The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1909-12-09
partment of Justice. might by giving

embarrassment In securing convic
ton OF the guilty parties.
In the interest OF immediate econ
omy and because OF the prospect of I
deficit, / have required q reduction In
the estimates Of the War Department
for the coming fiscal year. For ths
same reason I have directed that the
army shall not be recruited up TO ii
present authorized strength. These
measures can hardly be more thar
temporary.
The coast defenses of the United
States proper are generally all thai
could be desired. There Is
however. one place where additional
defense is badly needed, and that Ii
at the mouth of Chesapeake Bay
where 1t Is proposed TO make an arti.
ficial island for a fort which shall
prevent an enemy's feet from enter
ing this most important strategical
base of operations on the whole At
lantic and Gulf coasts. / hope that
appropriate legislation will be adopt.
ed to secure the construction of this
defense.
Department of Justice.
The deplorable delays in the ad-
ministration of civil and criminal
law have received attention Of COM
mittees of the American Bar Associa-
tion and of many State Bar Associa-
tions, as well as the considered
thought of judges and jurists. In my
judgment, a change in judicial pro-
cedure, with a view to reducing its
expense to private litigants in civil
cases and facilitating the dispatch OF
business and final decision in both
civil and criminal cases, constitutes
the greatest need Of our American
institutions. I do not doubt for one
moment that much of the lawless
violence and cruelty exhibited In
lynchings is directly due to the un-
certainties and injustice growing out
of the delays in trials, judgment, and
the executions thereof by our courts.
OF course these remarks apply quite
as we'll to the administration of JUS
tice in State courts as to that in Fed
eral courts, and without making in
vidious distinction 1t Is perhaps not
too much to say that, speaking gen.
orally, the defects are less in the
Federal courts than in the State
courts.
(Here the President recommends
that appropriate legislation be enact
ed to remedy the matter in accord
ance with the planks In the Repub-
liean platform
Poston1ce Department.
The deficit every year in the post
office Department !s J sgely caused
by the low rate Of postage of cent
a pound charged on second-class mail
matter. which includes not only
newspapers but magazines and mis-
cellaneous periodicals. The actual
loss growing out Of the transmission
of this second-class mall matter at l
cent a pound amounts to about $685.
100000 a year. The average Of the
transportation of this matter Ia more
than 8 cents a pound.
A great saving might be made
amounting to much more than hall
of the loss, by imposing upon maga-
zines and periodicals a higher rate
of postage. They are much heavier
than newspapers, and contain a much
higher proportion of advertising to
reading matter. and the average dis
tance Of their transportation is three
and a half times as great
Postal Savings Bank.
The second subject worthy of men
ton in the Postof1ce Department is
the real necessity and entire practi-
cability OF establishing postal saw
ings banks. The rate of In
terest upon deposits to which they
would be limited would be so small
as to prevent their drawing deposits
away from other banks.
Ship Subsidy.
Following the course of my dis
tinguished predecessor. I earnestly
recommend to Congress the consid-
GRAFTON and passage of a ship subsidy
bill, looking to the establishment OF
lines between our Atlantic seaboard
and the eastern coast of South Amer
lea, as we'll as lines from the west
coast of the United States to South
America, China. Japan, and the Phil
ippines.
Conservation Of National Resources
In several departments there Ii
presented necessity for Legislation
looking to the further conservation
Of our National resources, and the
subject Is one of such importance al
to require a more detailed and ex
tended discussion than can be enter
ed upon in this communication. Fol
that reason I shall take an early op
portunity to send a special messag,
to Congress on the subject il i'm
provement of our waterways.
political Contributions"
"I urgently recommend to Con
gress that a law be passed reQuirin,
that candidates In election Of mem
bers of the House of Representative
and committees in charge OF thei
candidacy and campaign, file in
proper office Of the United State
Government a statement of the con
| tributions received and of the expen
ditures incurred in the campaign 70
such elections, and that similar leg
isIation be enacted In respect to al