BoletiÌn mercantil de Puerto Rico. (San Juan, P.R.) 18??-1918, 1902-09-08
SAtIJUAN, SEPTEMBER8 8
The President On Trusts.

The President On Trusts.
President Roosevslt's views about the
regulation of trusts, expressed with OBJ
vious care and with impressive mod
Grafton and dignity in his speech at
Providence some Gweeks ago, are me
rely an amplifcation of what he said
in his first message to congress and
subsequently, in many speeches.
There is nothing more radical, nothing
really new in them. He IS as thor.
oughly conservative in his ideas and
proposals now as he was then. If there
has been any change whatever 1t is IN
the direction of conservatism. In fact
his speech is a model of fair-minded-
nesj, justifying prediction which was
made a short time ago-hat the Will
be recognized presently as tue most
genuinely conservative leader OF his
party.
And it was as leader that he spoke
New England. From time to time
there are heard outbursts OF i'm
patience because Roosevelt will go
his own way" will mot abide by the
advice of his friends" That is true; he
has always, in matters Of large mo-
ment gone his own way when the time
for action has come. He is going his
own way now in regard to the question
of trusts, and in going it he IS doing his
party a service Of incalcllable value,
for he is showing the country that as
a party it cannot be muzzled on this
question, that while it will not be
goaded into an unjust and disastrous
assault by the antitrust cry OF the
masses, it will not consent to give
that cry force by refusing to take any
action whatever in regard to them.
What could be more of lnisnomer
than calling a policy Of silence, of don't
meddIe with VS." toward the trust, con-
servatismi If there we're a sure policy
Of destruction, both for the trusts and
for the Republican party, that would be
it.
What President Roosevelt says is as
far removed from the antitrust rant OF
the obstructionists as truth is from
error.
- There is no taint of the dernagogue in
it from teginning to end No dema-
gogue would, for example, permit him
self to say that the very great increase
in large private, and especially IN large
corporate, fortunes is an inevitable re-
suit of the working of various causes,
prominent among which has been the
immense importance steam and cleo
tricity have assumed in modern life !;
and surely no demagogu from the be-
I ginning OF politics to the day of power
would ALLOW the following passage to
issue from his lips:
!" 1t is not true that the poor have
Igrown poorer. bat some OF the rich
have gro yn SO very much richer, that
where multitudes of men are herded
together in :. limited space the contract
strikes the onlooker as more Violent
than formerly. On the whole, our
people earn more and live better than
ever before, and the progress Of which
we are SO proud could not have taken
place had 1t not been for the great up
building Of industrial ceutres such as
our commercial aud manu- acturing ci-
ties.
Imagine the noble rage of Bryan, as
it will roar through the columns of the
nexs issue of the "Co.nmouer," over
such passages as the following:
But We have right to ask in eaca|
case that they shall do good and not
harm. Exactly as labor organizations
when managed intelligently and in a
spirit Of justice and fair play, are of
very great service not only to the wage
workers, but to the whole community
Gas the history of many labor organi-
cations has conclusively shown J, sol
wealth, not entirely Indispensable, but
corporate, when used Alright is not ms
rely a benefit tC the community as a
whole but indispensable to the upbuild-
ing of the country, under the coldit-
ions. which at piesent the country hss
grown not only to accept, but 10 de-
mand os n orfnal.
A great fortune, if not used Alright
makes its possessor in peculiar sense
ne lace to the community as a whole.
jus. as a great intellect does if it is
una ecompanied by developed conscien
ce, by character. But obviously this mol
more affords grounds for condemning
wealth ii does for condemning INTEL /
cu. 1VSIJ llldn 81 poWtI i)y Tic NS{I
fact of that pawer Is capable of doing
damage TO his neighbors, but we can.
not afford 10 discourage the develop
ment Of each merely because ii is pos
sible they may use their power to
wrong ends
If We did SO we should leave Our his
tory a blank for we should have sno
great sta csnen, soldiers or merchants,
no great men of arts. OF letters; or Of
science. Doubtless oa the average the
most ussfui man 10 bis feliow citizens
is apt to be he to whom has been Qfre11