The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-01-02
uN.Nl .OpIua.

The proceedings begun by Attorney
General Beliinger against the Virginia
Carolina Chemical Company under the
antitrust law of the State are to be
welcomed, whether by those who believe
that this corporation is a harmful trust
or by those who hold it to be a leGiti-
mate and innocuous corporation II
reason that it Is desirable to have k.lowl-=
edge as soon as practicable Of the scope
Of our antitrust statute and of the legal
status of such great companies If the
Virginia Carolina Chemical Company, as
its officers and regents say, is not a trust
and is not harmful the sooner these facts
are established the better it will be for
the corporation. II its competitors or the
pubic are suffering from its operations
and those operations are in defiance of
a clear statute Of South Carolina, these
facts cannot be judicially declared too
soon for the public welfare. Let US
have g. fair trial of the issue and abide
its detern!nation.-Colurn Is. CO State.
There is one subject, perhaps, in which
the convention Is open to criticism, and
that Is the suffrage question; but we are
not so sure Of this. The discussions in
the Democratic caucus Of the convention
have had the effect of killing the under
standing clause and the grandfather
clause, greatly to the credit of the State.
If this matter had been hurried, the con-
vention would probably have adopted
both.-Staunton News.
The essential objection attaching to the
policy Of taxing personal property Is that
the most successful dodgers are those
persons who are best able to pay. The
shrewd capitalist can always find ways
and means to avoid the taxation OF
money and notes and even mortga ges,
while the persons who are more gulle-
less, and consequently more helpless, are
left to hold the bag.
If Assessor Nofsinger is successful IN
taxing mortgages this time it is safe to
say that there will be little doing in that
line next year. It will be easy enough
for Mr.. Brown to have the mortgages
which he holds made in the name OF
Mr. Smith. of Podunk, and then what
will the assessors do?
A land tax would remedy all of the in
EQUITIES and suEterfuges which are m
evitable in the taxation of personal prop
erty. Nobody can hide land and it can
be transferred to avoid taxation. 1t is
desirable to obtain all OF the revenue
which can be raised On different classes
of property, but there is no way to head
off the dodgers under the present sys-
tenn. All men ought to be honest and
truthful, but as long as they are not SO.
there will always be a temptation even
for people who would enjoy rdgn OF
universal righteousness to find a way not
to pay any more taxes than the other
feIlows-kansas City Star.
The plain story told by President Hill
of the railroads involved in the recent
scrimmage in Wall Street that came
pretty near to wrecking that neighbor-
hood, shows that the Great Northern,
the Northern Pacific, the Burlington and
the Union Pacific have not .'consolidat-
ed or visibly combined, and that the
fact that certain people owning STOCKS
in one or more of these roads, have been
eagerly buying stocks in one or more OF
the others Is no proof OF an unla"tui
consolidation OF competing lines. Kali
road managers have to know the law
governing them and are not apt to make
any legal blunders in the management.
Governor Van SAINT has evidently been
a little too previous. The Colporalioi
formed to protect the securities OF these
roads has nothing whatever to 90 Win
the management of the same so lar as
legal authority over them is concerned.
II it has an influence 1T IS only as an
outside adviser OF persuader. and Win
such influences no law can be framed
will, sufficient ingenuity to interfere
The best thing for Governors and Leg
;sla tures to do under these circumstances
is to wait until something is done IN the
management of one or more roads WITHIN
their jurisdiction that manifestly hurts
the people Then they have solnethlhs
tangible to fight and ample power under
the state constitutions to defend the
rights and privileges of the people. Ihere
is no profit in fitting against w1ndniils
or shadows of any kind.-Nebraska Stats
Journal.
PERSONAL AND CRITICAL