Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-04-12
PRESIDENT SENDS A LETTE]
Conference Of Governors Is to Be
Held at tho White House in
the Middle Of May.


sentatives Burton of Ohio. John SHARP
| Williams Of Mississippi and James l..
Slayden OF Texas. United States Court
Judge C. M. Hough Of New York and
Henry NJ. Hoyt. solicitor general Of the
United States. Washington, D. C.
James r. Garfield. Secretary Of the
Interior presided at tonight's session
Judge Hough spoke briefly.
Representative Williams Remarks.
Representative John Sharp williams Of
Mississippi spoke Of Federal Usurpa-
tons" He said that so far as he could
read or had read, all governments. wheth-
er free or not. which have existed and
fallen. have fallen by weight Of political
machinery. There has come a time In
their HISTORIES" he said, when govern
ment and Its machinery were the first
CONSIDERATION, and man and his Individual
1ty-the support Of government-the Sec
| ond. 1t IL well always to keep in mind
the primal fact that while government is
necessary and ought to be made good. 1t is
out Of the voices of human nature. It is
| means to an end. which end Is the hap
piness and freedom and development of
the individual man and woman, and Is
never an end in itself.
This idea was carried further in the
| formation Of our federal government than
In that OF any other government. accord
ing to my mind. In a certain sense in
deed. the federal government is not the
government Of these United States at all.
but is q piece Of central machinery or
ganized to hold together in union the
several governments of the several states
and protect them by union from mutual
aggression and from aggression from for
er Is not a recent growth. It was q nee
essary concomitant Of the rule of the old
federalists.
Every governmental abuse" said Mr..
pretext. and the usurpation Of power by
government Is generally based upon ne
cessity,' the 'tyrants plea. This real or
fancied necessity generally grows out Of
regard to legislative and executive usurpa-
lions by our federal government"
Mr.. Williams said that what has been
actually accomplished by Legislation reg
ulating or pretending to regulate inter-
state commerce is nothing compared to
what Is proposed" He enumerated a
score or more of measures pending In
Congress looking toward federal control
Of public acts and politics in the various
states, such. for instance. as a child labor
supply. etc, and, while conceding the ex-
ceilence of the physical aims, he con-
demned the measures as being attempted
usurpations Of state rights by the general
government.
Representative Burton also spoke.
A letter was read during the session
from President Roosevelt inviting Presl.
dent Rowe Of the American Academy OF
Political and Social Science to partici.
pate In the conference Of governors OF
states and territories Of conservation OF
natural resources, which Is to be held at
the White House May 1915.
Martin A. Knapp, chairman OF the IN
terstate commerce commission, presloeo
nd
first address on 1.-The Nation and the
Railways" Referring to the Sherman
antitrust law. Mr.. Knapp said: Moth
ing indicates more the profound sagacity
Of the President than his can on on, Lon
gress for a modification of that BILL
Robert Mather's Address.
Robert Mather. general counsel Of the
Rock Island Company, was the next
speaker. He said:
II is not the purpose OF this article to
show that the rate-making power OF the
states should be diminished or destroyed
or that this object. II desirable. can or
cannot be accomplished under the federal
constitution, but merely to state and to
illustrate the proposition that, IN fact,
the states do make interstate rates.
When railroads found their way to Chi
caeo and ST. Louis their rates were hxed
largely by the water competition which
met them on their arrival. Gradually rail-
roads were constructed westward from
these points and, as they reached COM
mon territory. the force Of competition
began to be felt. Intense rivalry devel-
oped between the distributing houses of
Chicago and st. Louis. and pressure was
brought to bear upon the railroads. both
east and west, to keep the rate fabric so
adjusted that goods stored in and dis
tributed from either city might be laid
down at any Of the Missouri river points
at substantially the same freight cost
The class rates from New York to Chi
cago thus became the basis Of measure
ment for all class rates. The st. Louis
rate was a fixed per cent higher. approx
mating the difference In the cost OF reach
ing that point by water. The rates be-
tween the Mississippi river and Chicago
on the one hand and the Missouri river
on the other were fixed not at what would
be a reasonable rate for the distance. but
at what 1t was necessary to maintain In
order that st. Louis and the lines leading
through St. Louis might compete with
Chicago for the expanding business Of
Kansas City, Atchison, st. Joseph and
Omaha.
Competitive Rate Adjustment.
In the territory west of the Missouri
river the same process has been repeated,
not only that Kansas City, st. Joseph
and Omaha may compete with each other,
but that goods distributed from St. Louis
and Chicago, as well as from the eastern
cities, may be handled through either
Kansas City. st. Joseph or Omaha and
laid down at the several consuming
points at practically the same freight
cost. In the northwest this same COM
pettive adjustment Is maintained be-
tween Chicago. Duluth. Minneapolis and
ST. Paul. In the southwest Chicago. st.
Louis and Kansas City must be kept on
an even keel. and when Texas is reached
the whole adjustment is modified to meet
the competition CT coastwise steamers
plying from New York to Galveston. To
Colorado and Utah the routes through all
these gateways are kept in constant ad
justment. and the rates so arranged that
Denver and Pueblo are enabled to do a
distributing business.
What is true of westbound merchandise
is equally true of the movement to the
east Of the great StaDleS raised in the