Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1914-02-04

believe they can develop this Progress
sive plan so slowly as to take away
whatever capital the Progresslves
may try to make out of the admins
trations apparent conversion to one of
their policies Already the Progress
sives of the country are saying that
President Wilson has begun to steal
some of their thunder.
Making the Guilt Personal.
Today the leaders in congress are
still comforting on the matter OF
strengthening antitrust legislation so
as to make it certain that guilt can
be made personal. When Theodore
Roosevelt was president Of the United
States he was credited with saying
that dozens of managers, superintend-
ents, head bookkeepers and other jun
Tors in big corporations could be put
into jail for violation of the antitrust
laws. but that it would be little less
than criminal to put the little fellows
in Jail and to let the big fellows es-
cape.
Investigations by the attorney gem
erals department in the Roosevelt
and Taft days showed that the heads
of great corporations which were be-
lieved to be conducting business in
violation OF the law had SO covered
up their personal tracks that they
could not be followed by the law and
reached by its hand One of the worst
features of the whole situation was
the willingness of the big men so to
arrange things that the responsibility
should fall on their subordinates, who
would have to go to prison II any
body went.
Now what the Democrats are trying
to do is to make the law so strong
that there will be certainty when
there are law violations that the big
fellows can be arrested, after assur-
ance that the evidence is right to put
them behind the bars. Admittedly
one of the hardest tasks which the
Democrats have is the framing of a
law that will produce this result. Time
and again the guilt OF the big men has
been known positively and yet it has
not been susceptible OF proof
Colombian Treaty Not Liked.
Day by day the belief is grow
ing stronger in Washington that
the United States senate will refuse
to ratify the treaty with the Co
lombian government that the state
department has prepared containing
provision for the payment to the
| Colombians OF 25,000,000 for their
loss of Panama and also containing
paragraph of apology from this gov
eminent for having recognized the In
dependence of Panama cover night.
1t will be remembered by most peo-
pie that during the Roosevelt admin
istration, when we were trying to Sc
cure a right of way across the isthmus
for the great interoceanic canal. the
people of the state of Panama, which
was part of the country Of Colon
| bia. declared their independence,
which was instantly recognized by the
United States. Some people have held
that the revolt of the Panamanians
from Colombian rule and our instant
recognition of their status as an in
dependent government were part or a
put up job and that consequently We
owed the Colombian government not
only money but an apology because
we made the Panamanians' independ-
ence certain by our act of recognition.
Hannis Taylor who Is acting as
counsel for the Colombian govern
ment is urging that the United.
States not only shall agree to pay into
the treasury of the South american
country the sum of $25, 100000 for the
Panama strip, but shall further soothe
it's wounded feelings by humble apol-
ogy for an act of the Roosevelt adj
ministration. indorsed later by the
Taft administration and which many
senators and Representatives seem
fully to believe has been indDrsed by
a majority of red-blooded citizens OF
the United States.
BaIk Especially at Apology.
There are Republicans and Demo-
Gratis in the senate whose personal
and political relations with Theodore
Roosevelt are not warmed by the fires
of affection. 1t Will take lot Of
pleading, however, to get these men
to vote gift of $25,000,G00 to the
Colombian people as payment for
something which many Americans
think did not belong to them. 1t can
be said that from all appearances the
suggestion of an apology is more re-
pugnant to the majority of men in con-
gress, irrespective of party afilia-
lions than is the thought of the pay
ment of money.
Men here who have known William
Jennings Bryan personally always
have maintained that his standards of
morality were untouched by hipoc-
risy Mr.. Bryan, however, may have
had his own angle OF vision when he
contemplated this Colombian indem-
nifty matter. Men who have made
study of the whole matter, and some
of them are Democrats and senators,