The Holly chieftain., 1902-12-05
THE PRESIDENTS MESSAGE,

y UhOOAO1 q
sesiea. II assse thsrsssrs - aehtsvss
DO svsy with esrpsrstieasi On ts,c cen.
tsery, fhsss big asgrsaatione are an In.
evitabie development of modern jWdus.
trialisn. and the effort to destroy
them would BE- fvtils unlsss accom-.
ri,shed 10 ways thst would work ths
petite.
We can do nothing Of good in the
way OF regulating and superviainR
these corporations until We M clearly
IN our minds that We are not attacking
the corporations. but endeavorinG to
do away with any evil in them. We
are not hostile to them: we are merely
determined that they shall be 10 ham
dsed as to suhserve the public good.
We draw the line against misconduct,
not against wealth The capitalist
who. alone or In conjunction with his
fellows. performs some great Industrial
feat by which he wins money 10
welldoer, not q wrongdoer, provided
only he works in proper and legitimate
lines We wish to favor such man
when he does well. We wish to SUI
pervise and control his actions only to
prevent him from doing III. Publicity
can do no harm to the honest corpora
tion; and We need not be oveftender
about sparing the dishonest corpora
tion.
. In curbing and regulating the conn
biz atfons Of capital which are or may
become injurious to the public we must
be careful not to stop the great enter
prises which have legitimately re-
duced the cost OF production. not to
has won In the leadership OF the in
ternational industrial world. not to
strike down wealth with the result Of
closing factories and mines. of turn
Ing the wage worker idle In the streets
and leaving the farmer without a mar
ket for what he grows. Insistence upon
tho impossible means delay in achiey-
Ing the possible, exactly as, on the
other hand, the stubborn defense alike
of what Is good and what Is bad in
the existing system, the resolute ef-
fort to obstruct any attempt at better
ment, betrays blindness to the historic
truth that wise evolution is the sure
safeguard against revolution.
INTERSTATE COMMERCE.
No more important subject can
come before the Congress than this of
the regulation OF Interstate business.
This country can not afford to sit
supine on the plea that under our Pc
culiar system of government we are
helpless in the presence of new condi-
tons, and unable to grapple with them
Or to cut out whatever. of evil has
arisen in connection with them.
The power Of Congress to regulate
interstate commerce q an absolute and
unqualified grant, and without iimita-
tons other than those prescribed by
the Constitution. The Congress has
constitutional authority to. make ell
irp this power. and J am satisfied that
this power has not been exhausted by
any legislation now on the statute
books. II ie evident thsrsfors, that
evils restrictive Of commercial frss-
sr. s -.s :ns."s Il. wn ss:" r..
uiativs power Of Congress, and that =
wiss and reasonable law would bs .
necessary and proper exercise Of con.
eressional authority to the end that
eueh evils should bs srad'oatsd.
TRUSTS AND TARIFF sEPARATE.
One proposition advocated has been
the reduction of the tariff as means
of reaching the evils .of the trusts
which fall within the category have
described. Not merely would this be
wholly ineffective, but the diversion Of
our efforts In such direction would
mean the abandonment Of all intelligent
attempt to do away with these evils.
Many of the largest corporations. many
of those which should certainly be In
cluded in any proper scheme OF regu-
lHI1On, WOuiO nOL De aHeCIcu IINs
slightest degree by a change in the
tariff, save AZ such change tnterfered
with the general prosperity of the
country. The only relation OF the tar
IN to big corporations as Il whole is
that the tariff makes manufactures
profitable, and the tariff rem-dy pro-
posed would be In effect simply 10 make
manufactures Improbable. To remove
the tariff as punitive measure di-
rected against trusts would inevitably
result in ruin to the weDker conIpeti-
tors who are struggling against them.
Our aim should be not by unwise tariff
changes to give foreign products the
advantage over domestic products, but
by proper regulation to give domestic
competition fair chance; and this
end cannot be reached by any tariff
changes which would affect unfavora-
bly, all domestic competitors. good and
bad alike. The question Of regulation
OF the trusts stands apart from the
question of tariff revision.
Stability OF enonomic policy must al
ways be the prime economic need of
this country. This stability should not
be fossilization. The country has
acquiesced IN the wisdom Of the pro-
tective tarin principle. It II exceed
ingiy undesirable that this system
should be destroyed or that there
should be violent and radical changes
therein. Our past experience shows
that great prosperity in this country
has always come under a protective
tariff: and that the country cannot