The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1867-09-18
Eatsrori.e ver.a. Monopoly.

Enterprise is the great characteristic Of the
American nation; monopoly, the one abuse
against which, more than against any other,
the American people set their faces. Monopo-
lies have occasionally accomplished a certain
amount of good in the development Of the
resources Of the country, and proved tenn
porarily advantageous to the public; but in the
main they are adverse to the genius of our
institutions and in conflict with our general
policy. Enterprise gives birth to opposition
as its legitimate offspring, and the spirit of
opposition lies at the foundation of our peculiar
reputation as nation. The desire to excel
our neighbors, to improve upon the latest
improvements, to accomplish more than any
one has ever accomplished before, makes
us the pushing, rushing, progressive, wonder
full people that we are admitted to be all over
the world.
People not untrequently fail to properly
comprehend the distinction between enterprise
and monopoly, and where individuals build up
a great business or amass large wealth through
superior enterprise, many are apt to erro-
neously regard them as monopolists. Thus, we
sometimes hear Of the HERALD being monster
monopoly, while nothing Is farther from the
truth. II is in the largest sense of the word
great enterprise, seeking only to establish its
superiority by its own energy and its own
efforts, and leaving every newspaper free to
vie with it and to strive to equal ii - public
journal. Commodore Vanderbilt has some
times been called monopolist, while he has
been, in fact, man Of enormous energy and
enterprise, who has fought his way against
opposition in q fair, free field, and not only
won the position Of the great steamship and
railroad king Of the country, but succeeded in
putting Central, Hudson River and Harlem
into his breaches pocket, In addition to the
fortune of nfty million dollars for which rlmor
gives him credit, while be has still room for
the Erie in the same spacious receptacle. As
models Of what the true American spirit Of
enterprise and progress can accomplish, the
HERALD stands prominently forth as business
and Cornelius Vanderbilt ss an individual
There have been monopolies which have
prospered for awhile, but the contracted, mar
row-minded spirit inseparablo from Thorn il
fatal to permanent success. The New York
Associated Press was Of this character. Fool
ishly believing that It had secured the exclu-
sive control Of the collection and distribution
Of telegraphic news throughout the country, 1t
set itself to work to restrict individual news
paper enterprise, and insolently undertook to
control the special reports of such paper as
the HERALD. This was lie death blow. The
ia .~...L
draw from the concern, and now rival news
associations are springing up, new era is
about to commence in the newspaper world in
the collection and sale Of news. and the old
New York Associated Press will soon be
thing Of the past, Of no more use or Importance
than the old numbering stage coach or the
broken down nag Of post messenger. Such
Is and such always will be the distinction
between enterprise and monopoly.