The daily morning journal and courier., 1901-12-04


 the way of governmental regulation, c
 taxation, can only be determined afte
 publicity has been obtained, by proces
 of law, and in the course of administra
 tion. The first requisite is knowledge full and omplete--knowledg whic
 may be made public to the world.
 Artificial bodies, such as corporation
 and joint stock or other associations
 depending upon any statutory law fo
 their existence or privileges, should b
 subject to proper governmental super | vision, aud full and accurate informa
 tion as to their operations should b
 made public regularly at reasonable in 1 tervals
 The large corporations, commonl.
 called trusts, though organized in on
 State, always do business ill man.
 States, often doing very little business 1 in the State where they are incorporat
 ed. There is utter lack of uniformity il | the State laws about them; and as nt 1 State has any exclusive interest In ol 1 power over their acts. it has In prac
 tice proved impossible to get adequatt tt
 regulation through State action. There | fore, in the interest of the whole people | the Nation should, without interfering with the power of the States in the matter itself, also assume power o1 supervision and regulation over all cor porations doing an interstate business This is especially true where the cor
 poration derives portion of It's wealth from the existence of some monopolis- tic element or tendency in it's business There would be no hardship in such su- pervision; banks are subject to it, and in their case it is now accepted as a simple matter of course Indeed, it is probable that supervision of corpora tions by that supervision of corpora not go far as is now the case with the supervision exercised over them by So conservative a State as Massachusetts, in order to produce excellent results.
 When the Constitution was adopted, at the end of the eighteenth century, no human wisdom could foretell the sweep ing changes, alike in industrial and po- litical conditions, which were to take place by the beginning of the twentieth century. At that time 1t was accepted as a matter of course that the several States were the proper authorities to regulate, so far as was then necessary, the comparatively insignificant and strictly localized corporate bodies of the day. The conditions are now who'll ly different and wholly different action is called for. l believe that a law can be framed which will enable the Ma tional Government to exercise control along the lines above indicated; profit ing by the experience gained through the passage and administration of the Interstate Commerce Act. If, how ever, the judgment of the Congress is that it lacks the constitutional power to pass such an act, then a constitu tional amendment should be submitted to confer the power.
 There should be created Cabinet of ticer, to be known as Secretary of Con- merce and Industries, as provided in the bill introduced at the last session of the Congress. It should be his prov ince to deal with commerce in it's broad est sense; including among many other things whatever concerns labor and all matters affecting the great business corporations and our merchant marine.
 The course proposed is one phase of what should be a comprehensive and scheme of constructive statesmanship for the purpose of broad ening our markets, securing our busi- ness interests on a safe basis, and mak- ing firm our new position in the inter- national industrial world: while scru- pulously safeguarding the rights of wage worker and capitalist, of investor and private citizen, so as to secure equity as between man and man in this Republic.
 The Welfare of tho Wage Workers.
 With the sole exception of the farm ing interest, no one matter Is of such vital moment to our whole people as the welfare of the wage-worker. If the farmer and the wage-worker are we'll off, it is absolutely certain that all oth- CTS will be well off too. It is therefore matter for hearty congratulation that on the whole wages are higher to-day in the United States than ever before in our history, and far higher than in any other country. The standard of living is also higher than ever before. Every effort of legislator and administrator should be bent to secure the permanent ,y of this condition of things and it's wherever possible Not ,nly must our labor be protected by the | tariff, but 1t should also be protected | 30 far as it is possible from the presence n this country of any laborers brought | ,ver by contract, or of those who, com ng freely, yet represent a standard of | lying so depressed that they can un- lersell our men in the labor market and lrag them to a lower level I regard it | IS necessary. with this end in view, to 'e-enact immediately the law excluding Chinese laborers and to strengthen it wherever necessary in order to make it's entirely effective.
 The National Government should de- nand the highest qualtyof service from ts employees: and in return it should ,e good employer. If possible legisla- ion should be passed, in connection with the Interstate Commerce Law, which will render effective the efforts of lifferent States to do away with the of convict contract labor in he open labor market. So far as prac- icable under the conditions of Govern nent work provision should be made to ender the enforcement of the eight our law easy and certain In all in ustres carried on directly or indirectly ar the United States Government wo- non and children should be protected