The Wichita daily eagle., 1904-01-28

the whole country had sold out theii
lands and goods TO a few men, loanins
back 10 these. with which to carry -.
their enterprises, the larger part CT the
purchase money. The shift due to the
sense of insecurity the people feel in the
ownership Of corporate property. as cor
porations, under existing state policies,
are now permitted to be organized"
The organization of some eff these was
described as being like charts in geology.
At the bottom said the speaker. is a
stratum OF bonds; next q stratum of
stocks; then more bonds; then preferred
stock; and at the end of ali common
stock; until ali reasonable expectation is
outran, mere hope being capitalized as if
it were common coin. Corporations like
these succeed only in successful times.
They are like the cigar one smokes; the
farthest end first falls into ashes; with
a little hardening Of time the ashes creep
down: and when the times are actually
hard the whole is ashes and scattered
to The winds. This is not true OF many,
perhaps a large majority Of incorporated
enterprises, but unhappily, it is true of 50
many conspicuous examples. that the
mere fact that an enterprise, otherwise
trustworthy. is incorporated, creates at
once suspicion and doubt"
when we recall he continued that
outside Of the country and city real es
tate. more than one-half of the property
of the country is now corporated prop
erty. the ultimate effect of the existing
state policies respecting the organiza .
- 20 oil
as-you-please policy, upon active proprie-
torship by the people at large is clearly
discernable Here, then, is the other pa
ternalisnl-a paternalism more dangerous
to republican institutions than labor un-
ions-the paternalism that, narrowing ac-
tive ownership to the we who by acute
ness or experience can fathom the intri-
cacies of corporate organization, leaves
to the ordinary run of people no choice
respecting their savings, other than to
spend them as they are gathered. or 20
loan them to the masters Of the corporate
machinery"
Il have no fault to find said the
speaker, with the corporation legislation
of the last congress. To the extent that
it will get together the data on which
to build a future national policy respect
ing corporations. it is constructive legis-
lation. But if it stop at that, or, what
is more likely, if it turn its whole though.
to what is known as publicity-to the
turning inside out of the affairs of pres
ent incorporated enterprises, and those
that shall come after them-leaving it to
the five and forty states TO organize as
corporations are now organized, these
that do come after, the legislation will
have wholly missed the mark. The main
object TO be aimed at is not general and
promiscuous publicity. 1t would not be
good business sense, it wiuld not be fair,
to compulsorily hang up every incOrpor-
ated business, great or small, where ev-
cry mischief maker could hawk at, and
every competitor copy il. The main OBJ
ject to be aimed at is a repeOpleizing of
the industries of the country: and this
cae only be accomplished by a corporate
policy under which a corporation dishon-
ostly conceived cannot be organized at
ali, and a corporation dishonesty ad-
ministered viii pass at once, before the
evil is irremediable, into the hands OF
the courts or some department of the
government. What is to be sought is not
so much publicity as prevention; not so
much the turning of incorporated enter
prises out of doors, where every fault
finder and rival may lay hands upon it,
as to make them reasonably safe offices
in which those who have the will may
entrust their investments. Corporate or
saniZation has come To be the embodi-
ment of our entire industrial proprietor
- fT1nSppnd0nf
aim. should be to make this proprietor
ship widely diversified among the people
the persistence in substance. though diff
ferent in form, of that widespread popu-
lar ownership upon which, as one of its
chief cornerstones. our Republican insti-
tutions We're founded, and without which
no republic can maintain secure
Concluding. Judge Grosscup said: Cor
are here to stay. Big corpora
tons are here to stay. Labor unions that
abide the laws are here to stay. To deal
with them. as one would deal with mad
dogs, is to ask public opinion Itself to
go mad But these interests, corporate
and personal. one and all, must be
brought under the ful dominion CT law
They must be allowed to trample no
mans rishts on the ground. They must
be allowed to successfully shelter no man
oent on robbing his fellow men. They
must. and they can. he made the open
loor to opportunity; the door through
which every American, great ana small |
nay with reasonable security, carry his |
ambition TO share in his country's pros !
}erity and in the freedom of his coun-
rvs laws -