Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1910-08-11

an independent, nonpartlsan tariff COM
mission, not to change the law, for that Is,
and must remain the work OF congress I;
but to collect and lay before congress and
before the people the facts.
when this is done there will be neither
high tariff man nor low tariff man who
will venture to disregard his duty. For
tunately the demand for such a commission
has become almost unanimous among re-
publicans, and the few who still oppose 1t
will soon disappear from public, life.
We have already make good beginning
for under the strong and persistent recon-
mendation of the president, congress gave
him an appropriation which he will use
insofar as he has the power to do 1t, to
er understanding Of the subject. The pro-
vision is inadequate; but 1t gives us hope
that before long we will be able to estab-
fish a commission with full powers and
AS to the second. we must Insist upon
law or rule of congress that will allow
without going over the whole range of the
tariff. We must exclude the opportunity
for the trades and combinations which now
dishonor tariff legislation. We must make
congress into voting for what he knows to
be wrong in order to get what he believes
to be right
Happily. the movement for such rule
or law is steadily advancing, and 1t will
not be long until It, too, will embrace
every republican in the land; These evil:
Of cheer the heart Of
priHciple. but we cannot stand still In APP
plying 1t to the affairs of mankind. We
are sweeping along at a pace that is not
timist is winning in every race, and In the
near future we will see a progressive pro-
tective tariff that will safeguard the inter-
est of the producer shield the rights of the
consumer. insure the high privilege Of
labor and content the reasonable demand
of capital.
Railroad Regulation.
The most important legislation Of the
last session of congress was the amend
ment TO the interstate commerce law The
regulation of common carriers is aItogeth.
er the most difficult undertaking upon
which the government has entered, and 1t
will require all the independence which
a popular selection of law makers can
supply: all the intelligence which general
education and specific study can contri
butte, and all the courage which the highest
government to safe and just conclusion
1t would be an intricate and trying prob
lem,. even If the railway corporations
fort to enact the s prop persesd
their cooperation is not to be expected
They will, in the future as they have in
the past resist 81 tSs to
troll already in our statutes Their in.
fuence exerted in thousand ways and
flowing in thousand channels, is often.
to overcome I realize that in the acri-
mony Of the struggle which occurs when
ever further regulation Is suggested there
however, that we will go calmly and de-
liberately forward to the right point IN
deferred by their position, and unmoved
by prejudice or revenge.
We must do nothing that will withhold
from these mighty factors In our indus
trial life revenues that will be sufficient
to bring them TO and maintain them at the
highest standard Of efficiency and that
will reward the capital invested In them
fairly and reasonably but we must not
forget that 1t is the business Of the gov
eminent to see that they exact unjust
toll from no man that they practice no
favor nor disfavor in the service which
they render to the several communities
which make up our commercial union.
Although the law was greatly strength
ened in 1905 under the pulssant and pa
triotic leadership Of Theodore. Roosevelt.
the experience Of four years demonstrated
that the power of the interstate commerce
and we Of the west, at any rate, felt that
there should be some restriction upon COM
mon carrier corporations engaged In In
terstate traffic with respect to the issu-
apce Of stocks and bonds.
The history Of the previous decade, in
this respect had been so lamentable that
our national platform in 1908 made en-
phatic references to this phase Of the sub
ject. The president assumed the initia-
tive. hit unfortunately, as view it. he
delegated to the attorney general the task
Of preparing bill to he laid before con-
gress. I have no reason to doubt the
honesty of the attorney general. but he
had Just come from long professional
training and association which untitled him
to deal wisely with this subject and there
came from his hands into the house and
senate bill which, IL II had passed. as
Aldrich so emphatically declared 1t should
pass, would have consigned the republican
party to eternal disgrace and defeat.
Another Reputation.
Contrary to our solemn promise In the
platform II proposed to repeal the anti
trust law with respect TO traffic agree
ments among railways specifying rates
and charges, and to permit such agree
ments and the rates and charges made
under them to go into effect without the
approval of the interstate commerce COM
mission.
II proposed TO allow a single Judge to
Issue temporary injunction without no
tlce, restraining the interstate commerce
commission from enforcing an order re-
ducing rates. and took away the right OF
appeal to the, supreme court from such
an Injunction.
tact a0,.ld ord han In