The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1902-08-26
TAKES UP TRUST QUESTION
President Addresses Big Gath
ering at Boston.
PUBLICITY MOST IMPORTANT

Advocates Governmental Supervision
Of All Big rporations-Presiden.
tiaI Party Starts fer Tour Of Maine.
Makes Speech at Lynn.
Boston, Aug. 26.-The weeks work
for President Roosevelt in his trip
through New England began in earn.
est yesterday afternoon. when he de-
parted from the summer home of the
junior senator Of Massachusetts,
Henry Cabot Lodge, at Nahant, and
amid the enthusiasm of the greatest
number of people he has faced since
the Pittsburg visit on July 4, rode into
Lynn under cavalry escort and spoke
from a platform at the city hail. Then
he was taken to Boston by special
train and on arrival went to Symphony
hall. there addressing great gather
Ing of Boston business men. His
speech here was devoted almost en-
tlrely to consideration of the trust
! question.
The president said in part: when
this government was founded there
were no great individual or corporate
fortunes. Everything has been revolu-
tionized in the business world since
and the progress of civilization, from
being trickle, has become a torrent.
There was no particular thing at that
time to bother as to whether the ma
tion or state had control of the cor
porations. They were easy to con-
troll. Now, however, the exact reverse
is the case, and remember say cor
porations.' do not merely say trusts,
merely combinations or corporations
under certain peculiar conditions. For
instance, some time ago the attorney
general took action against a certain
trust. There has been considerable
discussion as to whether the trust
aimed at would not seek to get out
from under the law by becoming
single corporation. want laws to en-
able us to deal with it, no matter
what shape it takes. want to see
the government able to get at it def
nitely. SO that the action of the gov
ernment cannot be evaded by any
turning within or without federal or
| state statutes At present we really
have no efficient control over a big
corporation which does business in
more than one state. What l hope to
see is power given to the national
legislature which shall make the con-
troll real.
State Action Proves Useless.
Nothing has been done in the d.
rection Of intelligent dealing by the
| states as collective body with these
| great corporations. Here in Massa-
chusetts you have what regard as,
on the whole, excellent corporation
laws. | think that most of our diff
culties would be in fair way of solu-
tion if we had the power to put on the
national statute books laws for the
nation much like you have here, on
the subject of corporations, in Massa-
chusetts. So you can see, gentlemen,
! am not advocating anything very
revolutionary. l am advocating action
| to prevent anything revolutionary
| Now. if we can get adequate control
| by the nation of these corporations,
| then we can pass legislation which
| will give us the power of regulation
and supervision over them. If the
nation had that power, mind you,
| should advocate as strenuously as
knew how that that power should be
exercised with extreme caution and
self-restraint. No good will come from
| plunging in without having looked
carefully ahead.
| Publicity the First Step.
| "Fhe first thing we want is pub
l1c1ty, and l do not mean publicity as
a favor by some corporations. | mean
1t as right from all corporations af-
fected by the law. l want publicity as
to the essential facts in which the pub
lie has an interest. want the knowl-
| edge given to the accredited repre-
sentatives of the people of facts on
which those representatives can, if
they see fit base their actions later
The publicity itself would cure many
evils. Some of these things I have
said can be done now. A good deal
is being done now. AS far as the anti
trust laws go they will be enforced
No suit will be undertaken for the
sake of seeming TO undertake it,
Every suit that is undertaken will be
| begun because the great lawyer and
upright man whom we are so fortu-
nate to have as attorney general, Mr.
Knox, believes that there is a viola
tion of the law which we can get at
and when the suit is undertaken it
won't be compromised excepting on
the basis that the government wins"
| From the hall the president went
to Hotel Touraine, where a little later
in the evening he was the guest Of
Governor Crane at dinner.
This morning bright and early the
presidential party started for Maine.
,A,;e ,, .