Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-01-17

enCe-t1dt IL. .idIHdIS 10 hiIu iis
which communications from this confer
ence on uniform legislat ton will be re-
ceived. IL is hoped that our conference
will see it's way clear to recommend to
the organizations here represented that
they urge the passage In all OF the states
Of the uniform laws already approved
by the national conference of commission
ers appointed by the states If so. it rs
proposed that a report to this effect be
made to the governors on the afternoon
Of Tuesday. January Is.
Subjects Not Ripe for Action.
1T will be developed, moreover. in our
conference that there are many subjects
upon which uniform legislation is de-
sirabe which are not yet ripe for action.
such as railway regulation. corporation
regulation worknens compensation,
pure food, pure drugs, good roads. vital
statistics. insurance and many other mat
tiers. 1t is hoped that this conference will
take the necessary steps TO have these dill
ferent subjects studied into and submitted
for action i'm due course TO the state
commissioners on uniform laws. some OF
these subjects, at least, may well De
brought to the attention OF the govern
ors the afternoon of "Wednesday, the
10Th instant, with a request that the gov
errors take such steps as they may deem
proper to secure consideration OF these
subjects by the people and legislatures OF
SEe1T respective Stages
The Presidents Suggestion.
The coincidence in the meeting of
these two bodies-the conference of gov
ernors and this conference on uniform
legislation by the states-is not simply
happy accident. 1t is due to the saga
cious suggestion of the President OF the
United States, for which / am glad to
take this opportunity. on behalf OF this
conference. to express our sincere thanks.
The President of the United States
has consented to be here this morning
because of his keen appreciation OF the
Importance of this subject to all OF the
states and to the people of all the states.
He knows by his experience as lawyer.
and upon the bench. the importance OF
such action in it's legal aspects; and from
his commanding point of view as the
President of the United States he is bet
ter able than any one else 10 understand
its far-reaching possibilities for good L
have now. therefore. the very great pleas
ure of presenting President Taft. who has
kindly consented to address this confer
ence.''
Prolonged applause greeted the intro
duction of President Taft. every delegate
in the theater rising as a mark of re-
spect to the chief executive.
Welcomed by the President.
'Tn the first place" said the President.
Il am glad to welcome the Civic Fedora
ton to Washington. l think the sun
shines little brighter in Washington
than il does anywhere else along on the
same latitude. and ii is a very pleasant
place either to live in or to be in; there
fore. ! congratulate the Civic Fedora
ton i'm having had the good sense to
come here.
You are not the only citizens of the
United States that look in this direc-
ton. / am glad that YOU came here at
the same time that the governors came
here. so that your deliberations and theirs
in the same direction and the right direc-
ton. as they doubtless will be. will have
the weight of two great forces upon not
only the national legislature. but the
state legislatures. for from Washington
everything radiates to the ends of the
country.
I'm the discussion of uniformity of leg
islation. when you take a man who has
gotten out of the practice of the law, so
that he does not remember with great
exactitude those principles that are ap-
piled In actual cases. he cannot help
falling back on a discussion Of the Con-
stitution. A constitutional lawyer Is q
gentleman who has gotten out of the
practice and who has gone into politics.
(Applause.)
Responsibility Of States.
Now. my friend. Senator Root. whom
] am delighted to class within the same
category, some years ago was greatly
misunderstood with reference to his view
of the Constitution and the trend under
the Constitution toward centraltxation Of
government. If I understood him. his
duty In the exercise Of the functions
which IL was necessary they should ex-
eFcise in the interests of good govern
ment. there would be tendency toward
the enlargement OF the government at
Washington. and he uttered warning
to the states that IL they would retain
the power given to them under the Con-
stitution in all it's integrity they must
see to 1t that they exercise that power
in the interests of the people and in the
interests of the country generally.
The misunderstanding led to ascribing
TO him views In favor OF Capitalization
that would certainly have been most
radical, but / am sure he does not have
them. We have a nation, and we have
a centralized government. and the rea-
son why we have 1t is because John
Marshall was put at the head OF the
Supreme Court early. and exercised that
cises with his colleagues. He did not
minimize the power of the Supreme Court
to eonstrue that Constitution authori-
tatively. Applause)
Influence of Supreme Court.
nation with all the powers incident to a
nation. and then when he left the bench.
after that long period of useful service.
ne was succeeded by Chief Justice fancy
and his associates. and at that time
the trend toward a national power and
authority of the party from whom Chief
Justice fancy was selected led him
right along I'm the same path that Mar
shall had marked out until we came to
the war. and then with the war amend
nents the same tendency to make this
government a nation as distinguished
from a federation continued to the pres
ent day. (Applause)
lied too much: there are Jurisdictions
that might be asserted under the Consti-
tuition that Congress has not asserted.
notably in the Jurisdiction of the federal
courts. SO, too. in bankruptcy: so, too in
elections. With respect to the jurisdic-
ton Of the federal courts there Is q large
measure that Congress does not assert
which they might take away from that
which the state courts now exercise and
so with respect to bankruptcy. 1t might
he made much more exclusive Of state
Jurisdiction in that regard: and with re-
spect to elections. they have gone back
entirely to the states.
For Federal Incorporation.
There are other matters under the
Constitution. which i shall not stop to
mention. which show that all the power
conferred upon the national government
has not Yet been exercised but the reason
why II seems as if we were digging a more