The Spokane press. [volume] (Spokane, Wash.) 1902-1939, 1908-12-08

are often prepared with slovenly
haste and lack of consideration.
Moreover, thew are often prepared,
and still more frequently amended
during passage. at the suggestion OF
the very parties against whom they
are afterward enforced. Our great
clusters of corporations, huge
trusts and fabulously wealthy
multimillionaires employ the very
best lawyers they can obtain to
pick flaws in these statutes after
their passage; but they also employ
class of secret agents who seek,
under the advice of experts, to
render hostile legislation innocuous
by making it unconstitutional, often
through the insertion of what APP
pear on their face to be drastic and
sweeping provisions against the in
terests of the parties inspiring
them; while the demagogues, the
corrupt creatures who introduce
Matchmaking schemes to strike"
corporations, and all who demand
exareme. and undesirably radical,
measures. show themselves to be
the worst enemies of the very pub
lie whose loud mouthed champions
they profess to be-.
"A very striking illustration of
the consequences of carelessness In
the preparation of a statute was
the employers liability law of 1906.
In the cases arising under the law,
four out of six courts of first in
stance held it unconstitutional; six
out Of nine justices of the supreme
court held that it's subject matter
was within the province of congress
sional action; and four of the nine
justices held it valid. 1t was, how
ever. adjudged unconstitutional by
a bare majority of the court-five
to four 1t was surely very SLOW
emily piece of work to frame the
legislation in such shape as to
leave the question open at all.
Real damage has been done by
the manifold and conflicting inter-
pretations of the interstate COM
merce law. Control over the great
corporations doing interstate bust
ness can be effective only if it is
vested with full power in an admin
istrative department, branch of
the federal executive, carrying out
a federal law; 1t can never be effec-
tive if a divided responsibility is
left in both the states and the ma
ton: it can never be effective if
left in the hancs of the courts to be
doni1od hu 1aurc,uitc -
The president vigorously attacks
the amendment providing that
there shall be no detail from the
secret service and no transfer
therefrom. He says:
1T is not too much to say that
this amendment has been of benefit
only, and could be of benefit only,
to the criminal classes. If deliber-
ately introduced for the purpose of
diminishing The effectiveness of
war against crime it could not have
been better devised to this end. 1t
forbade the practices that had been
followed to greater or less extent
by the executive heads of various
departments for 20 years. To these
practices we owe the securing of
the evidence which enabled us to
drive great lotteries out of business
and secure a quarter of a million
of dollars in fines from their pro-
motors. These practices have en-
abled us to discover some of the
most outrageous frauds in connec-
ton with the theft of government
land and government timber by
great corporations and by individ-
uals. These practices have enabled
us to get some of the evidence in
dispensable In order to secure the
conviction of the wealthiest and
most formidable criminals with
whom the government has to deal.
both those operating in violation of
the antitrust law and others.
THE amendment in question was
of benefit to no one excepting to
these criminals, and it seriously
hampers the government in the de-
lection of crime and the securing of
justice. Moreover. it not only af
fects departments outside of the
treasury but II tends to hamper the
secretary of the treasury himself in
the effort to utilize the employees
of his department SO as to best
meet the requirements of the pub
lie service. 1t forbids him from pre-
venting frauds upon the customs
service, from investigating irregu.
larities in branch minis and assay
offices and has seriously crippled
him. 1t prevents the promotion of
employees in the secret service and
this further discourages good eff
fort.
THE chief argument in favor of
the provision was that the con-
gressmen did not themselves wish
to be investigated by secert service
men, Very little of such investiga-
ton has been done In the past; but
1t Is true that the work of the
secret service agents was partly re-
sponsible for the Indictment and
conviction of senator and a con-
gresham for land frauds in Ore.
gon. ! do not believe that 1t is in
the public interest to protect GRIM
inals in any branch of the public
service, and exactly as we have
again and again during the past
seven years prosecuted and con-
victed such criminals who were in
the executive branch of the govern
ment, so in my belief we should be
~. 10 - A.