The evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1907-1908, 1908-01-31
MORE POWER NEEDED.

THE laws must in the future be adj
ministered as they are now being ad-
ministered, so that the Department OF
it stice may continue to be, what 1t now
is, in very fact the Department of Justice.
where, 80 far as our ability permits, Jus
tice is melted out with q even hand to
great and small. rich and poor, weak
and strong. Moreover, there should be
no delay In supplementing the laws now
ON the statute books by the enactment
of further Legislation ms outlined In h
message i sent TO the Congress on it's
assembling. Under the existing laws
much, very much. has beer actually &C
complishe1 during the past six years, and
it has been shown by actual experience
that they can be enforced against the
wealthiest corporation and the riches and
most powerful manager or manipulation of
that corporation, as vigorously and fear
lessly as against the humblest offender.
Above all, the have been enforced against
the very ~wrongdoers and agents of wrong
doors who have for SO many years gone
scot-free and fiouted the laws with i'm
punity. gains great law-defying CORPORA
tons of immense wealth. which, until
within the last half dozen years, have
treated themselves and have expected
others TO treat them as being beyond and
dEONB all DuSSlblG t-ltEh liOil ldMs
sit Is especially necessary TO secure
TO the Representatives of the national
government full power to deal with the
great corporations engaged in inter-
state commerce, and above all, with the
great interstate common carriers. Our
pee pie should clearly recognize that while
there are difficulties in any course of con-
duct to be followed in dealing with these
UTnaf rOpAnrotfofad fhaoo dfAqrt,I4t0a ,,~r,.f
be faced and one of three courses followed.
1.-The first course is to abandon all effort
to oversee and control their actions in the
interest of the general public and 10 permit
a return to the utter lack of control which
would obtain If they were left to the COM
mon law. l do not for one moment believe
that our people would tolerate this position.
The second and third courses are to
have the regulation undertaken either by
the nation or by the States. OF course in
any event both the national government
and the several State governments must
do each its part, and each can do q GER
tain amount that the other cannot do,
while the only really satisfactory results
must be obtained by the representatives
of the national and State governments
working heartily together within their re-
spective spheres. But in my Judgment
thOroughROing and satisfactory control
can In the end only be obtained by the
action of the national government, for
almost all he corporations of eAOr-
nous ~weaIth--that is, the corporations
which It is especially desirable to
cOntrOl-are engaged in Interstate
commerce, and derive their power
and their Importance not from that portion
of their business which Is interstate, but
from the interstate business. 1t Is not
easy always to decide Just where the line
of demarcation between the two kinds of
business falls. This line must ultimately
be drawn by the Federal courts
The President quotes from a letter sent
to him by a Southern supreme court judge
(his name not given) in which the latter
expresses alarm over the question of con-
hict Of authority between State and Fed
sral courts. and sustaining the Presidents
argument for Federal control.