New-York tribune., 1920-06-09
Full Senator Lodges Speech Sounding Republican Keynote

by the government when it returned |
the roads only three months ago.
The railroad law possesses also an
Importance wholly distinct from its
provisions, which have been framed
with extreme care. This act declares
a national policy and, so far as any law
can do it, establishes that policy as
rule Of action. The policy embodied
in the bill comedies at the outset that
it is, of course, impossible to return to
the old system or lack of system in
the management of railroads.
"They must henceforth be under
thorough government supervision, and
also the government must have over
them a large measure of control. The
transportation system of the country
can no longer be suffered to continue
without such supervision and control
But the policy also represents the
principle that the government must
not assume the ownership of the rail-
roads. Their operation and manage
ment must be left in private owner
ship. The phrase government owner
ship" means not only that the govern
ment shall own the railroads but also,
it is to be feared, that those who run
ment.
General government ownership un-
der our political system would new
tIbly bring about the mastery oe thu
government by those who operate the
machinery of transportation or Of any
other industries which come into gov
trnment possession. The rights of the
general public, for whom all industries
exist, would disappear under this
scheme, and nothing would be eft to
the people except the duty of paying
| toy m Tbof 10
very perious position for represent
ative democracy.
"Our government must not be dom
| mated by any one man or any class or
any selected body of men who repre-
sent a part of the people and not the
whole people. Moreover, in the United
States, government ownership where
ever applied to an industry, whether 1t
involves transportation or telegraphlc
and telephone communication or ship
building or manufacturing, is very
inefficient and wasteful system, badly
managed and certain to be intolerably
burdensome to the taxpayers.
"This point it is not necessary to
argue, because the country through
the demands of war turned the rail-
roads over to the government, and we
have had the painful privilege of OBJ
lowed. The government management
which ensued was inefficient, the rail
roads were wretchedly conducted, and
money was spent and wasted with
prodigality which nothing can defend.
During the time in which the gov
ernment undertook to manage the rail
roads they sustained, despite a gener-
Gus increase in freight rates, loss of
over $l,000,000 day and the total pay
of hn To ~
the railroads have reached the enor-
nous sum of S1,750, 100000. There was
universal dissatisfaction with the gov
/ ernment management, and it was q
just dissatisfaction. The experiment
failed and should not be renewed
"Watchful Waiting" Scored
"From domestic affairs, which | have
only touched upon briefly, let us turn to
foreign questions. to our relations with
the world of other nations. Look first
at one of the most pressing Importance
Just beyond our own borders Look at
Mexico. For seven years the United
States has been pursuing under the di-
recton of the President policy of
watchful waiting.
THE President saw fit to intervene in
Mexico. AS matter of fact, he made
war upon Mexico, for in the taking of
NSia NIuH we loSC some 1ZO men IN
killed and wounded and several hun
dred unregarded, incidental Mexicans
were also either wounded or killed in
the conflict. We went there to exact an
apology for the treatment of some of
our sailors at Tampico.
The apology has never been given
but General Huerta was driven from
power, which was the Presidents real
purpose, and Mexico then fell into a.
state of anarchy which, growing con-
stantly worse, has continued to this
day. The President saw fit to recog-