The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1905-11-12

That is not imposing upon the individual!
a hardship, but il is simply saying to
these great agencies that are created by
law. II YOU are to have the advantages
of corporate form YOU must submit
yourself TO the sovereign that created
you, or mas the right TO regulate your
conduct You must allow that sovereign
10 Know Wnat your purposes We're in
your original creation; YOU must let il
know what your promoters are getting
Out OF the stock that they issue upon
the market; YOU must let the people
with whom You are to deal know char
acter and the values of your properties;
the persons who are responsible for the
cofpofate action. whether the corpora
titn Is a gutSe to cover the real work
DehS done In other words the Gov
eminent must have the right. as il now
mas the right with the national banks
10 know from an inspection of the books
ana the records OF these greater cor
pofauonS engaged in interstate com
me- &c. what they are doing how they
are doing It. and what the purposes Of
their organization are
The numerous attorneys employed
by the railroads to help Congress
legislate on interstate commerce will
be quick to note that reference to all
businesses that have the advantage
Of corporate form" and the argument
that every such business must be
made to open its books land all its
books to the agents of the Gov
eminent They may be expected to
note also. that this thorough probing
is predicated upon the plan outlined
! by Commissioner Garfield in his last
annual repOrt-the limitation of in
terstate commerce by the institu-
ton of a Federal franchise or license
system for such as engage in that
I commerce. Because, while the pres
ent law provides that the commits
siOner shall investigate amy corpo-
I ration, joint stock company, or cor
porate combination engaged in COM
merce among the several States it
! explicitly excerpts common carriers
/ and leaves them subject to the rather
slender control of the Interstate Com
merce Commission. That control is
apparently bad enough in railroad
eyes. but it is evidently not so much
disliked as Investigations like those
which have brought the beef pack
ers to the bar of the court and in
yolved the private car lines so disas-
trously. Yet the only explanation of
railroad opposition to inquiries is
that they, as well, have important
/ things to keep to themselves.
The scheme TO provide a Federal
franchise for interstate commerce
may, therefore, reasonably expect all
/ the antagonism now forming against
the Administration railway rate
/ proposals. To that will be added a
party of academies contending with
the resource of born doctrinaires
! against the further Capitalization of
our Government.
! The fight is sure to be hard. Law
yers, like preachers, can argue inter
/ minably about nothing and in this
case there will be a rich field of sub
! ject matter The issue will be greatly
/ and needlessly clouded before it is
even partly settled. But in the end
1t will be altogether settled and the
outlook is that, right or wrong, it
will be settled by Federal supervision
complete and insistent. Whatever
! the issue may be, Mr. Garfield is
right in contending that first we must
learn what present conditions really
are, whether the holder of a corporate
privilege is willing to divulge them
or not