Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1908-03-11
Herbert Knox Smith Of
Bureau of Corpora
tions at Work.
TO PREPARE A REPORT
Difficult to Frame Up Legisla-
ti0n That Will Not Stop
Harmless Trading.

Washington, March 11.-President
Roosevelt has directed Herbert Knox
Smith of the bureau of corporations
to investigate methods of stock trad
ing with view of furnishing a basis
of possible future legislation regulat-
ing such practices
Difficulties Recognized.
The difficulty is recognized of at
tempting federal regulation on the
transfer of stocks which will operate
TO curtail purely gambling contracts
and at the same time work no him
drance to legitimate transfers, and it
is announced to be for the purpose of
proceeding On sound principles that
the investigation is being made. The
president has declared himself to be
decidedly in favor of eliminating stock
gambling.
Citizenship May Cost $40.
Washington, March 11-If the house
and the senate concur in an action
taken yesterday by the house COM
mittee on immigration and naturaliza-
tion i'll reporting the Burnett bill it
will cost SO instead of So after July
l, 1908, for a foreigner to become q
citizen of the United States So great
has become the bulk of naturalization
business, especially in large cities,
that the discovery has been made that
| the lawful fees are insufficient to
! cover the actual cost of clerical work,
, and as a result some courts have prac-
tically refused to have anything to do
with the business.
Naval Inquiry Progress.
That there are serious defects in the
{ construction of American battleships
was charged yesterday by Captain
Winslow, assistant chief of the bureau
of navigation of the navy department,
and Commander A. L. Key, former
naval aide to President Roosevelt
Winslow said that the ships under
| Evans were all overdraft when they
left Hampton Roads. He defended Ad-
miral Rojesvensky for taking the Rus
sian ships in battle with the japanese
with full bunkers of coal, saying that
| the Russian commander could not
have done otherwise, for he did not
know how far he would be compelled
&c steam. Key attempted to direct the
form of his own testimony and incur
red the displeasure of the committee
on that account. He criticised the
armor belt and gun decks as being too
low and the ammunition hoists unsafe.
He attempted to dispute the testimony
Of the other officers, especially Chief
of Construction Capps, but was not
permitted to do SO. Finally the COM
Imittee held an executive session at
which it was decided that Key should
be heard today, but that his criticism
should be confined to ships and not
directed against the officers.
GOmpers Urges S-Hour Law. =
| Washington, March 11-President
IGompers of the American Federation
of Labor, accompanied by several
union men of the District of Columbia
made his first appearance yesterday
before the house committee on labor
in the series of hearings on the eight
hour bill which has been going Oh
for some weeks.
Il w. H. Fletcher, vice president o.
the w. & A. Fletcher company of Ho
boken, shipbuilders. said, as have al
r of his predecessors before the commit
tee in the construction line that i
the bill becomes a law his compan.
/ will be compelled to cease bidding
for government contracts.
Mr.. Gompers made a plea for tn,
, passage of the measure and emphati
. cally contradicted the assertion tha
had been made before the committee
by employers representatives tha
o workmen as rule were in favor O