The Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1912-1917, 1914-12-29

| Of president although he soon announced
his purpose of turning over the executive
function to provisional substitute and
| himself becomi Ig candidate.
| On September q Villa declared war up
| on the provisional president. The consti-
! tut1onalists held meeting at Mexico
City on October 4 and refused to accept
their chiefs resignation. AT a conven-
| ton of the party held at Aguas Calientes
| on October ID, Carranza again presented
| his resignation and a few days later Villa
| promised to support a provisional presi-
| dent named by the convention. At that,
| Gen. Eulalo Gutierrez was appointed by
| the convention, but Carranza refused to
recognize him. The new president ap
| pointed Villa commander in chief of the
| government forces and ordered him to
| proceed at once against CarranZa. AS
| Villa and his men neared the capital,
| CarranZa and his soldiers withdrew
| On November % the American forces
were withdrawn from Vera Cruz and
| soon afterward Carranza and his follow
| ers took possession of the seaport. Villa
| and Zapata united in support of the
| Gutierrez interests, and the prospect of
peace in the immediate future is far from
| encoura ging
On December Is, 1900 United States
troops were sent to Naco to stop continued
/ firing by the Mexican factions into United
] States territory. The struggle between
the combatants in northern Mexico con-
| tinues undated
Longest Congressional Session.
The first regular session of the Sixty
] third congress was the longest since that
| great law-making body came into exist
/ ence-from December 1, 1918, to October
"a, 1914. After the holiday recess both
4 ~,
| Wilson upon the regulation of corpora
tons. In his address the president recon-
| mended the formation of a trade commits
| sion, the doing away with interlocking di-
| rectorates and holding companies, and an
antitrust law. On January "a the senate
passed bill authorizing the government
| to construct a railroad in Alaska. On
/ February is the house passed the bill.
| During this month, also, the admins
| tration introduced measure into both
| houses to establish a rural credit system
| by means of cooperative banks. On Feb
| ruary bill was introduced into both
| branches which provided that the govern
ment might mine or lease on a royalty
basis certain coal lands in Alaska.
On March 5 the president delivered an
] other address to congress in the house
chamber, in which he urged the repeal
of the provision in the Panama Canal act
| of August. 1872 exempting vessels en-
gagged in coastwise trade from the pay
ment of tolls. With senate amendment
/ to the effect that the United States re-
| linquished no rights under treaties with
! Great Britain and with Panama, the tolls
repeal bill became law.
| On April 20 the president again ad-
| dressed congress, giving the facts in the
| Tampico affair and asking authority to
| use force in compelling a settlement. Both
| houses passed the necessary measures
without delay. On June the three
| measures prominent in the presidents an
| thrust legiSlation-the creation of a trade
commission, the Clayton bill, and the rail
| road capitalization bill-were passed, but
| it was not until August that the senate
| adopted the measure creating a federal
| trade commission. The Clayton antitrust
bill did not become law until October.
| August 4 both houses unanimously
| adopted an amendment to the federal re-
serve act, by which the secretary of the
treasury was given power to issue addi-
| tional bank currency in such amount
would be necessary to protect the bust
| ness situation and avoid financial panic.
| On September the president once more
| addressed congress, pointing out the need
| of raising additional revenue to meet the
| deficit causd by the decline in imports
| due to the European war.
| The closing days of the congress passed
| in an active effort conducted by members
from the cotton growing states to obtain
| legislation for the retail of the growers
of the staple.
On October "a the first regular session
| of the Sixty-third congress came to an
end.
American Government and Politics.
On January 2 Secretary McAdoo and
Secretary Houston began series of
hearings to determine where the new fed
eral reserve banks were to be established.
| The federal reserve bank system went in
| to effect November 16. On January 10
the Washington authorities and the New
York, New Haven and Hartford railroad
officials came to an agreement by which
the railroad relinquished its trolley lines,
its control of the Boston and Maine and
| most of it's steamship lines in order to
avoid further conflict with the Sherman
antitrust law President Wilson nomi-
mated John Shelton Williams, then assis-
tant secretary Of the treasury, to be
comptroller of the currency and ex-ofTicio
| member of the new federal reserve board.
On January 81 the president signed an
important order which established a per-
manent civil government in the Panama
Canal Zone, to go into effect April l. A
few days later he nominated Col George
w. Goethals to be first governor On
February II the government brought suit
at Salt Lake City to compel the Southern
racine rdllrOaQ TO rel1nQulSn Its control
of the Central Pacific.
In March government proceedings were
begun against two railroads: The inter-
state commerce commission accused the
Chicago, Milwaukee and st. Paul road
with overStatement of income and other
financial irregularities, and suit was
brought against the Lehigh Valley road
under the charge that it was monopoliz-
ing the anthracite coal industry through
MIC Tn ole
the department of justice announced that
plan for breaking up the transportation
monopoly practiced by the New York,
New Haven and Hartford had been ar
ranged satisfactory to all parties
Early in April the government met with
| defeat in its attempt to prove that the
Delaware, Lackawanna and Western road
and the coal-mining company of the same
name existed as an Illegal and monopols-
tic combination. On April the commit
tee appointed for the purpose announced
that it had selected twelve federal re-
serve districts, with their central bank
ing cities, under the new currency law
On June the American Thread COM
pany, which was proved to be a combina-
ton of manufacturers which practically
| controlled the output forestalled the ac-
| ton contemplated by the department of
| justice by dissolving. In June, Also the
| United States supreme court affirmed the
power of the interstate commerce COM
mission to fix rates, and held that pipe
| lines are common carriers and must carry
products at rates fixed by the commission
On June Is the president made public
| a charge that big business interests had
| been trying to force congress to adjourn
| He declared that he should do everything
| in his power to keep congress in session
until the proper business legislation had
| been enacted.