
quence they not only have an increased
draft Of water, but in the case Of
armored ships their armor belt is prac.
tically awash at load draft, which
| leaves them, as far as protection Is
concerned, but little better than armor.
ed cruisers" Prior the general board
of the navy had recommended the re-
moval of certain weights on the battle
ships in order to raise the armor belt
Reuterdahl, who has now returned
home after sailing with the fleet, says
that all this vital evidence was eX
cluded from the senate inquiry.
| d .gr.,. ~. iS..stie. 49,.
President Bars Anarchist Sheet.
By the written direction of President
Roosevelt the postmaster general ex
Guided from the malls the Italian an
archist paper La QUESTION: sociale
published at Paterson, N. j., a recon
issue of which is said to have contain
ed open and fragrant incitation to vic
lence against the police authorities. IL
another letter to the department o
Justice the president urged that tn!
editors be punished, saying that sucl
crimes are more infamous than muir
der" He will ask congress to leg
islate on this subject