Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1905-05-31
ELIMINATE THE noes.

EllWIWAUk 10E uO0S.
It ia said that President Roosevelt
in speaking OF the great monopolies
now under discussion mace the re-
mark that "it is time tor the hogs to
take their feet out of the trough"
While tho expression is not very ele-
CANT, it is certainly very expressive.
Perhaps it expresses more than tho
strenuous president had In mind at the
time. He probably meant only to
make clear his determination to do
something to restrain the monopO}ists.
But it expresses far more than that,
to anyone who has ever tried to make
the hogs take their feet out Of tie
trough or seen some body - do it.
For the hog is the most stubborn
creature living. The mule is q weak.
ling in will power compared with the
we'll developed hog. You may whack
q hog over the head . good many
times before you can induce him to re-
move his feet from the trough-and
then he will have them back there in
stantly: II there are several hogs the
most strenuous hog whacker will sue.
coed in keeping only one OF them At q
time out Of the trough. While he IL
whacking one the others are enj ~ ing
themselves in true hog fashion, occu-
plying as much Of the trough as pos
sibls and then pushing the smaller
ones away. A slight whack will have
no perceptible il huence on them, ex.
cept that it may produce a short
grunt.
That is just the kind of job Teddy
will find on his hands if he attempts
to regulate the monopollsts. A slight
whack, such as an Injunction, will
have no effect.
That was proven in the beef trust
case. The trust never let out grunt.
but kept right on wallowinR in the
trough. A fine may produce slight
grunt. a more strenuous whack in
the shape of impris onment may induce
them to take their feet out temporarily
till the whacker turns his attention to-
another hog. That is just the difficulty
in trying to regulate q natural monop.
oly-you have to keep everlastingly
at it, and fight an opponent that may
rise and gore you.
In regulating these monopolies there
are so many things essential to sue
cess. First there must be man at
the head of the government that is free
to do his duty fesrlessly. How many
politicians reaching such q position
can be said to be free? They are
generally tied with promises, held
back by considerations for their par
ty, Influenced by the fnanciers who
scent danger to prosperity in any
attempt to disturb existing conditions.
An accidental president like Roose-
welt may be to some extent free from
these hindrances, but it is the rule,
not the exception, that governs. And
if accident gives US such q man at the
head of the government he can accomp-
lish very little without the hearty co.
operation of the legislative branch
and the executive authorities under
him. Even then the greatest trouble
has not been eliminated, for higher
than either of these are the courts,
where men who have teen trained in
the school of modern fnanciers final
~ decide what is the law and how It
shall be applied. Where one slight
fault in such an intricate machine can
throw the whole thing out of order it
is too much to hope for permanent
success. The opposition will drop a
monkey wrench In somewhere and stop
the machine.
There is only one sure way of get
ting the hogs feet out of the trough,
and that is by removing the hog. Re.
move the natural monopolies BY ma.
tionalizing them, and it will be pos.
sible to regulate combinations. The
beef trust is dependent on railroad
discrimination for its success in mo
nopolizing the trough. So with al
most every other trust-it is secret
rates that enable them to push away
their competitors. Remove the big
eest hog, the private railroad doing
public business, and you have re-
moved the worst foe OF the masses.
It is useless to talk about restorir e
competition among the railroads
The great majority OF the producers
are 80 situated that they can't get any
benefit from competition. What does
it benefit the people living along . GER
tain railroad line that there is another
line competing with it At the terminals?
Nothing; it makes it worse, tor the
losses occasioned by low terminal
rates will have to be made up by high
, or local rates. There is only one way
to secure full justice to the producers
everywhere and eliminate secret favors
to the monopolists, and that Is by
government ownership OF the rail
roads.
The same is true of everything else
that is by its nature monopoly. The
street car service 10 the cities must be
monopoly. There can't be any com
peting lines, for 1t 10 bad enough to
endsnger lives and hinder freigh,
traffic by giving franchises to one cor.
poration for running street cara. So