Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1908-09-18
Friday. September IS, 1908
FLOUNDERING.

n (OS
Close students of politics in
Washington think that the Adj
ministration is flOundering
among shoals, and that the re-
cent reversal of fines, declaration
that laws are unconstitutional,
and other set-backs, has caused
much concern among the Admin
istration officials, and this is re-
acting on the political situation.
The setback to the Administra-
ton by the reversal of the cele-
brated Lands fine, followed as it
has been by the decision of the
courts that the law forbidding
the railroads to carry to market
the coal they own as unconstitu-
tional, is causing much anxious
solicitude in the White House
circles, and it is the fear that all
this will react on the Republican
party in the Presidential election,
now only few weeks off, which
makes no little uneasiness. The
Administration will. of course,
endeavor to show that it is no
fault OF the government that
these reverses have come, but at
ter all the talk of trust busting
and the clamor raised over the
triumph of Justice, the fact that
no trust has been busted and
that so far as is shown not one
OF the "malefactors of wealth"
has come to grief, is having its
effect, and people are asking if
this is not all Just play to the
galleries, and if it was really ex-
pected that the work of the big
concerns would be limited.
In any case it would seem that
the work of prosecution has
been virtually suspended for the
Time, and the prosecution of the
malefactors, if they are prose
cuted at all, is reduced to a still
hunt. One thing seems certain,
that the Administration has not
been profited politically by the
recent decisions of the courts,
and that these decisions are wor-
rying those in power no little.
1t will be odd if the Democratic
ticket is not profited thereby.
The Washington Herald pokes
fun at John Temple Graves,
quoting sentence OF his accept
ance speech:-"I rejoice in the
courage and catholic patriotism
which sends the Independence
Party for a candidate to the GEN.
trial South. 1t is the first of the
great national parties to give
the South aplace on it's Presiden-
tial ticket" The Herald adds
that it is barely possible that
the Colonel is misquoted and
that he really said cit is the
first national party to give a
great Southerner a place on it's
Presidential ticket" 1t quotes
a list of some dozen Southern
gentlemen who, first and last.
have been candidates for the
Presidency, and concludes with:
"We rejoice in the spunk that
prompts any man to toot his
own horn above the din of every
othertooterin his neighborhood.
provided his lungs hold out and
his spirit quaileth not" Evil
IDENTIFY the Herald does not take
the candidacy of Colonel Graves
seriously.
The Baltimore News is not a
Bryan paper, but it seems to
have viewed the Democratic
meeting in Baltimore through
different glasses from those used
by the Baltimore Sun, as the
News reports an immense crowd.
great enthusiasm, and the ora
tor as popular as ever; while the
Sun has to say that the hall was
not filed, thousands more might
have gotten in and that before
he closed the audience had near
ly dispersed. The whole drift OF
the report is to the effect that
the meeting was a failure and the
speaker had lost his charm. So
much for desire to discredit the
Democratic cause and it's leader.
Possibly the Sun may live to re-
greet its position.
IAMno worse than my party, .
says Joe Cannon. That's hard
on the party, but is doubtless at