Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-10-02
PRESIDENT TAFT AVOWS
PARTY Is PROGRESSIVE
He Gives All Factions Credit for Helping
Enact Into Law Pledges Contained
in National Platform.

the national republican party and not
admit that the party is progressive IN
the highest degree. 1t is a list to be
proud of. The extraordinary achieve
ments of this Congress may fairly be
| movement. 1t is not the work Of the
! executive alone, or Of Congress alone.
1t is not the work OF one man.
or OF one faction. As all shared
satisfaction of Accomplishment. 1t is the
| work of republicans II marks the rising
| tide of progress that began at the end
| of democratic panic when William Nc
kinney was our leader and that contin-
ued throughout the two administrations
of Theodore Roosevelt.
I ut Is peculiarly q republican distinction
that our party has been able to place on
the statute books farreaching remedial
| legislation touching the very vitals of
our social and economic structure without
involving the country In financial dis
aster.
| "A party of true progress Is not party
OF radicalism. 1t Is not party Of ultra
is one who recognizes existing and con-
crete evils and who is in favor of prac-
| teal and definite steps to eradicate them.
Now, what are the specific evils that
they have been growing in this country
for years and years, and they can be
briefly stated thus:
First. The corrupt control Of legisla-
tive and governmental agencies for the
establishment, maintenance and enjoy
ment of unjust privileges by individuals
or corporate wealth.
| ITO make this control effective, there
| have been organized and maintained cor
rupt machines within both parties, which
break the current of communication and
| responsive action between the people and
| those who are elected to serve and repre-
sent them.
Second. Combinations Of capital in in
dustr1ai business. generally brought to-
| gether for the ostensible and commend
| able purpose of reducing the costs Of pro-
duction and distribution. have too often
had the real purpose of suppressing COM
petition. controlling prices and maintain
ing monopoly.
Progress in Fighting Evils.
| Every one who is frank must admit
that great progress has been made in
fighting these evils. Fifteen years ago
the rights Of the people to our natural
resources were freely disregarded. The
natural resources of the nation are now
In the way of being conserved for the
people, who are the ultimate owners of
such resources and ought to remain so.
| Ffteen years ago one Of the COM
monest forms Of corporate abuse was the
management of our railways in the In
terest of favored individuals by secret
rebates. That day has passed. One new
railway act goes much further and great
| ~ increases the powers and duties Of the
| interstate commerce. commission. The
discretion Of the commissioners. not with
| in judicial control by appeal, is now
very wide. and they have in their hands
for the veal or woe Of general business
a power that sometimes makes one
tremble. The personnel of the commits
| sion becomes, therefore, as important as
! that of our highest courts. The response
bllty of the executive in the appointment
| trend or bias of mind on the part Of a
member is dangerous. The judicial quail
ity of each should be fine.
We have said to the railways and
their stockholders. We cannot trust to
| competition, and We cannot trust to
You the fixing Of proper rates Having
| created tribunal with power to set
tie what rates are just, It should be
borne in mind that the public welfare
and the whole business interest of the
country may be injured quite as much
by injustice to the railways as the re-
suit OF an unwise clamor for low rates
as by the imposition of extortionate
rates. 1t is not without significance
in this connection that employees and
wage earners OF railways are today as
sociating themselves together for the
purpose of using their influence to
prevent injustice to their employers by
regulation under the interstate com
merce commission.
Crusade Initiated by Roosevelt.
Fifteen years ago the general con-
troll Of legislatures by corporate infiu-
ence and corruption was far greater
than it is today. The crusade initiated
by Mr.. Roosevelt and carried on dur
ing his term of Office has resulted, first
in arOusing the entire community to
the necessity for reform, and, second
in inducing many corporation manag-
ers to abandon methods that were
questionable and to leave politics to
other hands.
ut was impossible to arouse the peo-
pie to a just Indignation at corrupt
corporate control through machine and
boss rule without having such a move
ment acquire an impetus that carries
is now searching for reform proceed
ure under which bosses cannot live
machines can never control and cor
ruptton can never exert influence.
nate the middleman in politics, and to
give popular sentiment a more imme-
date effect in government than per-
haps would have been thought wise
by our fathers. The existence Of such
popular impulse ought to rejoice
4
be turned to a useful and permanent
betterment Of our politics. But how
ever effective these suggested changes
may prove at first, I venture to say
| that no great permanent good can
| come from them alone unless they are
| accompanied by change in the indi-
| vidual voter and his awakening to the
necessity for constant watchfulness
and effort on his part to prevent the
old evils from appearing in new
guise.
Every one will now admit that the
Sherman antitrust law, passed twenty
| years ago, and since subjected to a
great deal of judicial construction. is
effective for the purpose OF breaking
up combinations that result in the sun
preston Of competition and the estab-
lishment of monOpolies.
Pending In Supreme Court.
There are pending two cases in the
Supreme Court which it Is hoped will
throw stifl greater light on the SUBJ
feet. making even clearer than they are
today the lines between legitimate and
illegitimate business. 1t has been
thought that those decisions, if adverse
to the corporations. would greatly dis
turb financial centers, would halt GEN