The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1909-10-08
WASHINGTON LETTER.

OuCle Joe cannon Is gong 10 carry
the war into Africa. He is going to lay
down the lines, it is expected, on which
the battles over nominations of members
of Congress next spring and summer will
be fought, especially Republican nomi.
nations. Speaker Cannon has been in
vited to speak this week at Knoxville,
Iowa. This is strong, progressive
country and is in Senator Cnmmins' home
district. The Speaker has accepted the
invitation.
The affair at which Mr.. Cannon will
speak will be homecoming" and there
will be many thousands ofIowans present,
including large number of those who
don't like the new tariff law and who
have small use for Uncle Joe'' and for
Senator Nelson Wilmarth Aldrich. Now
it is barely possible that the Speaker will
go there and talk glittering generalities.
But he. will disappoint expectations if he
does not talk in defense of the tariff bill,
in support of Cannonism, in support of
the House rules and in commentator of
Senator Aldrich. 1t is deemed likely that
he will define quite clearly the issues if
the Cannon and Anti-Cannon issue is to
be prominent in the next Congressional
campaign, as it seems sure to be.
~
Unequiocally asserting that a mon
opoly is in process of formation whose
object is to obtain possession of the water
power cites of the country, Clifford Pin
chot, Chief of the Bureau of Forestry,
who has returned from an extended in
spection in the West, declared that i'm.
mediate legislation must be enacted at
the coming session of Congress if this
great natural resource is to be preserved
to the people.
The problem of how best to prevent
the nations water power sites from be.
ing gobbled up by such combinations,
Mr.. Pinchot predicted will be one of the
biggest issues which the next session of
Congress will have to thresh out While
he stated that the alleged Trust is now
only in the formative stage, Mr.. Pinchot
declared that prompt action on the part
of Congress is necessary to throttle it.
Upon the proper solution of this question,
the future happiness of great many
people rests, he said.
Looming up as another big problem
which will confront Congress will be the
question of the disposition of vast areas
of coal lands in the West, but principally
in Alaska. 1t is important that Congress
should take prompt action on this i'm
portant matter, Mr.. Pinchot said, for the
protection of the country's fuel supply
and also to prevent monopoly in that
product.
*x*
Foremost political importance is at
tached here to the nomination of Eugene
N. Foss of Massachusetts, to be Lieuten.
ant Governor of the State on the demo.
cratic ticket. Mr.. Foss has long been a
republican and leader in the movement
for tariff revision downward and for reci-
procity. His nomination means nothing
less than that big revolt is on among
Massachusetts republicans against the
tariff policy of the republican leaders in
the Senate and House and against the
tariff measure recently enacted.
The nomination of Mr.. Foss and the
news that he will accept the nomination
have caused much surprise among polite
ians here, as it doubtless will the country
over. 1t is the first outward sign that
the tariff reduction question has become
so menacing that it is beginning to split
party lines. Mr.. Foss is the first con.
spicuous uationall6gure to leaye his party
and go over to the democrats on the
tariff question.
The impression has grown in some
quarters that the Middle West is the only
seat of opposition to the new law. Blu
this is not the case, according to reliable
reports reaching here. Massachusetts i.
the seat of great deal of opposition, and
the course taken by Mr.. Foss shows this
It is the expectation of the Massachusett.
democratic leaders that the nomination
of Foss will bring in good many thous
ands of disafected republican votes to thu
ticket.
The interesting question is how far thu
revolt of Foss and his followers in Mas
sachusets is going to be followed by like
action ia other States. Another question
is to what extent this revolt will Undue,
the House and Senate leaders to adopt
more liberal policy in the handling o
tariff matters. For instance will 1t tenn
to make Senators Aldrich and Hale an,
Speaker Cannon more lenient toward tn,