The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-02-15
HEED ON MoNoPoLIEs.

Ex-Speaker Reed says, in an article in
the Philadelphia Saturday Evening POST
that we have no such things in these
modern times as real, hard-and-fast mon
opolies, unlimited by time There were
such things in former days, when lords
and barons were permitted to enrich
themselves at the expense of people
whose depth of poverty we can hardly
conceive Of But not even the divine
right of kings was powerful enough to
perpetuate those monopolies. They have
been relocated to oblivion, and human in
dustry thrift and intelligence now count
at their real value. "a real monopoly
without limit of time is thing not TO
be endured. and never has been endur-
ed" says Mr. Reed. There are, of course,
such qualified government monopolies as
the postal service, the mint, ETC.. and
other monopolles that are limited in time
under the patent laws; but to these no
body objects. The so-called monopolies
which are now receiving attention are
simply corporations, formed for the
transaction of business, and which seem
likely, in popular estimation, by reason
of their great size and large capitaliza-
ton to become a menace, first to the lib
erty of trade, and secondly to our per-
sonal liberties"
Human selhshness is universal. 1t is
upon this trait of human character, says
Mr. Reed that all attempts at monopoly
are founded The consumer continues to
demand more and still more for his mon
ey. He wants the prices of those things
which he must purchase brought lower
and lower There are times when prices
of commodities can be advanced, like the
present, but such times are not enduring.
I'm the long run nothing but wages in
crease; all other things go down" In or
DER to maintain a monopoly, therefore, it
would be absolutely necessary for one in
dividual or corporation to supply at
profit the whole market at all times with
any article at lower price than any
and all others If such monopoly is a
crime" he says, "then you must give up
your continued demand for lower and
lower prices" The idea of limiting the
amount Of profit which a corporation may
make is not tenable, unless it is proposed
that the public shall make up any de-
ficiency from the fixed percentage which
may occur. Mr. Reed clings to the now
pretty well understood theory that at
tempted monopolies carry their own
remedy that when they become too pow
erfu1 or too grasping opposition is bound
to arise and force them either out of the
field or back to small percentages of
profits Take the sugar company" he
tt,,ti .al, &c sz H.
ments seemed impregnable. Even against
that powerful combination rivals have
made such Roadway as has reduced the
price of u per cent. stock to ia, which
figures show what has already been
done, and the public estimate of what will
be done in the way of competition Even
capital of s75,OOOOOO is not relatively
great"
The whole of Mr.. Reeds article is upon
the theory of natural evolution in trade
as the cause of trusts. 1t is an interesting
article; it could hardly be otherwise, COM
ing from the pen of a man who for
number of years directed the legislation
for nation twenty-five hundred miles
square, and who thinks in millions. But
Mr. Reed fails to satisfy those who are
looking for concrete facts. He fails to
justify the system by which the Ameri-
can steel and wire trust was enabled
last year to take profits of about $1,000
900 on a capitalization of about $4,000 coo,
which, 1t is pretty safe to say, is at least
twice the value of the plants of the con-
Germ. He does not justify the turning out
of profitable employment of hundreds of
thousands of small dealers and travelling
statesmen through the consolidation Of in
terests, and the crushing of the weak;
nor does he point out how these persons
so deprived of their means of a. livelihood
are to earn money with which to pur-
chase the products of the trusts that
have crushed them. He does not justify
the entry of the trusts into politics, and
their payment into campaign funds of
large sums of money, in return for which
| tariff is the mother of trusts" said Mr..
| Havemeyer of the sugar company to
which Mr.. Reed referred. Mr.. Reed does
not deny this and assert that we should
have had as many trusts under free trade
or a revenue tariff. These and other
points the American people are thinking
about. For instance why it is that the
Standard Oil Company, paying as it does.
| enormous dividends, has no successful
| competition? If Mr.. Reeds theory is cor
rect that concern ought to have success
| full competitors.
|