The White Pine news. [volume] (Ely, Nev.) 1906-1910, 1908-04-01
COUNTRY NEEDS PEACE.

COUNTRY NEEDS PEACE.
There is no doubt but that ex-
President Cleveland put into words
what is in the minds of most think
ing men of the country today when
he said, "Our people need rest, after
period of terrific hysteria; they
need peace after intense excitement
and apprehension; and they need
conservatism, after the distur bling fer
yer of radicalism." The country Is
now getting the rest of inaction
which is worse than no rest at all,
the kind of rest of which Mr.. Cleve-
land spoke was that which comes to
busy man who realizes the just re-
wards of industry and progress to-
ward the fulfillment of his ambition.
There is idleness now but no rest,
and not until We have passed through
the "hysteria" of which Mr.. Cleve-
land spoke will the situation become
healthy. The great prosperity of the
country had apparently created a
prejudice that has led to efforts TO
so hedge in the corporations and
other large enterprises that the in
centive to build and construct has
been temporarily lost.
The socialistic element has gone
on the theory apparently that sue
cess can only be achieved through
chicanery and fraud, and therefore
the wealthy man is of necessity an
undesirable citizen. Unfortunately
there has been a great deal of loose
talk from those who should and do
know better but who saw a chance
to use the prevailing prejudices for
selfish purposes. There has been
much said and written about the
moral awakening of the peopls. but
the fact is that we had just about
reached the time when the study of
the problem of controlling the trans
portation companies had resulted in
definite views and fixed ideas. 1t
took some years for example. to find
that the Sherman law could ne APP
piled to the railways for the fremers
of the law had nothing in mind but
the industrial com binations which
strangely enough have gone on as
though the law had never been pass
ed. 1t is not to be argued from this
that the law has been totally inef-
fective against the industrial COM
binations, for it has been useful in
preventing agreements in restraint of
trade but the movement of combin-
alton was simply shifted from agree
ments between different companies to
the actual purchase of the plants ana
good wills.
The effective work done by this
administration has been under the
L.. 4, H.. l., .,nt
ties case but more especially under
the Elkins law, which haf stood the
test of constitutionality; this is prob
ably more than can be said of the
Hepburn law if it is ever taken into
court, which 1t certainly will never
be by the railways for they have
found it too satisfactory. 1t has been
claimed that it was necessary to have
a certain amount of hysteria and SEN
sationallsm In order to secure results
and perhaps this may be true of ac-
ton by congress, but the most eff
fective work of the administration
has not been in securing the passage
of new laws but in enforcing those
that had been on the statute books
for some years. 1t surely will not be
claimed that public hysteria and SEN
sationalism are necessary adjuncts
to the successful prosecution of suits
brought in the courts.
1t may be said of former admins
trations that the Elkins law was not
fully understood and that the pres
ent administration received the ben
eft of the decisions that had been
secured proving its constitutionality
and effectiveness. There is no dis
position to take from the president
any of the credit due him for his en-
forcement of the law but the business
interests of the country are wonder
ing II the laws could not have been
enforced just as effectually without
sensational messages to congress and
the erection of straw men to be
knocked down such as reported con-
spiracy of wealthy malefactors. The
presidents methods appear to many
to have been unnecessarily crude and
have resulted in the hysteria and ap-
prehension referred to by Mr. Cleve-
land, which have been partially re-
sponsible for the loss of confidence
on the part of investors. The evil
dences now coming from Washington
that more conservative methods are
to be used have been greeted with
sigh of relief, and If followed out
viii bring us that peace we should