The herald., 1896-04-15

ED. HERALD: Line upon line, line
upon line, seems to be necessary to
wear away the shell of preconceived
opinion that casehardens the average
single-taxer. How often has it been
conclusively shown that competition in
industry leads, of necessity. and by
reason of it's inherent character, into
monopoly. and yet Mr.. James Semple
automatically repeats: Give us free
competition and you will destroy mo-
nopoly." A monopoly is not anything
different in kind from any business on
any scale, large or small. A monopoly
contains no more factors or forces than
the smallest attempt at individual pro-
duction. 1t is merely private enter
prise grown up. 1t is case or what
every competitive undertaking in this
wide world is trying to be. Mr.. Semple
would be entirely correct if he said that
if individual enterprise in production is
a right principle for society to
adopt, then monopoly is right. Monop-
oily is the product of indivfdualism.
Capital, intelligent direction and de-
mand for production is condition that
may be made into a he'll or heaven,
just according to the spirit or plan by
which these factors are used. The
proper use always, for all forces OF
nature or systems of action, is for the
general benefit instead of private ad-
vancement. The present system, or
fdlHeT lack OI SySlSIIi, uScu
trial forces for private gain, pervertins
the designs OF nature and covering us
all with misery. All the factors of
monopoly are perfectly harmless, in
the common good.
Capital, intelligence, direction and
material upon which to operate arc all
necessary to the smallest attempt at
any kind of business; then any such
business may grow into monopoly.
Mr. Semple says the absence of compe-
tition creates monopoly We may as
we'll say that while the woOdman was
away the tree was chopped down. Ne
cation creates not How do you make
1t out, Brother James, that, seeing We
have had the competitive system first,
last and all the time, we are now shack
led by the very thing it is supposed to
throttle? If competition were an en-
tity, a thing favored of nature, endowed
with the power Of self-expansion and
reproduction, it would have entirely
precluded any possibility of monopoly
by blocking the way with its own
growth. Competition was before mo-
nopoly was. Competition had the start.
with a clear track and a fair race, but
instead of increasing itself. it turns in
to monopoly, DR.. Jekyll and Mr.. Hyde
like. But it is not. strictly speaking,
competition that Mr.. Semple yearns
after, it is free competition" Take
case of free competitions" A half doz-
en- theaters are running in the city
all separate enterprises managed by
different individuals for their own per-
soual emolument. They compete with
each other in getting the best attrac-
tions; they all prosper. But after
time one secures an unusual feature
that popularizes it above all others; it
makes big money, builds big building,
makes arrangements to give plays that
the small man cannot do. with limited
means, cuts prices, starveS out the
weakest of it's competitors first, others
following as the big house grows bigger.
The one or two surviving competitors
seeing the fate of their old rivals de-
eide to combine with the big house and
competition is not free any more!
What, in this case, destroyed competi-
d. ton? Why free competition" of
course. What good would land tax
have done? Competition at work is
but process of eliminating itself. The
more competition there is in a given
line of business, the fiercer or "freer"
it is the sooner it will destroy itself and
leave you a monopoly. Any mind that
claims to be an adept at delving in the
rich fields of political economy and has
not yet granted this foundation truis1n,
would be an interesting specimen for
psychological examination.
Mark Twain was one day on rail-
way train. Near him sat an elderly
gentleman who wished to make him.
self agreeable. Looking up at Mark
from his newspaper he observed: Il
see President Grant has taken a trip
out west" Mark aroused himself ner-
vously and stammered: "Why, don't
know the man.
This evidently surprised tho old gen.
tleman, but he appeared to reason with
in his own mind that perhaps he had
not made himself plain. so after a pause
hn ft>in q yot in n DC
having quite lively time with the In
dams"
General Custer" exclaimed Mark.
"Who on earth is he?" The obliging
passenger seemed to be checkmated for
few moments, but managed to con-
troll himself. thinking that Mark was
rather absent minded. Finally he
again attempted to pick up conversa-
ton by remarking that Gladstone had
just been made premier of England
Gladstone" impatiently exclaimed
Mark, why, l never heard of him be-
fore. You seem to know more strang-
ers than any man ever saw"
This was more than he of the gray
hairs and good nature could stand, SO
he bawled out: why you confounded
ignoramus, did you ever hear of ADAM"
Mark ransacked his memory in vain
and asked timidly: adam, Adam;
what was his other name?'
L am remlnQeQ or This circumstance
by reading Mr.. Semple's remark, "If
competition is wrong, monopoly must
be right. If monopoly is wrong, COM
petition must be right, for one is SIM
Ply the absence of the other" See how
he begins: Only one of two things posi-
BILE, monopoly or competition. The pos
sibility of production and distribution
by means of cooperation has not as
yet dawned on MI. Semple's conscious
ness. Mark Twain had not heard of
Adam! Where there is cooperation
there is neither competition nor monop-
oily, and yet. strange to say, co-opera-
tion contains no factor not found in
competition or monopoly--save one, the
collective success, as a goal.
Every fellow trying to get on top,
whether others survive or perish, is the
spirit of individualism as eXemplifed
in competition and monopoly. This
makes fight for life. F'raternal CO.
operation is quiet, orderly working of
COLLECTIVELY for common end; all inter
ested equally in bringing about the
same result: a spirit of friendship and
brotherliness is fostered. In co-opera-
tion no one is counteracting another's
efforts, thus allowing for the full meas
ure of production capable from united
and organized whole. According to Mr..
Semple and his school the proverb
I'm union there is strength" finds no
place. However much order and sys-
tenn may be praised as an ideality, let's
be sure and have none of it in industry.
Break up a trust with a single land tax
(sic) and cause a hundred competing
firms to do its work, each entirely unin-
terested in the doings of all the others.
Let each produce as much as it possibly