Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-12-05
Taft and the Reactionaries.

Taft to take no backward step in the
administration policy of corporation
regulation has been a disappointment to
the reactionaries in Wall street This
hard headed and narrow minded element
had deluded itself with the belief that
Mr.. Taft would take open position With
the conservative moneyed interests, anC
do what he could to nullify the progress
sive political action of the last decade.
1t Is true there never was shadow of
excuse for the entertaining Of any such
hope, and yet none the less 1t was held
in quarters where superior intelligence
is supposed to reign.
There is a rich and somewhat stupid
element in the population Of Wall street
that is welded to the conviction that this
great financial center is the hub of the
universe, and that everybody else is more
or less barbarian. These are the people
who have had much to say since the
Standard Oil decision about quick action
by Congress to amend the Sherman law
by knocking it's teeth out,
in the same quarter is heard learned
opinion that this same nearby Congress
will promptly inaugurate supposedly
urgent reforms in the banking and cur
rency laws, and especially that 1t Will
create a central bank. Such wiSeacres
are nonplused to learn that a very large
section of the country is rabidly opposed
to a central bank, and that the opposing
territory has large membership majority
in Congress.
The consciousness dawns slowly upon
these hard-headed citizens of the money
class that Congress and court action to
prevent laWlesSneSS on the part of the
rich is not necessarily an assault on vir-
tue or values or even approximately con-
fiscation. They are learning the lesson,
however and may, in time. realize the
facts as seen by the rest of the world.
Rock Islands Plans.
The Rock Island-Fr,sco divorce has
been pulled off about as outlined in these
dispatches. In getting rid OF Frisco the
Rock Island proper saves little matter
of nearly 100000 q year which it has
been paying out for the last six years
in interest on Frisco bonds, which it be-
came responsible for at the time Of the
merger.
The amount paid ont during those six
years for this Frisco interest account
footed up S5.150,00O. sum sufficient to
have paid per cent on Rock Island pre-
ferred. That $780, year represents
what the Frisco management is willing to
pay year for its independence and for
the right to grow and NIL up the south
west with untrammeled freedom. Mr..
sion of his railroads and the building up
Of new territory in the great southwest
ern empire. He looks to the future for
his big returns. Those who would rather
TO wait for posterty to make good huge
speculative profits complain that Mr..
Yoakum and his associates are unduly
gifted in the construction OF unremunera-
tive mileage Be that as it may. the two
systems will hereafter be conducted sepa-
rately.
Report continues rife as to the inten-
tions Of the Rock Island party. In my
last dispatch l noted the fact that in
exceptionally we'll informed circles Gre
dence was placed In the talk about the ex-
tension of the Rock Island system to the
Atlantic seaboard by way of the Wabash
and Lehigh Valley lines. II now seems