The Chanute times. [volume] (Chanute, Kan.) 1897-1913, 1904-12-09

sage the full report Of the investigation
| of the bureau of labor into the Colorado
mining strike, as this is a strike in which
certain very evil forces, which are more
or less at work everywhere under the
conditions OF modern industrialism, be-
came startlngly prominent.
Corporations.
When we come to deal with great cor
| poration the need for the government to
act directly is far greater than in the
case of labor because great corporations
can become such only by engaging in in
terstate commerce. and interstate COM
merce is peculiarly the field Of the gen.
eral government 1t is an absurdity to ex-
| pect to eliminate the abuses in great cor
| porations by state action. 1t is difficult to
| be patient with an argument that such
matters should be left to the states, be-
cause more than one state pursues the
| policy of creating on easy terms corpora
| lions which are never operated within
that state at all, but in other states
whose laws they ignore. The national
| government alone can deal adequately
with these great corporations. To try to
| deal with them in an incorporate. de-
structive, or demagogic spirit would, in
all probability, mean that nothing what
ever would be accomplished, and, with
absolute certainty, that if anything were
accomplished it would be of harmful
nature. The American people need to
| continue to show the very qualities that
they have shown-that is, moderation,
| good sense, the earnest desire to avoid
doing any damage, and yet the quiet de-
| termination to proceed, step by step,
without halt and without hurry. in elm
| mating or at least in minimizing what
ever of mischief or Of evil there is to in
terstate commerce in the conduct OF
great corporations. They are acting in
no spirit of hostility to wealth, either in
dividual or corporate. They are not
against the rich man any more than
against the poor man. On the contrary
they are friendly alike toward rich man
and toward poor man, provided only that
each acts in a spirit Of justice and de-
cency toward his fellows. Great corpora
tons are necessary, and only men OF
great and singular mental power can
| manage such corporations successfully
and such man must have great rewards
But these corporations should be man
| aged with due regard to the interest OF
| the public as a whole. Where this can
be done under the present laws it must
| be done. Where these laws come short
| others should be enacted to supplement
| them.
| The bureau of corporations has made
careful preliminary investigation Of many
| important corporations. 1t will make a
special report on the beef industry.
Bureau Of Corporations.
The policy of the bureau is to accom-
| plish the purposes of its creation by CO.
| operation, not antagonism; by making
| constructive legislation, not destructive
prosecution, the immediate object of its
| inquiries; by conservative investigation
| of law and fact, and by refusal to issue
! incomplete and hence necessarily inaccu-
| rate reports. Its policy being thus one
of open inquiry into, and not attack up
on, business, the bureau has been able to
gain not only the confidence, but, better
still, the cooperation OF men engaged In
legitimate business
The bureau offers to the Congress the
means of getting at the cost Of produc-
ton of our various great staples Of COM
| merce.
Rebates.
Above all else, we must strive to keep
the highways of commerce open to all
on equal terms; and to do this 1t Is nee
essary to put a complete stop to all re-
| bates. Whether the shipper or the rail-
road is to blame makes no difference; the
rebate must be stopped the abuses of
the private car and private terminal
track and side track systems must be
stopped, and the legislation OF the Fifty
eighth Congress which declares it to be
unlawful for any person or corporation to
offer, grant, give, solicit, accept, or re-
ceive any rebate concession, or discrim-
nation in respect Of the transportation Of
any property in interstate or foreign
commerce whereby such property shall
| by any device whatever be transported
| at a less rate than that named in the
| tariffs published by the carrier must be
| enforced. While am of the opinion that
! at present it would be undesirable, If 1t
| were not impracticable, finally to clothe
| the Interstate Commerce Commission
with general authority to fix railroad
rates, do not believe that, as fair Sc
curity to shippers, the Commission should
| be vested with the power, where given
rate has been challenged and after full
hearing found to be unreasonable, to de-
| eide. subject to judicial review, what
| shall be a reasonable rate to take its
place; the ruling of the commission to
| take effect Immediately, and to obtain
unless and until it is reversed by the
court OF review. In my judgment the
most important legislative act now need
ed as regards the regulation Of corpora
| lions is this act to confer on the Inter-
state Commerce Commission the power
to revise rates and regulations, the re-
vised rate to at once go into effect, and
to stay in effect unless and until the
| court Of review reverses it.
Much space is here devoted to a
consideration of the problem of the
proper housing of the poor in our
great cities, and the importance of a
proper solution of the question shown.
On this subject the message says:
There should be severe child-labor and
| factory inspection laws. 1t is very desir-
able that married women should not york
| in factories. The prime duty of the man
is to work, to be the breadwinner; the
prime duty Of the woman is to be the
mother, the housewife. All questions Of
tariff and finance sink into utter insig-
nificance when compared with the ire
mendous, the vital Importance Of trying
to shape conditions so that these two
duties Of the man and Of the woman can
be fulfilled under reasonably favorable
circumstances. II a race does not have
plenty Of children, or II the children do
not grow up. or II when they grow up
they are unhealthy in body and stunted
or vicious in mind, then that race is de-
cadent, and no heaping up Of wealth. no
splendor Of momentary material prosper
ity, can avail in any degree as offsets.
Agriculture.
The Department of Agriculture has
grown into an educational institution
with a faculty Of two thousand special
lists making research into all the sciences