Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1905-12-06
Makes Recommendation
for What He Considers
Observation-Disclosures.
RAILROAD RATES FIRST TOPIC
Would Materially Increase the
Powers of Interstate Com
merce Commission.
LIFE INSURANCE QUESTION

---A4KS TOT xunm0u1oSe App1Op11"
atoms for Panama Canal, and
Promises Report Of Board Of En-
gineers and Recommendations
Later---0ther Matters,
Washington, Dec 5.-The annual mes
SAGE Of President Roosevelt was reao III
both houses of congress to-day. 1t is doc
umen1 of some $4,000 words, and con-
tains recommendation for much important
legislation.
The subject OF federal supervision Oh cor
porations, and especially railroad corpora
lions. is the first subject treated Oh pS the
president, and to il he gives the srea'ess
amount Of attention. After speaking OF the
general prosperity of the country, ana inc
power of the corporations for sooc CT eeu
In connection with the nations prosperity
he says:
G. ,,,~ as the finances of the nation
,~e kent upon an honest basis. no otnef
question of internal economy with Whico
the CONGRESS has the power TO deal begins
to approach in Importance the mater ~.
endeavoring to secure proper anoust.Aai
conditions under which the ind1ViduaAs-.
and especially the great corporat'ons-
doing an interstate business are 70 ac.'
The makers of our national constitution
provided especially that the regulation
Of interstate commerce should come with
In the sphere Of the general government.
The arguments in favor Of their taxing
this stand were even then overwhelming
But they are far stronger to-day, in view
Of the enormous development OF great
business agencies. usually corporate IN
form. Experience has shown conclusive
" that il is useless to try to get any
adequate regulation and supervision OF
these grea, 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. I believe
that this regulation and supervision can
be obtained by the enactment OF Law by
the congress. II this proves impossible,
it viii certainly be necessary ultimately
to confer in fullest form such power upon
the national government by q proper
amendment of the constitution 1t would
obviously be sunwlse: to sendearor 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,
have resulted more often in showing that
the states have no power in the matter
than that the national government has
power; so that there at present exists
4 very unfortunate condition of things,
under which these great corporations do
Ing al 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. In
substance It Is merely restoration: for
from the earliest time such regulation
OF Industrial activities has been recoe-
nized in the action of the law-makinx
bodies; and all that I propose is to meet
the changed conditions in such manner
as Will prevent the commonwealth abii-
eating the power it has always possessed
not only In this country. but also In
England before and since this country
became separate nation.
Present Laws Inadequate.
1t has been a misfortune that the ma
1onai ia~s on this subject have hitherto
oeen OF negative or prohibitiye rather
tnan an Affirmative kind, and still more
i that they have in part sought to prohibit
what could not be effectively prohibited
anu nave in part in their prohibitions
COMPOUNDED what should be allowed and
what should not be allowed. It is xen-
erauy useless to try to prohibit all re,
strA.ht~ on competition, whether this re-
stralnf be reasonable or unree sonab,e.
and where 1t Is not useless It is xener.
any hurtful- Events have shown thar ~
1s not possible adequately to secnra +he
enforcement Of any law of this kind h,,
1'1cessaf! appeal to the courts. The de-
paftn'ehe OF Justice has for the last fonr
asVoteo more attention to the en-
1OTCelQGNf ma
than TO anything else Much ho.1eo-
accompi1shed; particularly markac .. -, :,
peen the moral effect of the prosec,7+;ans.
sDut II IS increasingly evident that there
VIII be very insufficient benef7cia1. 70.
suit In the way of economic change m.
successful prosecution of one device tn
evade the law Immediately deyeloDs an-
other device to accomplish the same pur-
pose. What is needed Is not sweeping
prohibition Of every arrangement, good
or bad, which may tend to restrict COM
petition, but such adequate supervision
and regulation as will prevent any re-
Striction Of competition from being to
the ,detriment of the public-as well as
such supervision and regulation as win
prevent other abuses In no way connected
with restriction of competition OF these
abuses. perhaps the chief, although by
no means the only one, Is overcapita1ixa-
ti0n-generally itself the result of dishon-
est OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES of the myriad
evils it brings In its train; for sucn over
capitalization often means an initiation
that invites business panic: it always con-
ceals the true relation of the profit earned
to the capital actually invested, and II
creates q burden Of interest payments
which is a fertile cause of Improper re-
duction in or limitation of wages: IL
damages the small investor 5t1iscouraxes
thrift, and encourages gambling ana
speculation; while perhaps worst Of all
is the thickness and dishonesty which tt
implies-for harm to morals is worse than
any possible harm to material interests.
and the debanchery of politics and busf-
ness by great dishonest corpora tons is
far worse than any actual material evil
they do the public, Until the national
government obtains, in some manner
which the wisdom Of the congress NAV
suggest, proper control over the big cor
porations engaged in interstate commerce
that Is. over the great majority OF the
b big corporations-it win be impossible to
@#dea! adequately with these evils.
5 % Railroad Rate Regulation.
s451 am well aware Of the dificulties
sof the Legislation that I am suggest
ing, and of the need OF temperate and
5cauti ous action in securing it should
r emphat icaI1y protest against 1mprop-
cry radical or Hasty action. The first
thing to dpis to deal with the great
corpora tons engaged In the business
of int CIR st ate transportation As said
{ In my message of December last the
b irrIne date and most pressing need. e