Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1899-09-22


tariff has aided the trust to collect
more than the trust otherwise could
collect. But do not believe that you
could destroy all trusts by putting all
trust-made articles on the free list.
Why? Besides, if an article could be
produced in this country as cheaply as
it could be produced abroad, the trust
could exist without the benefit OF any
tariff at all, although it could not ex-
tort so much as it could with the tariff,
and while some relief may come with
notifications of the tariff, We cannot
destroy monopoly until we lay the AK
at the root of the tree, and make mo-.
nopoly impossible by law.
1t has been suggested that dscrimi-
nation by railroads has aided the
trusts. There is no question that dis
elimination and favoritism secured by
one corporation against another has
been largely instrumental in enabling
a desired monopoly to become practi-
cally a complete monopoly. Now that
can be remedied by laws that will pre-
vent this discrimination, and when we
prevent the discrimination, still mo-
nopoly may exist.
The remedy must be complete
enough to prevent the organization of
monopoly. Now, what can be done
to prevent this? We have a State
government and a Federal government,
and, while this dual form OF govern.
ment has its advantages, both the
State and Federal should have con-
current remedies. In the first place,
every State has, or should have, the
right to create any private corporation
which, in the judgment of the people
of the State, is conducive to the well
fare OF the people of that State. be-
lieve that we can safely entrust to the
people of State the settlement OF a
question which concerns them. If
they create corporation and it be.
comes destructive OF their best inter.
ests, they can destroy that corporation
and we can safely trust them both to
create and to annihilate, if conditions
make annihilation necessary. In the
second place, the State has, or should
have, the right to prohibit any foreign
corporation from doing business in the
State, and it ought to have, or has, the
right to impose such restrictions and
limitations as the people of the State
may think necessary upon any foreign
corporation doing business in the
State.
l believe, in addition to State
remedy, there must be Federal rem-
edy, and / believe that Congress has
the power to place such restrictions
and limitations, even to the point of
prevention, upon any corporation or
ganized in one State that wants to do
business outside of the State.
Now, believe that these concurrent
remedies will reach the difficulty that
the people of every State shall first de-
eide whether they want to create
corporation; that they shall, secondly,
decide whether they want any outside
corporation to do business in the
State, and if 30, upon what conditions; ;
and, thirdly, that Congress shall exer-
else the right to place upon every cor
poration doing business outside of the
State in which it is organized similar
restrictions, as may be needed for the
public good.
Colonel Bryan at this point read the
famous circular letter advertising the
incorporation laws of Delaware. He
commented sarcastically on the ad-
vantages set forth in the letter. A
person in the audience inquired
delaware and New Jersey are both
Democratic States, are they not?" to
which Mr.. Bryan replied: "They
were not in 1896" He continued:
/ have read this letter in order to
show that where State can seek an
advantage from the incorporation Of
these aggregations of wealth, it is not
safe to place the people OF other States
at the tender mercy of the people Of
such State as may desire to raise its
running expenses from the taxation Of
corporations organized to prey upon
people outside.
One method for the annihilation. OF
trusts has occurred to me, and to me
it seems complete method. 1t may
not commend itself to you. 1t is this: {:
That Congress should pass law pro-
viding that no corporation organized
in any State could do business outside
of the State in which it is organized
until it receives from some power cre-
ated by Congress license authorizing
it to do business outside of its own
State. (Applause.) Now, if the cor
poration must come to this body cre-
ated by Congress to secure permission
to do business outside the State, then
that license can be granted upon con-
ditions which will in the first place
prevent the watering of stock; in the
second place prevent monopoly in any
branch of business, and, third, provide
for publicity as to all of the transac.
tions and business of corporations.
II it is constitutional, and so de-
clared by the supreme court, am in
favor of an amendment to the consti-
tuition that will give to Congress
power to destroy every trust in the