Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1904-11-01

/ Investigations of the beef and other com
bines were also under way with view
/ to their prosecution when Mr.. Cleye-
lands term expired These were all
discontinued under the succeeding adj
ministratiOn.
! In Mr.. Cleveland's time the trusts were
relatively few The antitrust act was
passed by the same congress and at the
same session as the tariff vet of 1890
which raised tariff charges for the bene-
hit of favored enterprises higher than
ever before. This shows that the Re-
publican leaders foresaw that the GER
tain effect would be to cause rush of
capital into such enterprises and con-
sequent overproduction which would
lead to combinations to suppress COM
petition. Having set in motion the
cause of the evil they sought to appease
the people by leaving the courts to pun
ish what they were unwilling to pre-
vent
I But they had also, at the same session
passed the act requiring the govern
menG to make large monthly purchases
of silver They did this partly because
large numbers of them were silver men,
including Speaker Cannon and others,
who are now so devoted to the gold
standard, and partly to gain votes they
needed for their high favor taxes.
+ The result of its operation was
promptly to precipitate the financial
troubles which began in 1898, during
Mr. Harrison's term, and thereby check
enterprises of every nature, including
those which the favor taxes were
meant to stimulate. Consequently the
great era of trusts and combinations
was postponed aw
But it came with rush on the heels
of the tariff act of 1897, after Mr.. Cleve-
lands term had expired The tariff
was not an issue in the election of 1896,
but the favored interests promptly
exerted their control of the Republican
leaders to force through that act, which
raised tariff taxes on everything those
interests produced to still higher
iignres-an average OF over 30 per
cent.
Over-production soon followed.
Then trusts and combinations to pre-
vent competition and hold up the high
prices began to swarm like lOcusts.
There are hundreds of them, covering
almost everything the people require
in their daily life And this has been
the case during almost the entire seven
years throughout which, as Mr.. RoOse-
full control of every department of the
government.
Now how many of these has his All
ministratiOn prOceededsagainst? Only
a beggardly three or four at all, and
only one to q eonclusion-the Northern
Securities company, about which there
is so much self-gloriiication. AT once
aftei the decision of that case, which in
~ f<,liDxunA nd
piled the principles of the earlier cases
of Mr.. Cleveland's time, Mr.. Roose-
velt's attorney general announced that
the administration was not going to
run amuck" among the trusts and
combinations. This merely meant that
the one case was enough to blow the
trumpet about during the present cam
paign. All the hundreds of other and
far more hurtful trusts need feel no
alarm.
Mr. Roosevelt had said shortly before
that there are good trusts as well as
bad Only the had ones need fear
molestation. And it is easy TO see from
the generous OutpouringS of cash they
are putting in Cortelyou's hat that they
understand what the distinction be-
tween good trusts and bad ones is like
ly to be if Mr. Roosevelt remains in
office for four years more.
Surely he is human after all. In his
overpowering desire to be elected
which has made him turn his back on
so many of his former professions, he
is very human. Is it unnatural to as
sumo that as to every generous con-
tributor to that object he will
s'Be to its virtues very kind,
Be to its faults little blina?"