Evening star., 1899-09-16
VIM. ]. Bryan's Views on This
Much-Discussed Topic.
his ANSWER TO BOURKE COCHRAN
Sees an Approach Toward Mon
archy in Modern Tendency.
HE UOTES LIN COLIN


Hall, the scene of the civic federation
conference of trusts and combinations, the
last session of which will be held tonight,
was packed from pit to gallery today when
W. J. Bryan delivered his reply to w.
Bourke Cochran on the trust question.
1t was reported that Mr. Bryan had a set
of resolutions up his sleeve, presumably
antagonistic to trusts as they now exist.
But the Nebraskan denied this when seen
by representative of the Associated Press.
II have none prepared, said he, "and l
am not sure whether l have to prepare any
for presentation"
Mr. Bryan was introduced by Gov. Stan
ley of Kansas, who acted as chairman OF
the opening session. Wild applause greeted
the Nebraskan. W. Bourke Cochran listen
ed intently and joined frequently in the
applause. MIR Bryan spoke in part as FOL
lows:
Within two years more trusts have been
organized than in the previous history OF
the country, and the people now come face
to face with this question:
Is the trust a blessing curse? If a
curse. what remedy can be applied to the
curse?
Monopoly in private hands is indefensible
from any standpoint and intoerable. l do
not divide monopoies. There can be no
good monopoly in private hands until the
Almighty sends angels to preside over
us.
No Coed DespOtfsm.
There may b. a despot who is better
than another despot, but there is no good
despotism. The defense of the monopoly
is always placed on the ground that if you
will allow people to control the market and
FIX the price they will be good to the people
who purchase of them. The entire defense
of the trusts rests upon money argument.
Ii the trust will sell an article for dollar
lacG han ttra inl Jt-i11 a
conditions, then in the opinion of some
that proves trust to be Il good thing In
the first place, | deny that under a mo-
nopoly the price will be reduced. In the
second place, if under a monopoly the price
is reduced, the objections to monopoly
from other standpoints far outweigh the
financial advantage that the trust would
bring. But | protest against settling every
question upon the dollar argument
In the early years of Lincoln's admins
tration he sent message to Congress,
warning his countrymen against the ap-
proach of monarchy. He said he saw IN
the attempt to put capital even upon an
equal footing with labor in the structure OF
the government, the approach of mon
archy. Lincoln was right. Whenever you
put capital upon an equal footing with
labor or above labor in the structure OF
government, you are on the road to aid
government that rests not upon reason. but
on force.
Nothing is more important than that We
shall in the beginning rightly understand
the relations between money and man Man
is the creature Of God. and money Is the
servant of man, and l protest against all
the theories that enthrone and debase man
kind.
Blight on Industry.
II you will go about over the country you
will see where people have subscribed money
| to establish enterprises and where those en-
terprises, having come under the control of
the trusts, have been closed up and stand
now as silent monuments to the wisdom of
| the trust system. In any case OF local
strikes and fires the work goes on else
| where. thus preventing serious loss.
When a branch of industry is found in
the hands of one of the great monopoleS,
| so that every skilled man must go to one
man for employment the one man fixes the
wages as he pleases, and the laboring men
| will then share the suffering OF the man
| who sells the raw material
| ] want to warn you that when the mo-
| nopoly has absolute control brains will be
| at a discount. We have not yet had taste
| of a complete trust. But when the trust
| has rid itself of all competitors what is
| going to be the result? My friends. all you
| have to know is human nature. God made
| man selfish.
| On the farm we used to protect property
| from the hogs by putting rings in their
| noses Why? So that while they were
| getting fat they would not destroy more
| than they were worth.
| One of the great purpose of government
| is to put rings in the noses of hogs. If
| were going to try to find the root of the
monopoly evil l would go back to the
| Bible for an explanation. and | would find
| 1t in the declaration that the love OF money
| is the root of all evil.
| Failing prices, caused by rising dollar
| and the high tariff, have contributed the
| desire to secure the fruits of the monopoly
Free Trade VIII Not Avail.
| Some have suggested that to put every
| thing on the free list that trusts make
| tba pttf do NOT ha-
| Iieve that you could destroy all trusts by
| putting all trust-made articles on the free
| list because If an article can be produced
| in this country as cheaply as it can be pro-
duced abroad, then the trust could exist
| without the benefit of any tariff at all, al
| though 1t could not extort so much. We
! cannot destroy monopoly until we lay the
| ak at the root OF the tree, and make monop
| ly impossible by law. Discrimination by
| railroads has aided trusts. That can be
| remedied by laws which will place pro-
| ducers on an equal footing. But the remedy
must complete enough to prevent the or
ganization of a monopoly. We differ more ii
remedy than We do in our opinion of the
| trust. Few people will defend the trust a.
| a principle. AS to the remedy:
| Both state and nation should have con
current remedies. In the first place, every
state has or should have the right tt
! create any private corporation, which. ir
the justice of the people of the state, i:
| conducive to welfare of the people o.
that state. / believe that We can safely
| lntruSt the peOpl6 Ol d Stdtt luc Seltlc
ment Of a question which concerns them
II they create corporation and 1t be
comes destructive of their best interests
they can destroy that corporation. and W.
can safely trust them both to create ant
to annhilate. if conditions make annihila
ton necessary. In the second place, tn,
| state has or should have the right to pro
hibit aay foreign corporation from doint
business in the state, and it ought to hav'
or has the right to impose such restriction
and limitations as the people Of the stat
may think necessary upon any foreign cor
poration doing business in the state.
| State and Federal Remedies.
| l believe in an addition of state remedy
| but there must be federal remedy. Con
gress has or should have, the power t
place such restrictions and limitations
even to the point of prohibition. upon an.
corporation organized in one state tina
wants to do business outside of the stat
| contrary to public good.
RESULT OF THE CONFERENCE.
| Democrats viii Follow Up the Meet
| ing in Chicago.
CHICAGO. September 16-The Chronicl
Gays: