The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1908-06-19
MANKATO FREE PRESS

cent of the government employees
and municipal Offices are Americans.
and -of the police and constabulary
force % ncr cent are Filipinos.
The work of civilizing and uplifting
the inhabitants of the Philippine
Islands has gone forward with re-
markable progress.
The resignation of President Palma
of the republic of Cuba and the fail
ure of the Cuban Congress to elect a
successor left that island without a
government at time when great dis
order prevailed, and the president
deemed it his duty to establish pro-
visional government, restore order,
administer law and justice, but cou-
pied with the announcement that this
action was preliminary to the re-es-
tablishment of orderly government in
the island. The threatened insurrec-
tions were averted, peace and good
order restored and the development
of production, transportation and
commerce resumed. Public order has
been perfectly kept, and at no time
for century has the island been so
free from marauding bands as under
American provisional administration.
Local and national elections are to
be held and the government again
turned over to the Cuban people.
Our navy has been strengthened
until today we hold second place
among the naval powers in the world,
and our fleet of battleships rides tri-
umphantly around the globe, receiv-
ing the friendly salutations of the ma
tons, conveying peace and good will
to all the people.
The department of justice has
prosecuted its work with fidelity and
diligence, seeking to prevent viola
tons of federal law and to mete out
meritorious punishment to the guilty.
Its most important work during the
past four years has been to defend
the soundness of the positions taken
by it relating to prosecutions under
the Sherman antitrust law and the
interstate commerce law by carrying
proceedings thus inaugurated through
the various courts and to a final de-
termination by the supreme court of
the United States, that the constitu-
tionality of these acts might be adj
Indicated and settled.
The effort of the national govern
ment to invoke that provision of the
federal constitution which empowers
congress to regulate commerce with
foreign nations and among the states
presented problems of the greatest
perplexity, the solution of which has
been attended with no little difficulty.
Without rehearsing the legislation
enacted to correct, the evils and the
or1> Il - -
gratifying to know that the abuses
complained of are fast disappearing,
and carrier and shipper alike are CO.
operating in the enforcement of the
law, and what at one time threatened
to be a protracted and acrimonious
struggle is fast assuming a peaceful
solution.
The rulings of the. interstate COM
merce commission are generally and
cheerfully accepted by the carriers.
The traffic officials of the carriers
have manifested to. a commendable
degree a disposition and Willingness
to fairly and carefully consider the
merits of complaints thus called to
their attention by the commission and
have voluntarily reduced their rates
and applied corrective measures in nu
merouS cases.
In a communication from one of
the commits on the 5th of the
present m0ntfGsthe statement is made
that interstate transportation was
never so clean and free from unfair
and unlawful pr&ctices as at this mo-
ment. 1t may be that here and there
venturesome and reckless railroad Of
ficials still irdulge in rebates or take
other measures to give special priv
ilegest to a favored shipper. If so,
they will be detected sooner or later
and Adequately punished, but among
the great mass Of railroad officials
there is an honest and firm effort to
cooperate With the commission in the
observance If the law"
The Republican party stands for
revision and readjustment of our GUS
toms laws as changed industrial con-
ditions at htme and abroad may have
made necessary, keeping steadily in
view the cardinal principles of pro-
lection to american industries and
American 1;bor AS evidence of its,
good faith il this regard, the national
house of representatives, clothed un-
dCl lllC SODslllullOl Will CNS1lSlNC
risdiction to originate all bills for
raising revenue" on the Goth of April
just past, ty formal resolution, au
thorized and directed its committees
on ways ana means, the organ of the
house having Jurisdiction of the ques-
ton, ito sit during the recess of con-
gress and to gather such information,
through governmental agents and
otherwise, IS it may see fit, looking
toward the preparation of a, bill for
the revision,of the tariff"
suppIementing this action on the
part of the house of representatives
anu cooperating WIZ it, TIE senate,
in the exercise of its constitutional
prerogative to propose or concur
with amendments, as on other bills"
on the 10th of May passed tine follow
ing resolution:
"Resolved, That the committee on
finance are authorized, in connection
with investigations heretofore ordered
by the sena4e, with the view of
promptly securing the information
necessary for an intelligent revision
of the custom laws of the United
States, to call to their assistance ex-
perts in the executive departments of
the government and to employ such
other assistants as they shall require,
and they are especially directed to
report what further legislation is nee