The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1908-05-08
HON, EBEN v. MARTINS
RECORD IN congress

intensely interesting II voters are
looking carefully into the character Of
the candidates as well as into what
they have done in a public way.
1t is a pleasure to advocate the Sc
lection of such men as Mr.. Martin for
positions of great trust and response
bility. wherein not only the people
OF the state who select the congress
men are represented, but also the peo-
pie of the nation. Because Of h anx-
iety of many friends to do all they
can toward returning Mr.. Martin to
congress, the Star desires to give a
brief outline of some of the important
matters with which he had to do while
in congress from March 4, 1901, to
March 4. 1907:
He was a member of the committee
of western senators and representa-
tives selected to prepare the national
irrigation bill, and worked earnestly
for its passage. 1t became a law, and
under it the semi-arid and arid west is
being reclaimed. 1922 600, is being
expended in Butte county on the Belle
Fourche project, covering 100000
acres of land. The Cheyenne river
project in Fall River county was &C
lively pushed by him, n ii he is re-
turned to congress we have no doubt
but he will succeed in having the
government bring his project to a
successful completion.
1t was Congressman Martin VINO
started the national investigation of
great corporations and trusts by pre-
pairing and pushing to passage the re-
solution for Investigation of the beef
rust. This was the first resolution
and investigation OF this character
and the form of the Martin resolution
was followed in the Standard Oil in
v~estigation, investigation OF the coal
combine, and in similar Investigations.
1t was the beginning OF a series OF in
quirieS into the conditions and con-
duct OF great interstate corporations,
which is rapidly developing into a
national policy of control and regula-
ton of all corporations engaging in
interstate mer In this matter
Mr.. Martin was a leader and not a
follower. and was recognized as being
instrumental in helping ~inaugurate
one OF the chief Roosevelt policies.
He drafted and introduced bills for
The regulation and control OF corpora
tons engaging in interstate commerce
by a federal license SyStem-reQul!ing
all such corporations to show to the
satisfaction OF the secretary OF com
merce and labor that they are not
over capitalized. are not a trust or
combination in violation OF the law.
and that it is their purpose 10 operate
under and in Obedience to the edG@a
statutes, as a condition OF receiving
license to do business i'll interstate
commerce, providing for the regular
examination OF their affairs similar to
the examination of national banks and
providing as a penalty Tor violation OF
the laws of the United States the tor
fixture of their license and night 10 60
business in interstate commences, tie
sides criminal penalties. This is now
the policy of the Roosevelt admins
tration and is favored by tho pro-ltent
in his message to the present con
gress. He also supported the rGl!Iuad
rate legislation actively and maa a
speech advocating it.
He introduced and assisted III thC
passage of the bill TO establish tA"
national sanitarium for disabled vol
unteer soldiers at Hot SPRINGS. Near
ly 81 600. 900 has been expended by
the government in buildings and ina
provements OF grounds, and j-I# Is
one of the most humane undertaken IS
of the government in AID O! the V'tgr-
ans of our wars. Not only the peOpl"
of this locality feel grateful tuI his
active services in behalf OF thiS greet
saEitarium, but veterans from various
tates who have been here feel that
Mr.. Martin did them and the nation q
great service.
Being a member of the committee
on public buildings and grounds. h
was in position to insist upOn hD@ral
treatment of our state in the matter
of public buildings. During his term
as a member OF the committee. inc
appropriation for the Aberdeen build
ing was increased and appr1p. latsOnS
made for federal buildings al Pierre,
Yanton, Deadwood, Lead, Waterfowl
and Mitchell.
He promoted and passed numerous
bills of less national Importance than
the ones already alluded to: \ bll
for the relief OF settlers on the Black
Hills forest reserve; a bill allowing
homestead settlements on the agricul-
tural lands within forest reserves; a
bill to place fixed monuments OF the
western boundary line OF South Dako-
ia; acts granting lands totownS, cities
and benevolent associations Tor GEM
etery purposes; an act creating the
Wind Cave National Park; an act per-
hitting settlers in northwestern South
Dakota to obtain timber from the
Long Pine Hills in Montana; a bill
comforting jurisdiction on the United
States courts for crimes committed on
Indian reservations n many special
acts for the relief OF old soldiers VINO
are in special need of assistance be-
yCnd the ordinary provisions of the
pension laws. All of the foregoing
measures became laws, and many OF
them are of vital and far reaching
Importance.
Besides these he assisted in obtain
ing liberal annual appropriations for
improvement TIT maintenance of all
the government institutions of the
state; the Indian schools, the Indian
asylum at Canton, the Military Post
at Fort Meade. and the fish hatchery
at Spearfish, and secured an appropri-
alton for locating agricultural expert
mental stations in Fall River n
Butte counties, but the former for
some reason since he has not been in
Washington to look after them, has
been permitted to sleep.
Mr.. Martins most important unin-
ished work is the legislation for the
ccltrol and REGULATE N OF corporations
engaging in interstate commerce, and
that is likely to be one of the fore
most national policies for the next