The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-09-21

stances the effort to bring the new ten
denotes to a standstill is always futile,
and generally mischievous: but 1t Is posi-
bic somewhat TO develop them Alright. Law
can, 10 a degree, guide, protect and con-
troll industrial development, but II can
never cause II. or play more than a sub
ordinate part in its healthy Development
unfortunately, IL Is easy enough, by pad
laws, to bring 1t to an almost complete
stop.
1.-The homely smile of what can be done
with a great river is far from inaccurate.
The lower Mississippi fertilizes a great
country, and also at times ravages II by
floods. To attempt to dam it in order TO
stop these floods would be futile, and even
If not futile, would be harmful. But 1t is
levees by which these floods shall be large
ly controlled. The levees take time and
trouble to make, and to keep in order. and
chief. Yet they do accomplish much good
and they offer the only method of accom-
plishing any good. The only way in which
the current is by thoroughly examining
into the facts in the first place, and in the
second place by proceeding In a spirit or
combined sanity and resolutions; avoiding
all things, every form of hysteria, panic
and blind rage, and not expecting the Inn
possible either in time or achievement. In
cidentally, IL is also necessary to beware
of the type of excellent person who insists
that floods do good and not harm, and that
In any event the effort TO control them will
doubtless somehow interfere with the
NdlcI supply anu udmdSe luc NllSSlSsippl
river.
EVOLUTION, NOT REVOLUTION.
I'm dealing with the big corporations we
intend to proceed not by revolution, but
by evolution. We wish to face the facts,
declining to have our vision blinded, either
by the folly of those who say there are
no evils, or by the more dangerous folly
Of those who either see, or make believe
| that they 600 pOfbipo. huf evil IN oil tha
existing system, and who, if given their
way. would destroy the evil by the simple
process of bringing ruin and disaster to
the entire country. The evils attendant
upon our capitalization alone are, in my
Judgment. sufficient to warrant a far closer
supervision and control than now exists
over the great corporations.
Wherever a substantial monopoly can
De SHOWN 10 exist we should certainly try
10 our utmost to develop an expedient or
device by which it can be controlled.
Douotless some of the evils existing, or
be cured by any legislation which has yet
been proposed, and doubtless others which
nave really been incident to the sudden
development in the formation of corpora
tons of all kinds. will in the end cure
themselves. But others will remain that
can be cured If we only set about curing
vent the possibility of curing any of the
evils Is TO approach the subject in a spirit
or violent .rancor, complicated with total
ignorance of business conditions, and Of
fundamental incapacity or unwiningness
10 understand the limitations on the power
OF all law-making bodies.
n problem and least of all so difficult
a problem as this. can be solved If the
qualities brought by its solution are panic.
rear, envy, hatred and ignorance. And
there can exist in a free republic no man
more wicked, no man more dangerous to
the people than he who would arouse these
FEELINGS in the hope that they may re-
dound to his own political advantage. Cor
porations that are handled honestly and
fairly, SO far from being an evil, are a
natural busines evolution and make for
dhe general prosperity of our land. We
90 not wish TO destroy corporations. We
wish to make them subserve the public
A individuals, rich or poor, private or
corporate, must be subject to the law of
the land; and the government will hold
them TO a rigid obedience thereto. The
biggest corporation, like the humblest pri-
plance with the will of the people as ex-
pressed In the fundamental law. The rich
man VINO does not see that this is in his
interest Is indeed shortsighted. When we
mage him obey the law we insure for him
the absolute protection of the law.
THE SAVINGS BANKS.
"Ihe savings banks show what can be
done In the way of genuinely benefcent
work by large corporations when intelli-
gently administered and supervised. They
now hold over twenty-six hundred millions
OF the peoples money and pay annually
about one hundred millions of interest or
pront to their depositors. There is no talk
OF danger from these corporations; yet they
possess great power, holding over three
times the amount of our present national
debt, more than all the currency, gold, sill
yer, ~greenbacks, etc., in circulation in the
United States. The chief reason of their
being no talk of danger from them is that
tney are on the whole faithfully admins
tered for the benefit of all, under wise
laws, which require frequent and full pub
lication of their condition, and which pre-
scribe certain needful regulations with
which they have to comply, while at the
same time giving full scope for the business
enterprise or their managers within these
limits.
Now, of course. savings banks are as
nlgnIy specialized a class of corporations
as railroads. and we can not force too far
the analogy with other corporations; but
there are certain conditions which think
we can lay down as Indispensable 10 the
proper treatment of all corporations, which,
from their size, have become important fac
tors In the social development of the COM
munity.
Before speaking. however, of what can be
done by way or remedy, let me say a word
or two as to certain proposed remedies,
which, In my judgment, would be ~ineffect-
i've or miscellaneous. The first thing to re-
member is that If We are to accomplish any
good at all it must be by resolutely keen
ing in mind the intention to do away with
any evils in the conduct of big corporations
while steadfastly refusing to assent to in.
discriminate assault on all forms of corpor-
ate capital as such. The line of demarka-
ton We draw must always be on conduct
not on wealth; our objection to any given
corporation must be not that ii is big, but
that 1t behaves badly.
"Demagogic denunciation of wealth is
never wholesome and generally dangerous
and not a few of the proposed methods OF
curbing the trusts are dangerous chiefly be-
cause all insincere advocacy of the impossi.
bic Is dangerous. 1t is an unhealthy thins
for a community when the appeal is made
to follow a course which those who make
the appeal either do not, or ought to know
can not be followed, and which, if followed
would result in disaster to everybody.
Loose talk about destroying monopoly
out or hand, without a hint as to how the
monopoly should even be defined, offers &
case in point. Nor can we afford to toler
ate any proposal which will strike at tn,
so-called trusts only by striking at the gen
eral well-being. We are now enjoying a pc
Rod of great prosperity. This prosperity il
generally diffused through all sections anC
through all classes. Doubtless there ar,
some individuals who do not get enough o.
il, and there are others who get too much
But this is simply another way of sayin,
that the wisdom of mankind is finite: tina
even the best human system cannot worl
perfectly.
IF RADICALS HAVE THEIR WAY.
1.-The men who propose to get rid of tn,
evils of the trusts by measures which
would do away with this general well
being advocate a policy which would no
only be a damage to the community as