Show U 6 MESSAGE TO TH THE g CONGRESS Cg U iGnESS R senate and house in joint session sion hear address of the president HE M MAKES AKES fel few suggestions further legislation for settlement and regular on of ra alway way labor D s held imperatively feces sary by the ch ef mag lag strate washington dec dee 5 the senate renate and house met in j int session today and heard president vi IN ilson s message which was as follo follows is genelen en of the congress in fulfilling at this time the duty laid upon me by tl it e constitution of corn coin muni cating to 3 a ou from t me to time information of the state of tie tl e union and recommending to your con considers sidera tion such legis legislative lati le measures as may ma be judged necessary and expedient I 1 shall continue ohp th practice which I 1 hope has been acceptable to you on of leav leaving ving to the reports of the several heads of the executive dep the elaboration of th thi detailed needs of the public ser service serice ice and confine myself lo 10 those matters of more general pub lie policy with which it seems feces sary and feasible to deal at the pres ent session of the congress 1 I realize the limitations of time un der which you will necess arlly act at th 9 session ind shall make my sug rug gest ions as few a ap i possible but there ere some tl ings left undone at the list session khith there will now be time to complete and which it seems necessary in the interest of the public to do at once in the first place it seems to me im operatively ively necessary that the eail earliest eai liest lest I 1 possible consid consideration oration and action should be accorded the r remaining measures of the program of settle ment ind regulation which I 1 had occa sion lion to recommend to you at the close of your our last sess on in view of the pub lie dangers disclosed by the mounted d which then existed and adlich still ly continue to exist between the railroads of the country and their locomotive engineers conductors and trainmen ra iway troubles first I 1 then recommended first immediate provision for the enlargement and administrative beor of the interstate commerce commission along tie tl e lines embodied in tl e bill recently passed by the house of representatives and nov no v allting a v alting action by the senate in order that the commission may be enabled to deal with the dinv great and various duties now deN devolving upon it with a prompt ness and thoroughness wl iq ch are with its present constitution and means of action practically practical lv impossible second the of an eight hour day as the begil basis illde of work and of it wages in ili the employ ment of all rill vay employees w A ho ai e actually engaged in the work of abing trains in interstate transports tran lon flon third tl e authorization of the ap bv by the pres lent of a small body of men to ol 01 serve the actual re suits in experience of the adoption of eight heir ho ir day in trans rort atlon tation alike for the men and for the rill roads fourth eipl at it approval app rovil rowil by the con giesa of the consideration bv by the in ter state commerce commission of an in increase creace of freight rates to meet such additional expenditures expenditure bv by the rail roads road sas as may han have e been rendered nee essary by tl e adoption of the eight hour day and v which bich hai have e not been een 0 off set by administrative readjustments end economies should the facts dis closed j the increase fifth an amendment of the et ex tang baing federal statute which provides for the on conciliation and arbitration of such controversies is the present by b adding to it a pro provision islon that in case the betl of accommodation now provided for should fail 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 n case of military necessity to take control of such portions and such roll ing stock of the railroads of the coun try as may be required for military nili tary use and to operate them for tor military purposes with authority to drift into the military service of the united states s h train crews and adminis tr aate officials as the circumstances require ij r their safe and efficient use renews his at ons the second and third of these rec ree the congress trained ate ly acael OR on it established the eight hour duy as the legal basis of work an I 1 m ages iges in train service and it au all hrizo al the ip Lp of a corn coin ills to observe and report upon the results deeming these the leasuy s most immediately dimmed abely needed but it postponed action upon t tl e oti er suggestions until an dunlo sl RI out i be I 1 lor a moie moi e del berate con of alem tl cm the fourth rec ree on uen nen dation I 1 do not deem it feces sarv to renew the po er of the in ter state commerce commeree commisa on to gi int an all increase of ites rites r on the ground re to is ind clear and a rec re common ommen lat at on 13 v the congress 11 ith reg rd to such a matter might seem to dra v in question the scope of the coin miss MIR on s authority or its inclination to ip 0 justice ax when hen tl ti ere Is no reason to do il it t e th r rhe fhe other suggestions tl e increase in the interstate coi meres merce commis s on s deml P ship an I 1 in its facilities for herfor ling its manifold dut es the provision for full lublic investigation and assessment of industrial disputes and ti tie e grant to the exe executive cuti e of the power to control and operate the rail vv ays vi alen en necessary in time of AN w ir or oti oil cr er like c necessity I 1 now deiy ei inesti renew tl TI e necessity for such leg Is manifest and pressing those N who tho have in trusted us alth the responsibility ind duty of serving and safeguarding them in such matteis would find it t ard lard I 1 belie e to excuse a failure to act upon these grave grane matteis or any uynece siry iry postponement of action upon them not ot only does the interstate intel state corn coin merce commission now find it cally immoss ble with its present mem barship and organization to perform its great functions promptly and thor bugl ly but it t ls Is not unlikely that it may presently be found advisable to add to its duties still others equally heavy and exacting it must first be perfected as an administrative inspru ment the country cannot and should not consent to remain any longer exposed to profound industrial disturbances tor for lack of additional means meins me ins of arbitha t on and conciliation which the con gross gress can easily and promptly supply kud ud all