The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1910-02-22
WALL STREET OUT
FOR TAFT'S SCALP
MORGAN cuGcENHEIM sYNpl
;acATE VOLUNTARILY ADMITS
INTERESTS IN ALASKA
COAL.

Washington, Feb. 22-Ten DAYS ago
~ was reported that-.the big business
interests Of Wall street had served
notice on President Taft that thev
would make war on him unless there
was "a, change in the administration
policy relative to trusts.
1t is now asserted that active hosti
iities have begun in this war when the
| representative Of the Morgan -GugFen-
helm syndicate came to Washington
and made voluntary statement be-
Tore th@ senate committee on terri
tories admitting It's interest in Alas
ka coal and mineral lands and its on
ton on the Cunningham claims in
connection with which hinges the
principal charges made against Sec
rotary Ballinger by Louis r.. CLAWS
The statement of the Morgan, -C3us-
genheim people is regarded as com
plete confederation of CLAWS, conten-
zion. CLAWS in his letter to President
Taft last summer said ha believed !
DIG syndicate was preparing to eobble
up the valuable Alaskan lands.
Voluntary Statement Strange.
Now comes a representative of the
syndicate and voluntarily testifles that
his people have arranged to secure for
$25O,0O0 half interest in claims con-
tanning coal which they themselves es-
innate to have net worth of s25, O0o.-
900. O'''V'-
Why this voluntary statement
What, is back of this unexpected
frankness on the part of j. Pierpont
Morgan and his associates? Why was
this bomb exploded at the climax of
the Ballinger investigation? Those
ana slmllar questions have set every
body in Washington guessing.
various answers and explanations II
are ofered, but none receives such
general credence as the suggestion
that this is the first open hostile move
against the Taft administration by
big business as represented by Nor
gan.
s. TO Discredit 5aIlinser.
It is supported by the facts that the
'eport that Wall street was threaten
ng Taft came out immediately fol-
owing a call at the white house bv
George w. Perkins. one of Morpan,s
lght hand men, that Morgan sailed
or Europe last week. and that i'm
nediately thereafter Morgan's attor-
he. statement of the Morgan -C1ugken-
elm syndicate interests in Alaska
nth special reference to the mooted
claims.
Moreover, it Is obvious that this
tatement- will not help Secretary
'alllnger. and If the result Of the
ending investigation is adverse to
altinger it goes without saying that
VIII be a severe blow to President
aft.
Plan to Elect a Democrat.
Back of all this there is said to be
determination on the part of the in
rests. as personified in Morgan. to
scredit the Taft administration
eet a democratic house in the cam
align next fall and defeat the presi-
snt for reelection two years hence
Getting in his stead democrat who i
i'll be more amenable to reason. ac-
riding to Wall street ideas.
This scheme of war on Taft has
zen adopted, it is assumed, in pre-
renee to the one originally pro-
'sed, which involved the precipita-
On of disastrous financial panic.
Governor Judson Harmon of Ohio il
lmed as the democrat who will be
Lcked by the Morgan and other An
lcial interests in the effort to de-
at Taft for recollection.
Certain 1t is there is more form and
distance to the Harmon presidential
'om than can be explained by the
binary development of political
ents, and it is known that there are
en- interested in the Harmon candi-
-cy who We're on the inside of the
animation of Alton B. Parker in 1904
ArkerIs. nomination was never looked
ION as anything else than a Wall 4
rect coup.