The record-union., 1897-09-23
Unrest of Labor a Safety Valve.

Unrest of labor in a free country is
not @ dangerous phenomenon, but
rather a safety valve. 1t must not be
forgotten, however, that education OF
the masses has created new wants, and
that these wants have grown faster
than the means of gratifying them
The problem should be viewed from
both sides. and only what is reasonable
should obtain. Whenever unlimited
power exists it is usually accompanied
by tyranny, whether of labor or CAPT.
tai. There are labor trusts as well
as capital trusts, and in all the an
nails of combination there are no
greater illustrations of tyranny than
the attitude of some Of the labor or
ganizations toward laborers. This,
however. was the inevitable outcome OF
organization and of the great evolution
which is now going on throughout the
world. under the operation of the great
forces that now control the world,
steam. electricity and machinery. I'm
der the operation of these forces the
world has been growing richer. All
the resources of nature are being de-
veloped Capital has increased faster
than the opportunities for its profitable
employment, as is evidenced by the
steadily decreasing returns OF capital
or in other words, rate Of interest.
Formerly it seemed that combinations
of capital would abrogate competition.
but experience has shown that instead
Of abrogating competition it has ele-
waited that force to higher plane. Ii
a combination of capital in any line
temporarily exacts a liberal profit, cap
ital Immediately flows into that chan
mel, another combination is formed and
competition ensues on a scale and op-
crates with an intensity far beyond
anything that is possible on smaller
scale. resulting in the breaking down
of the combination and the decline of
profits to q. minimum. A recent ex-
ample of this is seen in the competition
of two rival cigarette companies, where
one even went so far as to invoke the
criminal machinery of the courts to
compel a division of the field of trade
which the other occupied. The only
trusts which have succeeded for any
length of time have been those which
have been conducted on far sighted
basis of moderate margins of profit,
relying upon a. large turn over, and
the erconomies resulting from the COM
mand of large capital intelligently ad-
ministered. The truth of this is Illus
trated by innumerable failures in trust
organizations to control prices, recent
illustrations of which are the straw
board trusts. the starch trust, the wire
nail trust and the steel trust. There
are trusts so-called in nearly every
branch of business and there is good
and bad in all, but the good so far
predomirates that such aggregations OF
capital should be encouraged, accom-
panied by safeguards against abuses.
The only additional safeguards needed
are in behalf Of stockholders and in
vestors. whose interests are often sac
rificed through lack of publicity so
far as the interest Of consumers is
concerned. it is amply protected now;
first by competition, and second, by
the common law, which, if invoked,
will Eullify any contract in real re-
straint of trade, and under existing
statutes any unreasonable combination
is subject to indictment for conspiracy