Norwich bulletin., 1910-08-29
LETTER FROM PRESIDENT TAFT.

The important part that railways play as the arterial circulation in the business of the country, the million and a half of their employees and the l million of their stockholders, the i'm portance of their purchasing power as affecting the prosperity of general business-al1 require in the public in terest that no unfair treatment should be accorded them. But I am glad to
 note that the railway mana gers have
 acquiesced in the fairnessg of the pres ent bill, and propose 1oyally to com
 ply with its useful provisions. It was supported by the whole republican party in congress-, and that party is
 entitled to credit for it's passage. The
 whole democratic strength was exhib ited against it in both houses. It was a
 performance of a pledge of the plat form, and only needs time to vindicate , the wisdom of it's enactment
 Postal Savings Banks.
 The postal savings bank bill has a similar history. It creates an epoch. It institutes system which will work effectively to promote thrift among
 the poor,by providing depository for their savings which they properly may consider absolutely safe, and will also turn into the channels of trade and commerce a large volume of money which otherwise would be hoarded- By specific provision it will stimulate the investment of savings in government
 
 which the bill provides. Like the tar if bill and the railroad bill. this was put through each house of congres by 8 republican majority. and was sign ed by a republican president.
 The Legislation of congress in re- spect to the navy department is a full compliance with the promises of the republican platform. In spite Of tione, congress saw the necessity for a continuance of our present naval policy and a regular strengthening of tht navy by the addition of two more
 battleships. More than this, it has enabled the secretary of the navy to carry out a reform in the busintss management of the department and re eorganiza tion of the bureaus and staff of the navy so as to contribute ma terialIy to it's effectiveness as one of the military arms of the government. Although the democratic national platform apparently favored the in crease in the navy. large majority of the democrats both in the house when presented in the form of con- crete legislation.
 Labor Legislation.
 The republican party at the last ses- sion of congress again exhibited it's ! deep and sincere interest in the gen eral welfare of the working men and women of the country by adding inn portant enactments to it's already long record of legislation on this subject. Practically all classes of employees, especially those engaged in occupa- tions more or less hazardous, are the beneficiaries of laws which should op crate to tighten the burdens which nat urally fall upon the shoulders of man. The republican party recognized the necessity of reducing the dangers un der which hundreds of thousands of miners work by creating the bureau of mins9. This bill was passed for the purpose of establishing an efficient governmental instrument for investi- gation examination and report to the world of the kinw Of safety appliances that will prevent the awful losses of life in the operation of mines. and es- pecially of coal mines. A second pur
 pose of the bureau is to perform the same office in respect to the great in
 dustry of mining that tht department of agriculture performs in respect to the farming interests of the country; that is, by experiment and investisa- tion to determine the most effective methods of mining and the best means of avoiding the deplorable waste that now obtains in the present mining methods.
 No more important Legislation in the interest of human life has ever been enacted by congress thans the laws of the recent session giving to the interstate commerce commission am pier powers to define the needed safety
 
 dents to employees and passengers, and after a hearing, to require their adop- tion by interstate railways Other leg isIation, with respect to the inspection of locomotive boilers and the removal of--tia rigorous overhead obstructions, awaits the consideration of the next session of this congress, and I hope that it may speedily be passed. The employers liability act was perfect- ed by needed amendment so as to en- able injured employees more easily to recover just damages.
 But in one sense the most forward step taken in the interest of the work CT was the creation of a congressional commission to report practical bill for the fixing of workrnen's compensa- tion for injuries received in the em- ploymant of interstate commerce rail- ways, as risks in the business to be fixed by speedy arbitration and to be graduated according to the extent of the injury and the earning capacity Of the injured person. This is important. not only as affecting interstate com m cree railways, but, if adopted as fur nishing a model to the country for a beneficial change in the legal relation between enploye and employer. This reform would put an end to the yexa- tious and costly litigation through which an injured employe must go in order to recover damages litigation which on account of the poverty of the employe frequently serves to defeat the ends of justice. and in other instances leads to exorbitant and unjust yer diets.
 Conservation.
 One of the great questions which has been made a national issue and aroused public interest through the insistence of President Roosevelt is that of con servation of our national resources. From the federal standpoint. this con cerns the preservation of forests, the reclamation of arid lands of the gov ernment and the proper treatment and disposition of our government coal lands, phosphate lands, oil and gas lands, and of the lands known as water power sites at the points on the streams where the water power must be converted in order to be useful. During MT. Roosevelt's administration millions of acres of lanes included within the classes described were with drawn in the United States proper and in Alaska. in order to await proper legislation. Doubt arose as to the ex- ecutive power to make these with drawals, and therefore as to their le- xa1ify ShprII6 fn<sxr pa contested in