Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1905-12-07

Sl44OS1S eA
.ater---Other Matters.
Washington, Dec. 1.-THE annual mes
sag re o. President Roosevelt was fead III
both hot yes of congress to-day. IL is a doc-
ument of some 24,U0 words, and con-
tains recommendations for much important
legislation.
The subject of federal supervision OF cor
porations. and especially railroad corpora
lions is the first subject treated of by the
president, and to it he gives the greatest
amount of attention. After speaking OF the
general prosperity of the country, and the
mower of the corporations for gooo or eVli
in connection with the nations prosperity
he says:
Co long as the finances of the nation
are kept upon an honest basis, no otner
question of internal economy with Whlch
the congress has the power to zeal begins
to approach in Importance the mater -
endeavoring to secure proper lndust,ia'
conditions under which the n%dlVlouals-
and especially the great corporations
doing an Interstate business are to act
The makers of our national constitution
nrovided especially that the regulation
of interstate commerce should come with
m the sphere of the general government,
The arguments in favor OF their taxing
thic stand were even then overwhelming.
Rut thew are far stronger to-day, in view
of the enormous development OIL great
business agencies, usually corporate IN
form. Experience has shown conclusive
ly that it is useless to try to get any
adequate regulation and supervision OF
these great corporations by state action.
Such regulation and supervision can only
be effectively exercised by a sovereign
whose jurisdiction is coextensive with the
field of work of the corporations-that Is,
by the national government. l. believe
that this regulation and supervision can
be obtained by the enactment of law by
the congress. If this proves Impossible,
it will certainly be necessary ultimately
to confer in fullest form such power upon
the national government by a proper
amendment of the constitution. 1t would
obviously be unwise to endeavor to secure
such an amendment until it is certain
that the result cannot be obtained under
the constitution as it now Is. The laws
of the congress and of the several states
hitherto, as passed upon by the courts,
haze resulted more often in showing that
the states have no power in the matter
thar that the national government has
power; so that there at present exists
a very unfortunate condition of things,
iINAN AAAN AiNE 6tNl " " AoNAotIo Nv
ing an interstate business occupy the po-
sition of subjects without a sovereign,
neither any state government nor the ma
tional government having effective con-
troll over them. Our steady aim should
be by legislation, cautiously and care
fully undertaken, but resolutely per-
severed in, to assert the sovereignty OF
the national government by affirmative
action.
This is only in form an innovation. Ir
substance it Is merely a restoration: fol
from the earliest time such regulation
of Industrial activities has been recog
nized in the action of the law-makine
bodies; and all that I propose is to NEE
the changed conditions in such manner
as will prevent the commonwealth abdi
eating the power it has always possessed
not only in this country, but also il
England before and since this country
became a separate nation.
present Laws Inadequate.
1t has been a misfortune that the ma
tonai laws on this subject have hitherto
been of a negative or prohibitive rattle,
than an affirmative kind, and still NOR,
mat they have in part sought to prohibi
what could not be effectively prohibited
and have in part in their prohibition
COMPOUNDED what should be allowed an,
what should not be allowed. 1t is gen
orally useless to try to prohibit all re
straint on competition, whether this re
stralnt be reasonable or unreasonable
and where 1t is not useless 1t is gener
ally hurtfril. Events nave shown that /
is not possible adequately to secure Nh,
enforcement OF any law of this kind b,
lncessanl appeal to the courts. The de
partmeht OF Justice has for the last fou
years devoted more attention To the on
IDTGe10pnt or the nntI-fp,,et I.-f1As-
than to anything else. Much has bee
accomplished: particularly marked ha
peen tne moral effect of the prosecutions
out 1t is increasingly evident that ther
Will be a very insufficient beneficial re
suit in the way of economic change, TIL
successful prosecution of one device I
evade the law Immediately develops an
other device to accomplish the same pur
pose. What Is needed is not sweepln
prohibition Of every arrangement, goo
or bad, which may tend to restrict com
petition, but such adequate SUPERVISE
and regulation as will prevent any re
s~triction of competition from being t
the detriment of the public-as well a
such supervision and regulation as wi
prevent other abuses In no way connecte
with restriction of competition. OF thes
abuses, perhaps the chief, although b
no means the only one, is overcapitaliza
tion-generally itself the result of dishor
est promotion-because of the myria
evils 1t brings In Its train; for such ovel
capitalization often means an infatio
that invites business panic; 1t always col
ceals the true relation of the profit earne
to the capital actually invested, and
creates a burden of interest payment
which Is a fertile cause of improper r,
duction in or limitation of wages;
damages the small investor, discourage
thrift, and encourages gambling an
speculation; while perhaps worst of a
Is the thickness and dishonesty which
implies-for harm to morals is worse tha
any possible harm to material interest
and the debauchery of politics and bus
ness by great dishonest corpo. 'ations
far worse than any actual material ey
they do the public. Until the nation
government obtains, in some mann,
which the wisdom Of the congress ma
suggest, proper control over the big co
porations engaged in interstate CONNER,
that Is, over the great majority of Il
big corporations-it will be impossible
deal adequately with these evils.
Railroad Rate Regulation.
I am well aware OF the d~ificulti,
of the legislation that I am sugges
ing, and OF the need of temperate ar
cautious action In securing II. r shou'
emphatically protest against improl
erly radical or hasty action. The fir
thing to do is to deal with the grei
corporations engaged in the busine,
OF interstate transportation. Az I ga
in my message OF December 9 last, Il
Ia mediate and most pressing noed.