| Show CONGRESS HEARS WILSONS 1 MESSAGE presidents address to both houses Is quite short I 1 RAIL TROUBLES COME FIRST I 1 further legislation on that line Is strongly recommended bill giving foreign commerce promoters I 1 free hand necessary Washing toS dec 5 president wll son today delivered his message to both bogli houses of congress in joint session the address was as follows gentlemen of tile the congress in fulfilling at this time thue the duty laid upon cupon me by the constitution of communicating muni cating to you from time to time information of the state of the union and recommending to your consideration such legislative measures as a rally may bo be judged feces necessary sary and elpe expedient alent I 1 shall continue the practice which I 1 hope has been acceptable to you of leaving to the reports of the sev several ral heads of the executive departments the elaboration of the detailed needs of the public service and confine myself to those matters of more general public policy mith vi ath which it seems necessary lind and feasible to deal at the present session of the congress I 1 realize the limitations of time under which you viii necessarily net at this session and shall make my suggestions gest ions as few as possible but there were some thin things left undone at the last session there will wil I 1 no now IV be time to complete and which it seems seeing necessary in the interest of the public to do at once in the first place it seems seeing to me imperatively ively necessary that the earliest possible consideration and action should be accorded the remaining measures inea of the program of settlement and regulation which I 1 ind had occasion to recommend to you at the close of your last session in view of the public dangers disclosed by the difficulties which then th en existed exist ed and which still unhappily happily continue to exist between the railroads of tile country and their locomotive engineers conductors and trainmen railway kilway troubles first I 1 then recommended first immediate provision for the enlargement and administrative e reorganization of the interstate commerce commission along alone the lines embodied in the bill recently passed by the house of representatives and now awaiting action by the senate in order that the commission may be enabled to deal with tho the many great and various duties no now w devolving upon it with a promptness and thoroughness which are with its present constitution and means of action practically impossible second the establishment of nn an eight hour day as the legal basis alike aalke of worl work lind and of wages in the employment of all railway employees who are actually engaged encased in the he work of operating trains in interstate transportation third the authorization of the appointment by the president of 1 a I small body of men to observe the actual re aults in experience of the adoption of the eight hour day in railway transportation por tation alike for the men and for the railroads fourth explicit approval by theaon the congress of the consideration by the interstate ter state commerce commission of an increase of freight rates to meet such additional expenditures by the rall railroads roads as may have been rendered necessary by the adoption of the eight hour day and which bich have not been offset by administrable readjustments and economies should the facts disclosed justify the increase fifth an amendment of the existing federal statute which provides for the mediation conciliation and arbitration of such controversies as the present by adding to it it provision that in case the methods of accommodation now provided for should fall a full public investigation of the merits of every such dispute shall be instituted and completed before a strike or lockout may lawfully be attempted and sixth the lodgment in the hands of the executive of the power in case of military necessity to take control of such portions and such rolling stock of the railroads of the country as may be required for military use and to operate them for military purposes with authority to draft I 1 nto into the military service of the united states such train crews and administrative officials as the circumstances require for their safe and efficient use renews his HI recommendations the second and third of these recommendations C the he congress ly acted on it established the eight hour day as the legal basis of work and wages in n train service find and it authorized zed the appointment of a commission to observe and report upon the practical rp results deeming these the measures roost most immediately needed but it postponed action upon the other r suggestions u until tin an opportunity be e offered tor for a more deliberate consideration silde ration of them the fourth recommendation ommen dation I 1 do not deem it necessary to renew the power of the interstate ter state commerce commission to t grant an lucrease fu a crease of rates on oil the ground referred to Is indisputably clear a and 11 recommendation by the congress 11 it regard to such a matter mi ht seem ceni t to dauw dauw in question the scope of the hie corn cont authority or its inclination to do justice u at 1 c e when there Is no reas reason on to doua hewlen doubt b t e cither i t the other bugge surgeons sug geons ions the increase in the interstate km merce corials commissions sion membership and in its facilities for performing its manifold duties thi the provision tor for full public investigation and assessment of industrial disputes ant and the grant to the executive of the power to control find and operate the railways when feces necessary ary in time of war or other like public fa cessley I 1 now very earnestly renew the necessity for such legislation Is manifest and pressing those who have In Iri trusted us with the responsibility and duty of serving and safeguarding them in such matters would find it hard I 1 believe to excuse a failure to act upon these grave matters or any unnecessary postponement of action upon them not only does docs the interstate commerce commission now find it practically impossible with its present membership and organization to perform its great functions promptly and thoroughly but it Is 19 not unlikely that it may lay presently be found advisable to add to its duties still others equally henry heary and exacting it must first be perfected as an administrative instrument the country cannot and should not consent to remain any longer exposed to lo profound industrial disturbances for lack of additional means of