Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1905-08-11
STRIKE THE
MEN THAT
MAKE 1T
Judge Dill Suggests a Plan
for Controlling the
Corporations

THE ooRPoRATIoN-Tt Is not bad.
according to Judge j. B. Din Of New
jersey; 1t is the men behind It.
THE REMEDY-strike with the law
the men and o the corporations.
which are m@e machines.
AN ExAMPLE-If you put a direc-
tor on the cOwcatcher you'n stop
the head-on collisions.
I'm a corporation lawyer, but I al.
ways took my corporation meals a la
carte and not table d'hote. 1 newer
took the whole meal with them. 1
never took an annual retainer from a
corporation in my life. I never want.
ed to put myself in a position whore
l would have to do something 1 didn't
want to. The trouble with the corpO-
rations Of today is that a great many
OF them try to control the lawyers.
They want to own them body, boots
and SOUL" said Judge James b. Dill,
OF the court Of errors and appeals, the
court Of last resort Of the State Of
New Jersey, at the Portland hotel this
morninf. "a lawyer in this position
is a helpless creature. Put a fly in a
bottle and put the cork in aud he can't
buzz, can hei Put an eagle in u cage
and hos only fit for the boys to feed
peanuts to. When you want TO hit a
corporation strike the men that made
It.
81 have been asked 40 times why
/ took a pace on the bench Of the
New Jersey court Of errors and ap.
peals, but the answer ought to be
clear. A large part Of the corpora.
tion business Of the nation is done in
that state, because tho corporations
are organized there. The question of
internal government of the corpora
tions are relegated back to the state
which created them. The other courts
haven't jurisdiction. In other words
New Jersey must spank her own chill
dren. I thought ia like to take hold
Of the spanker.
Mistaken idea.
"Thore Is a mistaken idea about cor
porations. A corporation isn't bad.
It's the man in It. A suit Of clothes
isn't bad; it's the man inside Of It.
In cases whore the criminal negligence
of corporations results in the loss Of
human life, the individuals that eom-
pose the corporation should be held ac-
countable. II a corporation director
sits up there and takes the money, he
should come down here and take the
blame. There was an instance Of that
kind about seven months ago, whore
the track Of the Public Service eorpor'
alton hadn't been sanded and n ear
ran down and killed a lot Of little
children at the Clinton crossings &C
eident. What did tho grand jury dot
II indicted every one Of tho directors
for murder. II you want 10 put a
stop 10 head-on collisions, put a direer
tor on the eowcatcher. You won't
have any more of them, will yOui No.
In this Clinton Crossings ease, they
had A. J.. Cassatt, president Of the
Philadelphia railroadj United States
Senator Dryden and about 20 other
prominent men indicted for murder
That's the way to get at the corpora
ton liability question.
Indict the Men.
"Don't indiet the corporations in
dict the men. One object some men
have in Incorporating is to be able to
do things as corporations that they
wouldn't do as individuals. There is
ground for the assertion that because
the men who do these things are too
high up, because they have vast eapi
tai and great influence behind them,
their acts are designated as opera
lions rather than crimes If l punch
Won in the stomach with an umbrella,
why should You complain about my
umbrella1-hit me in the nose"
Judge Dill detailed other instances
10 show that the way to reach the base
of corporation liability is nos to indiet
its employees or proceed against the
corporation, but to direct the arm OF
the law against the officials or dlfee'
tors of the corporation. That, he said
would lessen the evils existant.
what is the cause OF grant
iudgei" was asked.
at is because the average American