The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1899-05-30

direction bell rang, the band struck up
1.-THE Stars and Stripes Forever" an
army of walters ladened with viands
appeared, and the mammoth democrat
ic antitrust banquet was on, while the
1,445 banqueters, seated at the tables
broke into a tremendous cheer, rising
in a body and waving the small hand
flags that had been provided at eacn
cover. The table OF honor was placeo
on a raised platform at the nortn slde
of the arena and at it were seated Hon.
w. J. BRYAN, Ex-Governor Jno. L. Ait
geld, o. H. p. Belmont, NJ. c. M
Harry B. Halves, president of the JET
: ferson club, under whose auspices the
dinner was given; Hon. Champ Clark,
Hon. David A. de Almond and a num-
Der of other prominent democrats.
The coliseum was decorated through
out with flags and in the centre Of
these was fixed a large silver shield.
The dinner was concluded at s o'clock
and it was strictly a love feast. By the
time the tables were cleared the 5000
seats of the amphitheatre were filled
with spectators representing the Soci-
ETY. of st. Louis, and the speaking be-
gan.
TIL first speaker of the evening was
Harry b. Halves, president of the JEFF
ferson club, who delivered the address
of welcome.
President Halves was followed by
Hou. Champ Clark, of Missouri, who
was greeted with a tremendous Ova-
ton.
BRYAN'S SPEECH.
Mr.. Bryan spoke, his subject being
TRUSTS and MonopOlies." He said in
part as follows:
More trusts have been formed dur
ing the last two years han existed at
the beginning of the present admins
tration and the nomina capitalization
of the trusts now in existence ap-
proaches, if it does not equal in amount,
the worlds total supply of gold and
silver. The influence of these trusts has
become so enormous that the people,
without respect to party, are skiing
themselves how the evil can be rem
edied. The purpose of the trusts is to
control the product of some article of
merchandise, and the methods en-
p1oyed are: First, the union of all in
dividual factories under one manage
ment or in one corporation, and, second,
), the crushing out of new rivals. A mo-
ppoly when once complete, not only
tAHtates terms to those who buy the
= product, but it also dictates terms to
those who sell the raw material, and to
those who furnish the labor. If the
trusts are permitted to continue we
shall find an industrial aristocracy
growing up in the United States which
will prove as destructive Of our ideal
as a landed aristocracy would.
THE principal of monopoly is incom-
patible with our institutions. Mans
necessities compel him to become a pur-
chaser, and where there is but one SELL
err the purchaser is completely at the
mercy of the seller. Where there is
competition between producers, the
purchaser is sure to obtain what he
wants at a reasonable price. When
competition is eliminated the price is
controlled not by reason, but by the
greed of the one who possesses the mo-
nopoly.
1T has been said that the power to
tax is a power to destroy. A mOnOpo-
1y possesses the power to tax; it can
levy such assessments as 1t Will upOn
the purchaser and we can no more af-
ford to permit such a power to be ex-
ercised by private individuals than we
could afford to authorize private indi-
viduals to use the machinery of taxa
ton in order to enrich themselves at
the expense of their fellows. The gov
m would be guilty of gross neg
lect if it permitted an individual to Sc
cure a monopoly eve without legiSla-
tive assistance, but it is still more Gull
pable if by legislative act it furnishes
NAAS AACCllIo ~ WILL q 10 10
cured. The corporation is the means
now employed by those who hope to Sc
cure a monopoly. Since the corpora
tion is a fictitious person, created by
law, the power thst created, cen regu-
late and restrain or annihilate. To say
that the government is impotent to pre-
vent the organization of trusts is to
say that it has called into existence a
fictitious person ard that the fictitious
= person created has become greater
than the creator.
lone of the difficulties which ha
been encountered IN opposing trusts is
that the trust hides behind the fedora
constitution when ttacked by state
legislation, and shields itself behind its
state charter when attacked in the fed
eral cour s. No remedy will be com
plete that is not co-extensive with thC
federal government. If the t~xtinguisb.
ment of the trusts is left to state legis-
lation, the public al large will be vic.
timiZed as long as 2 single State viii
furnish g robbers roost, where tht
spoils collected in ether states can b.
divided.
Just now people are startled by th'
principle of monopoly as it manifest:
itself in the industrial trust. The prin
ciple, however, is the same as tina
which manifests itself in the effort O.
the national bankers to secur a mo
nopoly of the issue of paper none
LHV SlSSllOdCh is a. rival u the DdIlf
note and it's presence a constant men
ace to the banks of issue. Some wht
recognize the evil that flow from
soar trust, seem Indifferent to the dan
gers that attend the formation of a pa
per money trust The principle of mo
nopoly not only lies al the Foundation
of attempt to destroy the ~greenbacks
bu 1t is the controlling principle tina
underlies the crusade against silver a
a standard money. Between 1850 ant
1860, when the production of gold wa.
increasing and the production of silve
was small, three retions demonetize,
gold and gave to silver a monopoly o
mint privileges. Early in the los tn,
~financiers became alarmed at the in
crease in the production of silver an,
conspired to destroy silver as a stan
dard money and give a monopoly t,
gold, the production of which at tina
time was stationary. The STANDARD
money trust is not only the paren