The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1902-12-05
PRESIDENTS MESSAGE.
70 the Senate and House of Representa-.

We still continue In a period of un-
bounded prosperity. This prosperity is
not. the creature of law. but undoubtedly
the laws under which we work have been
instrumental In creating the conditions
which made II possible, and by unwise leg
1slation II would be easy enough to destroy
It. There win undoubtedly be periods of
depression The wave will recede, but the
tide will advance. This nation Is seated
on a continent. fianked by two great
oceans. 1t Is composed OF men the de-
scendants OF pioneers or, In a sense. pio-
neers themseves-of men winnowed out
from among the nations Of the old world
by the energy, holiness and love OF ad-
venture found In their own eager hearts.
Such a nation so placed will surely wrest
success from fortune.
AS people we have played large part
In the world. and we are bent upon maxi
Ing our future even larger than the past.
In particular the events Of the last four
years have definitely decided that for woe
or Tor veal our place must be great among
the nations. We may either fail greatly
or succeed greatly, but we cannot avoid
the endeavor from which either great
failure or great success must come. Even
IL we would we cannot play a small part.
:. If we should try. all that would follow
would be that we should play large part
tgnobly and shamefully.
But our people. the sons OF the men OF
the civil war. the sons OF the men VINO
had iron in their blood, reJolSe IN are
present and face the future high OF heart
and resolute Of will. Ours IS not the
creed of the weakling and the coward;
ours, is the gospel OF w hope pc ana nnt Shrink
from the struggle before us. tneie a.
many problems for us to race at the oue
set Of the twentieth cen.u ay q bomeNbut
we know that we can solve theiii, aI a'o
solve them we'll, provided only that we
bring to the solution the quantles OF neau
and heart which were shown by the men
who in the days Of Washington founded
this government ana IN the oaSs u LII
No country has ever occupied higher
plane of material well being than ours at
the present moment: Ihig wen a Deing , Is
to the play of the economic forces In this
country for over a century; to our laws,
above all, to the high individual average
Of our citizenship. Great fortunes have
been by those wa9 hsys 1afen the
opment. and most OF these fortunes have
been won not by doing evil. but as an in
oo comm nj as whole. Never before has
material well being been SO widely diff
fused among our people. Great fortunes mes
aggregate these fortunes are small in
deed when compared to the wealth Of the
better off than they have ever been be-
fore The insurance companies. which
are practically mutual benefit societies
especially helpful to men of moderate
means-represent accumulations of capt.
tai which are among the largest In this
savings banks, more V owners ss'1 Of farms.
more well paid wageworkers in this coun-
try now than ever before in our history.
vored the growth of SO much that was
good they have also favored somewhat
nentiy necessary that we should endeavor
to cut out this evil. but let us keep due
sense of proportions; let US not In fixing
greater good. The evils are real, and
some OF them are menacing. but they are
tine h0t OF OF fhe OF of ou
gigantic industrial development. This in
dustrial development must not be checked.
sas Sy r Ssss % In
the evils. We should fail in our duty II
shall Sia succeed mSs only nj %s pre pro PATENT
ly, with practical common sense as well
as resolution. separating the good from
While endeavoring to get rid of the latter.
In my message to the present congress
at its first session / discussed at length
the question of the regulation OF those
big corporations commonly doing an in
terstate business, often with some tenden-
cy to monopoly. which are popularity
known as trusts. The experience or the
past year has emphasized. in my. opinion.
the desirability Of the steps l then pro-
posed. fundamental requisite Of social
efficiency is a high standard of individual
energy and excellence, but this Is in no
wise inconsistent with power to eact In
combination for aims which cannot SO
well be achieved by the individual acting
alone. fundamental base Of civilization
Is the inviolability of property; but this Is
in nowise inconsistent with the right or
society to regulate the exercise or the
artificial powers which 1t confers upon the
owners of property under the name or cor
porate franchises in such way as to
prevent the misuse of these powers. Cor
porations. and especially combinations or
corporations, should be managed under
public regulation. Experience has shown
that under our system OF government the
necessary supervision cannot be obtained
by state action. 1t must therefore be
achieved by national action; Our ann Is
not to do away with corporations. On the
contrary, these big aggregations are an
inevitable development OF modern INDUS
trialism and the effort to destroy them
would be futile unless accomplished In
ways that would work the utmost mis-
chief to the entire body polite. We can
do nothing of good In the way or regulat-
ing and supervising these corporations
until we fix 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 shail De
SO handled as to subserve the public good
We draw the line against misconduct, not
against wealth. The capitalist who. alone
or in conjunction with his fellows, per
forms some great Industrial teat py Whlch
\ he wins money is a welldoer, not wrong
doer provided only he works In proper
and legitimate lines We wish TO FAVOR
such a man when he does well. we WISH
20 supervise and control his actions only
to prevent him from doing Ill. Publicity
can do no harm to the honest corporation,
and we need not be overtender about
sparing the dishonest corporation.
In curbing and regulating the complna-
tions of capital which are or may become
Injurious to the public we must be care
full not to stop the great enterprises which
have legitmately reduced the cost OF pro-
duction, not to abandon the place Whlcn
our country has won in the leadership OF
the international Industrial world not 70
strike down wealth with the result OF
closing factories and mines, OF turning
the wageworker idle in the streets ana
leaving the farmer without a market Tor
what he grows Insistence upon the I'M
possible means delay in achieving the pos
sible exactly as, on the other hand, the
stubborn defense alike of what is good
and what is bad in the existing system,
the resolute effort to obstruct any at
tempt at betterment, betrays blindness 70
the historic truth that wise evolution Is
the sure safeguard against revolution.
No more important subject can come
before the congress than this Of the regu-
lation Of interstate business. This country
cannot afford to sit supine on the plea
that under our peculiar system or govern
ment we are helpless In the presence or
the new conditions and unable to Brappie
with them or 20 cut out whatever OF eNil
has arisen in connection with them. The
power OF the congress TO regulate inter-
aItHF. nd an