arbitration and conciliation which the congress g can easily and promptly y supply and nil all hilll III agree that them must ile be no doubt as to the power of the executive to make immediate and erupted use of the railroads for tile the concentration cent ration of the military forces of t the lie nation ulie wherever rever they are needed w and nd whenever he never they are needed this Is a program of regulation prevention nil and administrative efficiency em effi clency which argues its own case in the more mer e statement of it with regard to one 0 of f if 1 t s items the increase in the efficiency chency of the interstate commerce commission the hous homp of representatives has already acted its action needs only tile hie concurrence of the senate for control and operation I 1 would hesitate liesl tate to recommend and adare I 1 dare say the congress would hesitate to act upon the suggestion should I 1 make it that any man in any occupation should be obliged by law to continue in tin nn employment which he desired I 1 to leave to piss pass a law which forbade or prevented the individual workman to leave his work before receiving the approval of society to in doing so would mould be to adopt a new principle into our jurisprudence which I 1 take it for granted we are not prepared to introduce but the proposal that the operation of the railways of the country shall not be stopped or interrupted by the concerted action of organized bodies of men inen until a public aaion shall have been instituted which make the whole hole question nt issue plain for the judgment of the opinion of the nation Is not to propose any such principle it Is based upon the very different principle that the concerted action of powerful bodies of men shall not be permitted to stop the industrial du processes of the nation at any rate before the nation shall have had an opportunity to acquaint itself with the merits of the case as between erp employee and cm employer time to form ls its opinion upon an impartial statement of the merits and opportunity to consider all practicable means of conciliation or arbitration I 1 can see nothing in that proposition hut the justifiable safeguarding by society of the necessary processes of its very life there Is nothing arbitrary or unjust in it unless it be arbitrarily and unjustly done it can and should be done with a full and scrupulous regard for the interests and liberties of all concerned as well os as for the permanent interests of society itself other legislation urged three matters of capital Import importance arice awalt await the action of the senate which have already been acted by the house of representatives the bill which seeks to extend exteria greater freedom of combination to those engaged in pr promoting the foreign comi commerce of the country than Is now thought by some to be legal under the terms of the laws against monopoly the bill amending the present organic law of porto rico and the bill proposing a more thorough and systematic regulation of th the e expenditure of money in elections con commonly called the corrupt practices act I 1 need not labor my advice that these measures be enacted into law their urgency lies in the manifest circumstanced which render their adoption at tills this time not only opportune but necessary I 1 sa ry even delay would seriously tile the interests of the country and of the government immediate passage of the bill to regulate the expenditure of money lo in elections may seem to be less necessary than the immediate enactment of tile the other measures to which I 1 refer te cause at least two years will elapse before another election in which federal are to be b filled but it would greatly relieve the lie public mind it if thi thip important matter were dealt with while the circumstances and the dangers to tile public morals of the present medhod mei lol of obtaining and spending campaign funds stand clear under recent observation vadon and the methods of expenditure can be frankly studied in the light of present experience and 11 delay would have the further very serious disadvantage of postponing action until another election was at hand find and some special object connected with it might inight be thought to be in the mind of those alio e who ho urged it action can in be taken now with facts for guidance and without it hout suspicion of partisan purpose I 1 couill not argue nt at length the he desirability of gling a freer hand to in the ti I 1 I 1 of combined and concerted effort to those ulio shrill shall undertake tile the enterprise of building up export trade that enterprise hill presently will immediately nii mt m ha has s indeed 1 already assumed a tude unprecedented in our experience we wa haie not the necessary les for its prosecution it li il deemed to bo be doubtful whether the could be created upon an ade adequate quati scale under our present laws wa W should clear away nil all legal obstacles clel and create a basis basil of undoubted lay lav for it which will III give freedom permitting unregulated license thi thing must be done now because tin thi opportunity Is here and may escape ui if MO me hesitate or delay porto ricos needs the argument for tile hie propose pro pue amendments of the organic law of vor to rico Is brief and conclusive th present lans governing the island arit an regulating the rights and privileges 0 its people are arc not just we vc hae have ve ere abed expectations of extended lege which we have not satisfied there Is uneasiness union among the p e bopf of the island and even a doubt with regard to our intention concern concerning hig tavin thoin which the adoption 0 the pending measure would happily re move we do not doubt what we nisi to do in any essential particular wa W ought to do it at once there are other matters already ad to the stage singe of conference be tween the two houses of which it li it not necessary that I 1 should speak some practicable basis ot of agreement agre emen concerning them will no doubt be found and action taken upon them inasmuch as this Is gentlemen ably the last occasion I 1 shall have t address the sixty fourth congress I 1 hope that you will permit me to sal with what genuine pleasure and faction I 1 have operated cooperated co with yu ir 11 the ninny many measures of construct constructive ivA pol ley icy with which you have enriched tin oil legislative annals of the country ii has been a privilege to labor in suet suel company I 1 take the liberty of con 9 tu lating you upon the completion ol of a record of rare sis anc distinction |
