The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1903-04-04

MILWAUKEE,, Wis, April 3.-Pres-
ident Roosevelt was the guest of the
| Milwaukee Merchants and Manufac-
turers' association at a banquet at the
PlankintOn house tonight, the occasion
being the climax of the presidents ten
hour visit to Milwaukee. Covers were
| laid for $50 representative citizens. A
corps of skillful decorators had worked
out complete Transformation of the
banquet room. A thousand electric
| lights lent enchanting beauty to the
! room
The president sat in the center of a
| long table with other guests of honor.
At his immediate right sat United
States Senator Joseph V. Quarles, while
! E. A. Wadhams, president of the Mil
waukee Merchants and Manufacturers
association and POSTMASTER of the oc-
casion, was seated at his left. Extend
ing in opposite directions from the
presidents table were twelve other
tables at which the members of the as
sociation and their friends were seat
ed. After the banquet had been served,
Toastmaster Wadhams introduced
President Roosevelt, who responded to
the toast, "The President of the United
States" The president took this oc-
casion to give his views to the subject
of Trusts" He said:
Il think l speak for the great majority
of the American people when L say that
we are not in the least against wealth as
such whether individual or corporate:
that we merely desire to see any abuse of
corporate or combined wealth corrected
and remedied; that we do not desire the
abolition or destruction of big corpora
tiOns, but, on the contrary. recognize them
as being in many cases efficient economic
instruments, the results of an inevitable
process of economic evolution, and only
desire to see them regulated and con-
troled so far may be necessary to sub
serve the public good. We should be
false to the historic principles of our gov
eminent if we Disseminated, either by
legislation or administration. either for or
against a man because of either his
wealth or his poverty.
There is no proper place In our so
ciety either for the rich man who uses
the power conferred by his riches to en-
able him to oppreSS and wrong his neigh
bOrs, nor vet for the demagogic agi-
tator who, instead of attacking abuses as
all abuses should be attacked wherever
found, attacks property, attacks prosper
ity. attacks men of wealth, as such,
whether they be good or bad, attacks cor
porations whether they do well or i'll,
and seeks, in spirit Of ignorant rancor.
to overthrow the very foundations upon
which rest our national well-being.
Must Await Change of Environment.
1.-THE evil has been partly the inevitable
accompaniment of the social changes, and
where this is the case it can be cured
neither by law nor by the administration
of the law, the only remedy lying in the
slow change of character and of economic
environment. But for a portion of the
evil. at least. we think that remedies can
be found. We know we'll the danger of
false remedies. and we are against all
violent. radical, and unwise change. But
we believe that by proceeding slowly. yet
resolutely, with good sense and modera-
tlon. and also with a firm determination
not to be sWerved from our course either
by foolish clamor or by any base or sin
lister influence, we can accomplish much
for the betterment of conditions"
The president quoted from his speech
on this question made at the state fair
in Minnesota in 1901. He reviewed the
antitrust legislation of the last session of
congress and spoke of the new depart
said would accomplish substantial good
iH the way Of curbng trusts.
1T is clear that corporations created for
son with the ultimate power of the state
to take private property against the will
of the owner, hold their corporate powers
as carriers in trust for the fairly impar-
tial service of all the public Fayoritism
in the use of such powers. unjustIy en-
rfching some and unjustly impoverishing
others, discriminating in favor of some
places and against others, is palpably
Yiolative Of plain principles of justice
Such a practice unchecked is hurtful in
many ways. Congress, having had its
attention drawn to the matter. enacted
a most important anti-rebate law which
greatly strengthens the interstate COM
merce law"
What the Government Has Done.
The speaker reviewed the work of At
torney General Knox in the way of prose-
cutting the beef and other trusts and of
his proceedings against the Northern Sc I
curitieS company. He said these steps
toward solving the trust problem rep
resent sum of very substantial achieve
ment. They represent a successful effort
to devise and apply real remedies; an
effort which so far succeeded because it
was made not only with resolute purpose
and determination. but also in a spirit
OF common sense and justice, as far re-
moved as possible from rancor. hysteria
and unworthy demagogic appeal In the
same spirit the laws will continue to be
enforced. Not only is the legislation
recently enacted effective but in nv iudg-
ment it was impracticable to ATTEMPT
more. Nothing of value is to be expected
from ceaseless agitation for radical and
extreme legislation. The people NAV
wisely, and with confidence, await the
results Which are reasonably to be eX-
pected from the impartial enforcement of
the laws which have recently been placed
upon the statute books. Legislation of a
general and indiscriminate Character
would be sure to fail, either because it