will mill agree that there must be no doubt as to tt ti e power of the execl tive tie to make immediate and erupted use of the railroads for the con of tl ti e military forces of the nation whenever ieNer they are needed and whenever Nhe neNer they are needed this Is a program of regulation prevention and administrative eff efficiency elency which argues its own case in the mere statement of it with regard to one of its items the increase in the effi chency of tl e interstate commerce corn coin misson miss on the house of representatives has already acted its action needs only the concurrence of the senate for control and on I 1 would hesitate to rc recommend commend and adare I 1 dare say tl e congress con giess would hesitate to act upon the suggestion should liquid I 1 mike it that any man in any occupy tion should be obliged by law to con dinue in an employment which he de tie sired to lea leave e to pass a law which forbade or prevented the individual workman to leave his work before re calving the app approval rovil of society in do ing so would be to adopt a new prin ciple into our jurisprudence which I 1 take tt it for granted A e arp not prepared to introduce cut but tie tl e proposal that tl e operation of the hallways lail ways of the country stall sl all not be stopped or inter erupted by the concerted action of or gan zed bod es of men ui tit 1 a public investigation shall have been instituted which inch shall make the whole question at issue plain for the judg nent of the opinion of the nation is not to propose any such ciple it Is based upon the v ery cry different principle that the con carted act on of po gerful bodies of men shall not be permitted to stop the in dust ilal bes of the nation at any rate before the nation shall have had in opportunity to acqua nt itself with the merits of the case as between em and employer time to form its opinion upon an impartial statement of the merits and opportunity to con fidei all practicable means of concilia concilla alon or arbitration I 1 can see nothing in that proposition but the justifiable safeguarding by so clety of the necessary processes of its deiy life there ha k nothing arbi arary or unjust in it unless it be arbi and unjustly done it can and should be done with a full and lous tons regard for tl ti e interests and liber ties of all concerned as well as for the lei ici manent interests of society itself other legislate Leg islat on urged three matteis of capital importance await the action of the senate which have already been acted upon by the house of representatives the bill which seeks to extend greater freedom of combination to those engaged in pro doting the foreign commerce of tl ti e countey than Is now thought by some to be legal under the beims of tl it e laws against monopoly the bill amending i the presed t organic law of I 1 orto rico an ani I 1 the bill proposing pio posing a more thor ough and systematic regulation of the e of money in elections corn coin monty called the corrupt practices act I 1 need not lat lalor or my aan advice ice that these measures be enacted into law their urgency lies in the manifest manifest st circum stances which tl it e r adoption at this time not only opportune but feces sary ren en delay would seriously senous lv the interests of the country aal an of the government imi led ate passage of the bill to reg alite the expenditure of money in elec dioris may ma beem seem to be 1 lea tl an the in mediate enactment en 11 1 1 t of the other to which aich I 1 refer be cause at least to t 0 y years e ars will claps before another election n in wh ch fed eral offices arc art to be filled but it v grottis relieve the public mind if this important matter were aeilt with v wh h ie tl it e en comstance i and tl it e dan gers to the pub c morals of the pres ent metho I 1 of obtain ag ng and spend ng rig c campaign funds stand clear anler re cent observation and the methods of expenditure can be frankly studied in the light of present experience and a delay would mould have the further very serious d sad vintage of postponing ac tion I 1 another election was vas at hand and some special object conne connected eted with it might be thourl t to be in the mind of those who urged it action cin can be taken now with facts for guidance and iNith without out suspicion of partisan purpose I 1 shall not argue at length the desir ability of giving a freer I 1 and in the matter of combined and concerted ef fort to those who shall hall undertake the essential enterprise of building up our export trade TI T at ent will presently will immediately assume has indeed already assumed a maent tude unprecedented in our experience we have not tl ti e necessary instrument ins trumen tali ties for its prosecution it ts Is deemed to be doubtful whether they could be created upon an adequate under our present laws should clear away annay all legal obstacles and create a basis of undoubted law for it which will mill give freedom without vilt hout permitting unregulated license the thing must be done now non because the opportunity Is here and may escape us if we me hesitate or delay porto R co s needs the argument for the proposed amendments of the organic law of por to rico is brief and conclusive the present laws governing the island and regulating the rights and privileges of its people are not just we have created expectations of extended lege which we me have not satisfied there is uneasiness among the people of the island and even a suspicious doubt with mith regard to our intentions concerning them which the adoption of the pending measure would happily remove move e we do not doubt what we u e wish to do in 1 any essential particular we ought to do it at once there are other matters already ad alced danced to the stage of conference between the two houses of which it Is not necessary that I 1 should speak isome some practicable basis of agreement concerning them will N III no doubt be found and action taken upon them inasmuch as this is gentlemen ably the list occasion I 1 shall have to address the sixty fourth congress I 1 hope that you will NOR permit me to say with what genuine pleasure and satis sails faction I 1 hane ha e co operated with you in the many measures of constructive pol pot icy ic with which you have enriched the ae legislative 1 annals of the country it his 11 as been a privilege to labor in such company I 1 take the liberty of con granulating you upon the comp completion letlon of a r record cord of rare serviceableness and distillation distinction |