Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-09-20


President Taft spent a little more than
four hours in Des Moines today, and
during that time breakfasted with United
States Senator Cummins. one of the I'm
surgent" leaders in Congress: reviewed
an imposing parade of nearly 5000 fed
eral troops engaged in a military tourna-
to an immense crowd gathered from all
cussed in detail the changes he will rec
ommend to Congress In the interstate
commerce and antitrust laws.
The President announced that he would
urge the establishment OF an interstate
commerce court OF FIVE members to con-
slider appeals from rates fixed by the in
terstate commerce commission. He will
also recommend legislation to prevent one
interstate railroad company from owning
stock in a competing line. and compelling
roads thus owning stock to dispose
of their holdings within given time:
The legislation to prevent the overissue
Of stocks and bonds and the watering OF
stocks will be strongly recommended. the
Presidents proposition being that no
stocks or bonds shall be issued except by
permission Of the interstate commerce
commission after an inquiry has been
made into their necessity.
Choice Of Freight Routes.
Giving to shippers the choice of
routes in the shipment Of freight is an
other important provision which the
President favors.
In taking up the antitrust law, Presi-
dent Taft declared that he knew Of no
way In which distinction would be made
between good and bad trusts. for he
regarded all combinations to suppress
competition and to maintain a monopoly
20 ha tn hA WhAther the
terms of the Illegal contract should be re-
garded in some instances as reasonable
or unreasonable.
The President also discussed at some
length the proposal to except labor
unions and farmers organizations from
the operation Of the antitrust laws. To
specifically except these organizations. he
declared. would be vicious legislation, but
he pointed way in which they could be
relieved to some extent Of the onerous
restrictions now placed upon them. but at
the same time be held amenable to In
functions, which procedure he believed
adequate to deal with any violations by
The President left here at HIS am.
for Omaha.
The Presidents Speech.
Mr. Taft's speech at Des Moines was
as follows:
Fellow citizens of Iowa:
i have great pleasure In meeting such
a concourse of citizens of one Of the
most purely agricultural states In the
Cnion-one which has enjoyed to the full
the prosperity which has come to the
man who has invested his money and
bis labor In the farm for the last decade.
Iowa has come to be a state in which
there Is great independence of views and
in which the voters exercise intelligent
discrimination with reference to candi-
dates and policies that keeps those who
are looking for political victories In a
constant state Of doubt and anxiety.
The last general election was held in
November OF 1908, and resulted in the
success Of the republican party In the
national contest. In both chambers of
Congress the republicans have a major
ity. and they have the President. Look
Ing forward to the legislation that ought
TO be expected from that party. we must
refer back to the platform upon which
the party was elected. In the extra ses-
sion recently closed a tariff bill was
passed, as was promised In the plat
form. do not intend to dwell upon the
much-disputed question whether that bill
complied with the bill promised. for
have considered that at another time and
at another place. What l wish to invite
your attention to this morning Is, with
the tarin bill out of the way, for the
time at least. what there Is for the re-
publican party in Congress under the
promises Of Its platform to do in the
coming regular session"
The President then outlined briefly his
well known position with regard to labor
unions and dwelt upon the necessity of
legislation to carry out platform pledges
as to tnjunctions. He said also that he
would recommend that Congress require
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