The Brunswick news. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 1906-2016, 1911-08-11
A PRESIDENT ABOVE THE LAW.

one or the strongest edited neWSpap
ers in the country, discussing The le-
cent appearance of Mr.. Roosevelt be-
fore the congressional committee in
vestigating the steel trust says:
AS a witness before the Staniey
investigating committee, Mr.. Roose-
welt presented not a single new tact
in defense Of his misuse of the exc
cutive power in the fall of 1907, in
aiding the steel trust to secure pos
session Of its most formidable compe-
titor, the Tennessee Coal and Iron
company.
Mr.. Roosevelt had previously de-
clared: AS to this transaction in
question, ! was personally cognizant
of and responsible for its every de-
tall In licensing the Tennessee
Coal and Iron deal and in granting
to the. Steel Trust immunity from
prosecution, he repeated to the COM
mittee: 4 wish it distinctly under
stood that | acted purely on my own
initiative, and the responsibility for
the act was solely mine. His frank
ness on that point at least is to be
commended.
Mr. Roosevelt knew when on
November 4, 1907, he was summoned
from the breakfast table in the white
house, that Judge Gary and Mr.. Prick
wno had been negotiating for the Ten
nessee Coal and Iron company, antici.
pated that the purchase would be in
violation of the Sherman antitrust
law. The purpose of their visit was
to have the law set aside for the steel
trust Judge Gary has testified that
he would not have approved the mer-
ger If Mr.. Roosevelt had not con-
scented.
Judge Gary and Mr.. Prick would
not have dashed off to Washington
to confer privately with Mr.. Roose-
welt If the steel trust attorneys had
not doubted the legality of the
transaction. The steel trust was
not in the habit of consulting the
white house about the conduct of its
business.
Mr.. Roosevelt doubted the legal
ity OF the Tennessee deal, else why
ala he send for Ehhu Root to advise
him in the absence of the attorney
general, Bonaparte? Mr.. Root doubt
ed its legality, else why should he
urge that the correspondence be trans.
mitted to the department OF justice
and write to Judge Gary: You now
have a complete record of what you
will be able to find in the files Of the
department of justice should occasion
arise?'
Not one man present at that con-
ference in the white house on the
morning of November 4, 1907, doubted
that they We're tampering with the
law. That was the purpose of the
Injecting.
Mr.. Roosevelt boosted to the
committee that the results of the
action | took were beneficial from
every standpoint, and the action it.
self at the time when it was taken
was vitality necessary to the welfare
or the people of the United States.
That Is his excuse for suspending
the antitrust law to oblige the
steel trust
To the visit of Judge Gary and
Mr.. Frick to secure Mr. Roosevelt's
written assurance OF immunity from
prosecution for the steel trust on
their representation that it alone
! could arrest the panic was on No
Vemoer 4. On October 26, nine DAYS
eetore Mr.. Roosevelt dad issued a
statement congratulating the secretary
of the treasury, Cortelyou, ON the ad.
miral way you have handled the crisis
and also congratulating those conser-
vative, substantial business men who
did invaluable service in checking
the panic
Grant B. Schley has denied on the
stand that his firm was in Imminent
danger of failing and that it wa.
only saved by the steel trust taking
the Tennessee Coal and Iron stock
on Its hands. The Steel Trust want
ed the Tennessee Coal and Iron COM
pany. 1t saw chance to get the
concern cheap.
Most of all, the steel trust needed
Mr.. Roosevelt's consent 70 d.af, +ho