The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-11-10

STATE STRIFE FOR REVENUE
Review of some of the Legisla tive
Inducements offered to Corpor-
ations by Careless Com
monweaIths
ROOSEVELT ACT COMMENDED

CHICAGO, Nov 9-At the banquet Of
the Merchants club of this city, held this
evening, the chief speaker was James B.
Dill, of New York, who spoke on TRUSTS,
Their Uses and Abuses" Mr.. Dill
described a trust as dominant COM
bmation of money, property, business or
commercial power or energy" He said
in part:
If the charter of every prominent COM
kination of capital or dominant company
expressed the real intent of the or
ganiZation it would state as the purpose
of the company to dominate in the man
ufacturing, to dominate in the transporta-
ton and what is quite as important to
dominate in the market of the product.
1t Is not the combination in itself which
is vicious, but it is the methods employed
by some corporations in the attempt to
dominate which create the tendencies
that are dangerous
Mr.. Dill divided into two classes the
dangers of the trust movement:
First, dangers to the combinations, and
secondly, dangers from the combination
to the public. Speaking Of the dangers to
the corporations, he said:
"A menace both to the combination and
to the people is found in the competitive
strife among states for revenue from
corporations. Legislative inducements by
way of private and public statutes to
corporate organizations are the order of
the day. Protection for domestic cor
porations; war upon foreign corporations
is the legislative theory of many states.
Dangerous Statutes.
Today we find states giving express
permission to their own corporations TO
do in other states what such corporations
are expressly prohibited from doing at
home. The present tendency in some
states in state legislation respecting in
dustrial corporations Is to encourage and
increase state revenue rather than
towards soundness and integrity of legis-
lation.
For years the state of New Jersey
stood pre-eminent among the charter
granting states, until from the revenue
derived from corporations she practically
abolished the necessity for state taxes.
At the beginning of this month the state
of New Jersey had in it's treasury over
100000 as a surplus. In 1901, the state of
New York gave way to the contrast be-
tween the state of its treasury and that
OF New Jersey, and proceeded to out
jersey New Jersey in so-called liberty to
corporations. Maine and North Carolina
followed New York and Connecticut.
Delaware and West Virginia adopted
every provision which could be suggested
to make these states successful charter
granting states, and finally South Dakota
comes forward with a proposition that it
will grant to a corporation everything
that it will ask and for consideration so
minute as to be hardly worthy Of men
ton.
This tendency is not toward wisdom of
legislation, but toward absence of restrlc-
ton, to the granting of powers rather
than to the maintenance of proper con-
troll"
Mr.. Dill suggested that the Roosevelt
act of 1900 in New York was now a mat
ter of interest, as indicative of the
features of national corporation act.
which might be acceptable in Washing
ton.