The Lexington intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1901-1949, 1903-09-19
TnEORIES OF nae Bar.

ocuSe VI ludb July upOu buc ouoJOOe
OF trust restraint. The resolutions
go on to reclte that II there can be a
Northern Securities Company to hold
the stock Of two great lines Of rail-
road which ought to be competitive,
there is nothing TO prevent a United
States Securities Company designed
to form into a trust every railroad in
the country Three remedies, are
proposed, First, a state franchise
tax graduated from a trifng amount
to an enormous sum according to the
capital stock OF the concern incor-
porated' Second, compulsion by act
OF legislature Of cheaper service
whenever, by any combination com.
petition is prevented Third, gov
ernment competition with the trusts,
which is a kind Of socialism.
The first Of these remedies might
be depended on as a cure Of the
rather trifilng evils Of over-capitaliza-
tion. but it is hard to see that it
would affect trusts 10 any other way.
Banks, for instance, increase or de-
crease their capital stock at will.
The two largest financial concerns in
the world have each a capital stock
S100, O00,-a sum which would seem
trifing to a score of Lafayette county
farmers. The capital stock Of the
STANDARD OIL Company is a trlie In
comparison with that Of the steel
trust, though both the value Of the
property and the income Of the former
Is far in excess Of the latter. There
exists no particular reason why the
capital stock Of either Of them might
not be reduced to ten dollars, 1t
would be no more glazing absurdity
and no more provoking lniquity than
our present tariff system, which the
people do not seem to resent.
The second remedy is open to the
objection of being that kind Of special
Legislation in which the law. making
body must first sit as a court and
decide whether and to what extent
the object against which the pro.
posed Legislation is directed is nom
competitive. This kind Of legisla-
tion is usually about as effective as
the reciprocity tail to the Mckinley
tariff comet-about as ridiculous as
Roosevelt'S trust suggestions with the
"good trusts" and "bad trusts" dis
functions. Somebody must pass on
the question as to which are the good
trusts and which are the bad trusts,
which leaves the matter where 1t
was before.
The third remedy contains the
essential fallacy Of all socialistiC
theories ,-that Of assuming that a
stream can rise higher than its
source, that the morality of man
collectively is greater than it is
individually, that governments may
be just, though composed of people
who are unjust. Nearly all govern
mental theories go to wreck upon this
rock at last.
What is the use of spinning theories
about effective counterplays to ecopo-
mic evils so long as the people have
not virtue enough to rise, If need be,
in the mad wrath Of a mob and aveuge
the crime by which under cover of a
statutory law every man who buys a
dollars worth Of iron or steel is
robbed Of A cents, when the pro-
ducers of these articles according to
their own testimony could pay an
internal revenue tax Of 1870 per cent
and still sell steel at a profit in Liver
pool aud Manchester? What is the
use of theorizing about the evils
which may come some day from rail-
road mergers when the people accept
calmly the decision of congress that
the Missouri is not a navigable stream
and not entitled to appropriations,
while everybody knows that there are
"rivers" 10 New England no larger
than the Tabo or the Little Sni,
which are locked and damed and
dredged and confined with leviesf
Why should we put any faith in gov.
eminent competition with trusts and
believe that the managers Of the
governments business would be less
arrogant than the present trust mag.
mates, when we calmly suffer our little
president, whom the Kansas City Star.
Times teaches us to worship night
and morning, to abolish postofices tC
please his fancy? Before we worry