The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-08-28
TRUST QUESTION
ABLE DIcUssIoN BY BAR AS
 ISOLATION COMMITTEE.
Time Has Arrived When They Should Be Curbed, It Is Declared Several Remedies are
 Presented.

Hot Springs, Va, Aug. N.-The report of the Committee on Legal Education of the National Bar Association was pre- scented by Joseph H. Beale of Massa- chusetts. Walter s. Logan of New York, made a verbal report from the Commit tee on Commercial Law. He commended the national bankrupt law and then dis cussed the trust question. If combina- tions continue, competition will cease. and commercial jurisprudence will even tually be entirely changed. The commit tee. he said, had reached the unanimous conclusion that modern industrial combi- nations should be stayed.
 Hon. Charles F., Minderson of Nebras- ka, said the report was calculated to render the Association asunder and he resented the attempt to turn the body into a political hustings. He asked that the report be read. There was opposition to. the motion and considerable confusion ensued. The convention agreed to hear the report at once. It was read by Chair man Logan and was very fully discussed.
 The report, after recounting the rise of the trusts, asserts that the United States has already progressed more than half way toward the monopoly which will control all industries, and continuing, the report says: G
 "A monopoly is economically desirable; 1t is for the monopolists. The United States Steel Corporation can produce, no matter what it sells them, for its goods cheaper than the elements out of which the combination is composed, ever pro- duced them. The Standard oil Company is economically holy, for it pays 40 per cent. dividends The Sugar Trust is eco- nomically correct for whereas the indi- vidual sugar refners lost money on small capitalization, the sugar trust pays big dividends on large capitalization. The railroad combinations are economically Impregnable for they pay. We cannot. therefore, rely on natural forces, on the laws of supply and demand to limit the growth of modern combinations. If they are undesirable, if the people of the American nation would be better off with out them, or limitations put on them, they must put those limitations on by the action of their legislatures, their Con- gress and their courts. The American bar must act and the American Bar As sociation must take the lead"
 The report proposed the following rem edies:
 "First-We can tax them to death, or. If that Is too radical a remedy, we can tax them until their growth and en- largement Is impeded. There are con- stitutional provisions requiring direct tax ation to be uniform, and in view of these provisions 1t Is probably impossible to
 
 ation against corporations holding large amounts of taxable property. There is, however, a franchise tax imposed by most of the States on corporations at the time of their incorporation and annually | thereafter This franchise tax Is in al- most all States in some way graded so as to tax the small corporation at a higher rate than subsequent millions. In our judgment the gradation should be continued, but it should be a grading up instead of down. We would leave, per haps, the first hundred thousand free and the first million cheap and raise the rate with each succeeding million. The United | States Steel Corporation has a capitaliza- tion of over $1,000, ,OOO.0OO. The gradation stages might be slow and easy enough to please the most conservative, and yet re- suit in a taxation of 10 per cent. on the last hundred million. How long would | the United States Steel Corporation con- tinue under that system of taxation?
 "Second-We can compel them to rem l der better and cheaper service. If the combination of the Northern Pacific and Great Northern Railroads is a great | enough public disaster to have warrant ed the attention which 1t has attracted | 1t could have been prevented much easier | than by a hundred Sherman antitrust laws by a single United States statute | that required any corporation engaged in l interstate commerce to reduce it's rates 5C | per cent. to and from every point where competition has been prevented by com | bination.
 "Third-If necessary the State itself can enter the industrial field as a producer
 and restore the force of competition tc
 its former supremacy by becoming itself a competitor of the great trusts"
 The report is signed by all the mem bers of the committee, consisting of Wal
 ter s. Logan, Henry Budd, Gardiner Lathrop, George Whitlock and John Nor
 ris Jr.
 There was much applause when Judge
 Logan concluded the reading of the re- | port. Judge Ketcham of Indiana, re-
 plested that Judge Hammond of Geor- | gia, be asked to speak.
 | A resolution was offered by MT. Busby
 of North Carolina, providing that the | report be received and filed, accompanied | by a note that it did not express the | views of the Association.
 Judge Hamond spoke briefly. endorsing
 the report.
 Don't forget minstrel show tonight fol