New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1900-10-31
SOMETHING ABOUT TRUSTS"

Frank Bergen, one of New-Jersey's foremost
lawyers, has penchant for getting to the bot
tom Of things, and he has been looking up the
history of the word trust" According to Mr..
Bergen, the expression came into use politically
about fifteen years ago. The trust of those
days was, however, he says, something different
from the monster which William ]. Bryan and
other noted hunters are tracking to-day. Then
it was a combination of a number Of CORPORA
tons engaged in the same line Of business by
which they agreed TO carry on their business
according to the direction of few individuals,
to whom the stock of the corporation was trans
ferred, 50 that they might elect the directors
and define the policy of all the corporations and
prevent competition among them. That kind
of a trust the courts declared to be unlawful.
They held that every corporation ust carry
on business through its own officers.
From that Mr. Bergen argues that "the peo-
'ple by means of legislation and litigation were
land still are masters of the money changers
''as Bryan calls smart business men in this
country" AS another proof of this Mr. Bergen
refers to the successful attacks of the Changers
against railroad determinations and the sitting
of competition. After a number Of States had
experimental with regulatory legislation Con-
gress took hold Of the problem and the Inter
state Commerce law and the Sherman act
were the fruits.
"Those laws" Mr.. Bergen says, were sus-
"tained by the courts, and by means of them
| nearly all the evils Of which the Changers
complained have been exterminated. 1t is an
Interesting fact that while the Populists and
Bryan Democrats have done the most shout
ling about the trusts, corporations syndicates
"millionaires and mOneybags, the Republicans
''have done about all that has yet been done
"to restrain their unconscionable conduct"
The modern trust Mr. Bergen describes ne a
huge corporation, not a combination, and His
view is that these trusts are beneficial in
| curious or dangerous, according to the stand
point from which you look at them" What
he sees beneficial in them Is that "they cheenen
productions and sometimes improve the quail
"ity of manufactured goods, and often raise
wages. sometimes voluntarily" He attributes
much of our immense success in foreign mar
kets to the strength and energy of these aqera-
cations of capital. They employ men of the
highest executive capacity, who manage m
triumph over foreign competition while having
| higher wages. The result is that wealth is
pouring into this country from all points of tba
compass. The efforts Of these vast corporations
| to destroy competition are, Mr.. Bergen saws
! often hearuess and sometimes wicked That
he argues, is because corporations are made ~
HsIi, anu liiS SIeeu anu SelHSlneSS OF will
exhibit themselves ever through the mask and
under the forms of corporate organization Mr.
| Bergen contends that trusts can he succovs
fully dealt with only by act of Congress. Then
he refers 10 the proposed amendment TO the
| Constitution giving Congress power to define.
| regulate, dissolve or prohibit trusts or monon-
| olies. which came up in the House of Repre-
sentatves on June /. 1900. In favor of that
amendment there were 154 votes. of which all
but four were Republicans; against 1t were 132
votes, and all but two of these were Demo-