The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1902-12-11
THE PRESIDENTS MESSAGE.
AWHAT HE THINKS CON-
GRESS OUGHT TO DO.
Regulate the sts--Let the
Tariff Alone and Provide Re-
ciprocity With Cuba.

Tariff Alone and Provide Re-
ciprocity With Cuba.
The most important features of
President Rooscvelt's annual message
arc contained in the following ex-
tracts:
In my message to the present Con-
gress at It's first session l discussed at
length the question of the regulation
of those big corporations commonly
doing an Interstate business, often
with some tendency to monopoly,
which arc popularly known as trusts.
The experience of Tho past year has
emphasized, in my opinion, the deslra-
bility of the steps l then proposed. a
fundamental requisite of social eff.
cheney is n high standard of individual
energy and excellence; but this is In
no wise inconsistent with power to act
in combination for aims which cannot
so we'll be achieved by the individual
acting alone. A fundamental base of
civilization ls the lnviolability of prop
erty; but this is in no wise inconsis-
tent with the right of society to reg
ulate the exercise of the artificial
powers which it confers upon the
owners Of property, under the name OF
corporate franchises, in such way as
to prev ent the misuse of these powers.
Corporations, and especially comblna-
tirns of corporations, should be manag-
ed under public regulation. Ex-
periencc has shown that under our
system Of government the necessary
supervision cannot be obtained by State
action. 1t must, therefore, be achicv-
e,l by national action. Our aim is not
to do away with corporations; on the
contrary, these big aggregations are an
inevitable development of modern in
dustriallsm, and the effort to destroy
them would be futile unless accom-
plished in ways that would work the
utmost mischief to the entire body
polite. We can do nothing of good in
the way of regulating and supervising
these corporations until we fix clearly
in our minds that we are not attacking
The colE9rations, but endcavoring to
do away with any evil in them. We
arc not hostile to them; we are merely
determined that they shall be 50
handled as to subsrrve 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 ls we'll
doer, not wrong-doer, provided only
he works in proper and legitimate
lines. We wish to favor such a man
when he does we'll. We wish to
supervise and control his actions only
to prevent him from doing Ill. Publ
city can do no harm to the honest CO.
poratlon; and we need not be over
tender about sparing the dishonest COR
poration.
In curbing and regulating the COM
binations of capital which arc or may
become injurious to the public we
must be careful not to stop the great
enterprises which have legitimately re-
duced the cost of production, not to
abandon the place which our country
has won in the leadership Of the intel.
national industrial world, not to strike
down wealth with the result of closing
factories and MINES, of turning the
wage-workcr idle in the streets and
leaving the farmer without market
for what he grows. Insistence upon
the impossible means delay in achiev-
mg the possible, exactly as, on the
other hand, the stubborn defence alike
Of what is good and what is bad in the
existing system, the resolute effort to
obstruct any attempt at betterment,
betrays blindness to the historic truth
that wise evolution is the sure safe
guard against revolution.
MORE GENERALIZATION.
No more important subject can come
before the Congress than this of the
regulation of Interstate business.
This country cannot afford to ait supine
ON the plea tEat under our peculiar
system of government we are helpless
in the presence of new conditions, and
unable to grapple with them or to cut
out whatever of evil has arisen in con"
ncction with them. The power of the
Congress to regulate Interstate COM
merce is an absolute and unqualified
grant, aud without limitations other
than those prescribed by the Constitu-
tion. The Congress has constitutional
authority to make all laws necessary
and proper for executing this power,
and I am satisfied that this power has
not been exhausted by eny legislation
now on the statute books. 1t is evil
dent, therefore, that evils restrictive
of commercial freedom and entailing
restraint upon national commerce fall
within the regulative power of the
Congress, and that wise and reason
able law would be q. necessary and
proper exercise of Congresslonal au.
thority to the end that such evils should
be eradlcated.
1 believe that monopolies, unjust
determinations, which prevent OF
cripple competition, fraudulent over
capitalization, and other evils in trust
organizations and practices which in.
juriously affect Interstate trade can
be prevented under the power of the
Congress to "regulate commerce with
foreign nations and among the several
States" through regulations and re-
quirements operating directly upor
such commerce the instrumentalitiei
thereon, and thoSe Engaged therein.