National Republican., 1883-09-22
ANTI-MONOPOLY IDEAS.
Mr.. Thurber's Views Of the Relations Of Labor
and Capital.
Prof John NJ. Gregory Furnishes nm
Opinion About Existing Troubles.

committee on labor and education had before
them as q witness to-day +. B. Thurber, the
leader of the Anti-Monopoly league. The
witness said ho believed that the unsatis-
factory state of the relations existing between
capital and labor which prevailed to q con-
siderable extent in this country was due to
tho enormous changes consequent upon the
discovery and utilization of steam and cleo
tricity, which within n comparatively few
years had revolutionized all departments Of
production and commerce and to great ex-
tent the affairs of society in general. Within
the last fifty years new forces have arisen for
which the laws are entirely inadequate, and
these have been allowed to be monopolized by
n few With these forces had come a tre-
mendous development of machinery and
corporate organization, all of which had con-
ferred great benefits upon humanity as
WHOLE but the development had taken place
without proper regulation, and corps OF
attendant evils had sprung up in consequence.
He did not attribute all the ills of society to
the effects of this kind of monopoly. There
were many causes, as land monopoly, cur
rency monopoly, transportation monop-
oily, tariff monopoly, combination trade
monopoly, taxation, intemperanco, and
ignorance which have a bearing upon the
problem. In regard to the carrying trade of
the world highways on land could be monop-
olized, while on the sea the exaction of the
carrier could be held in check by compoti-
ton. A majority of our law makers were in
vested directly or indirectly in corporate ell
terprises and the statutes were enacted in
that interest. The witness also spoke of tho
use of money in influencing legislation in
favor of corporations and said that so power
full was the influence they possessed that the
offenders could not be punished. The state,
If it had constructed railways, would not have
watered stocks Disseminated against persons
and places, corrupted elections, debauched
courts, and created enormous wealth for
the few Mt tho expense of the many.
The practice of stock watering was
forcibly illustrated in tho case Of the New
York Central railway. In 1S67|6S the
stock of the road was watered to the extent
of $47 100000. Rates for transportation had
been imposed which had yielded yearly s per
cent. dividends upon the watered stock,
amounting each year to SO, 100000, and these
dividends in fourteen years, with interest,
amounted to about $S3000,000. Pooling, he
| thought, was not an unmiXed evil, for it did
not assure q certain degree of stability and
uniformity, but pooling when there was no
power above the pool to decide what was
reasonable charge was apt to bo arbitrary
| and exacting.
The influence of machinery had been to
| increase the the power of capital as it alone
was able to utilize these forces. 1t enabled
capital to crowd down the laborer to the
lowest possible limit, and competition COM
pelled manufacturers to pay in many cases
starvation wages. This had forced labor to
organize, and trade unions did what they
could to protect the laborers influence. He
believed in giving a technical education to
the laboring classes. The presidential term
should be increased to six years, and it would
be step in tho interest of both labor and
| capital One of the greatest difficulties with
which reformers had to deal was the repre-
sentatives in congress and the state legis-
latures in the pay of railway and other cor
porations. In the last congress, Mr.. Thur
Der asserted there wore two hundred and
sixty-four lawyers, majority of whom
were retained by corporations or were directly
or indirectly Influenced by others in legis-
laton in the interest of the corporations.
Senator Call thought witness was wrong in
his statements, and greatly misrepresented
the standard of morality among public men.
lie did not believe that there were ten men
| in congress who were retained by any cor
| porations, and he did not know one.
| Senator Pugh acknowledged that the 70
were a largo number of Legislators who were
| interested, directly or otherwise, in corpora
tions He was of the opinion however, that
although this was the case, the personal ac-
tion of tho legislator was not influenced in
legislation.
Senator Blair remarked that he did not own
share of stock in any railway corporation,
nor had he received single free pass from
railway since he had been in public life.
Mr. Thurber explained that he did not
mean that these legislators whom he had
mentioned directly promoted legislation in
the interest of corporations but that when
ever there was conflict of interest between
corporations and the people they would have
a tendency to take the side of the former.
Senator Call asked witness to mention some
specific result of this tendency, and Mr.. Thur
Der cited the opposition OF the railway trans
portaton bill of Congressman Reagan and the
difficulty which had been met with in giving
it hearing and having it properly dis
cussed.
Senator Call replied that there might be
other reasons than the one mentioned for OPP
posing the bill. AS for himself he did not
think the measure was feasible one in all
respects.
Prof. ohm M. Gregory, for thirteen years
professor of political economy in the Illinois
State Industrial university, the next Witness
said that the antagonism between capital and
labor was not purely an economic problem,
but was largely social quantum. The
trouble arose from the social distinction of
classes, consequent upon the large accumula-
tion of wealth. The real ground of the dis
content was the disparity in the relative con-
ditions of the laborer and capitalist of the
present day, although the condition of both
had improved prOportionately, Education
was large factor in the remedy for this state
of affairs, and technical education was
especially important.
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