St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-12-21

ing What He Knows About
Trusts.
PHILADELPHIA, Dec. 20.-Ex-Presi-
dent Benjamin Harrison was the chief
guest at dinner given in his honor by
Thomas May Pierce at the Belle
vue this afternoon. In the even-
ing the ex-president delivered
an address at the commencement
exercises of the Pierce Business college
in the Academy of Music. The address
was in the main confined to advice to
young men. but there were portions of
itwhich dealt with public matters. OF
strikes and labor organizations the
speaker said generally: "It is a
sad and dangerous fact that capital and
labor are organized to fight each other;
that the laboring man is taught TO re-
gard his employer as an antagonist
too often as an eDemy-and that
the greedy or vexed and impa-
tient employer, distrustful of what he
regards as unwarranted interference
with the business, is sometimes
too ready TO treat a workman with a
grievance as he would treat joltlng,
unbalanceI machines-throw it into
the scrap pile. Like the armed peace now
maintained in Europe, this situation Is
costly and dangerous. Every benevolent
and thoughtful man is anxious and
distressed. suppose a just and per
feet peace will not be established until
the kingdom Of the elder brother is set
up throughout the world and the golden
rule becomes the law of human life.
THE RIGHT TO ACQUIRE
is more important to the poor man than
TO the rich. Many reforms are weak
ened by their exelusiveness-the invi-
tation is not wide enough. Men are put
on the other side because of their sur
roundings, or the color of their skins.
without chance to make their own
choice, 1t is the. most whole
some and saving fact that
the working people of the United States
so generally reject the teachings OF an
archy. The workman is a producer.
the anarchist a destroyer. and fellow
ship is impossible. How shall the poor
be helped by the destruction of
other mems property, or by as
Sassination? When doors are
barred and the streets are
full of tumult and mems hearts of fear,
is there any harvest for toll? There is
only one good thing about these evil
times, and that is good will. They
give men an opportunity to show their
concern for each other. The will
of the largest brotherhood is
being called. and men see with
great wonder how great the family is.
How many idle workmen now see that
1t is not safe to assume that the employ
ers' interest and theirs are wholly an
tagonistic. or that one umbrella NAV
not shelter both. Is not the con-
clusion too clear to escape the most
sluggish understanding, that hard tim e
for the employer cannot be good times
Tor the employe? A brisk and regular
demand for the products of labor at fair
prices is the only safe support of the
wage scale, as it is of dividends"
CONCERNING TRUSTS
Mr.. Harrison has this to say: "As be-
tween natural persons. using their busi-
ness pursuits only powers that are
common to all, competition is upon a
reasonably fair basis. But it has been
found convenient, and probably neces-
sary TO create artificial persons. called
corporations, and to confer upon them
special pOwers-such as perpetuity of
life. limited liability OF the sharehold.
ers, the right to appropriate another
mans property without his consent
upon making compensation, to take
tolls, etc. Those endowed corpora
tions. i'll many branches of busi-
ness become the competitors Of natural
persons. and in all powerfully
affect and influence trade. They have
been, perhaps, the greatest factor in the
wealth-theY are indispensable. but the
mag gnitude and multitude Of these
corporations - the enormous powers
they possess aid the often elus-
i've character of their owner
shipand management suggest restraint,
control and limitation. We have been
most profiigate in our grants of these
special powers, but the mistake will not
be corrected, but duplicated, by policy
of destruction. Here as elsewhere. pas
sion epithets hinder the truth and
retard reform. Persecution has so
strong reaction that it NAV
even pOpulariZe corporation.
The capital error in our legislation has
been the failure 10 limit and to super
wise corporate securities; to require
that the stock shall represent an invest
ment. and that the investment shall be
adequate to the enterprise. that credit
ors may be secured, and that the public
may not be tolled or the
LABORERS' WAGES CUT
to pay interest or dividends on securi-
ties that do not stand for investments.
The restraint of trusts and combines
and corners by which some particular
article of commerce is mouopo-
liZed, either permanently or TOR
time, is another obvious
and urgent duty. They unsettle
that fair balance OF things, that equality
of opportunities. which must be pre-
served, if the poor are to be content and
the rich secure. But neither Is this the
work of thoughtless passion. What is
done should be done with discrimina-
ton, calmnesS and justice"
The ex-president condemns lynching
in the following terms: These fright
ful lynchings that the daily papers
record. with their shocking Incidents OF
victims are the poor and weak and
the adequacy OF the courts to punish
such has never been impeached. The
tendency of such acts is not to
repress crime, but to propagate hate
and to incite the vicious to reVenge-to
brutalize not only the participants.
but those who read the bloody story. Ii
is not enough openly to con-
denim such crime. We must E:ake
the sentiment of disapproval
dominant, and boldly reinforce
the officers of the law. II crime is
done in the name of temperance or
labor, or if in any other good cause, or
hides under its skirts, the friends of that
good cause should lead the chase after
the law-breaker and never rest Until
thsy have thoroughly disassociated the
good cause and the bad man."
Tomorrow evening the ex-president's
reception at the Union league will take
place. Two thousand invitations have
been sent out. &