The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1906-12-04


Records show that during the TWEEN
ty years from Jan. /. 1881, to Dec. 81.
1900, there were strikes affecting IT,
500 establishments, and 6,105.694 en-
ployees were thrown out of employ
ment During the same period there
were 1905 lockouts, involving nearly
10000 establishments, throwing over
100000 people out of employment.
These strikes and lockouts involved an
estimated loss to employees of $307,-
100000 and to employers OF $143,000,
900. a total Of $450,O0o,OO0 The public
suffered directly and indirectly prob
ably as great additional loss.
Many Of these strikes and Iockouts
would not have occurred had the par
ties to the dispute been required to
appear before an unprejudiced body
representing the nation and. face to
face, state the reasons for their con-
tention. The exercise of judicial
spirit by a disinterested body repre-
senting the federal government. such
as would be provided by commission
on Cancellation and arbitration. would
tend to create an atmosphere of friend
illness and Cancellation between con-
tending parties
Control OF Corporations.
1t cannot too often be repeated that
experience has conclusively shown the
impossibility Of securing by the actions
OF nearly half hundred different state
legislatures anything but ineffective
chaos in the way of dealing with the
great corporations which do not oper-
ate exclusively within the limits of
any one state. In some method, wheth-
er by q national license law or in other
fashion, we must exercise, and that at
an early date, "a far more complete
control than at present over these great
corporations-a control that will. among
other things. prevent the evils of ex-
cessive overcapltalization and that win
compel the disclosure by each big cor
poration of its stockholders and of its
properties and bus ness. whether own
ed directly or through subsidiary or
affiliated corporations, This will tend
to put a stop to the securing Of lnor-
dinate profits by favored individuals at
the expense whether of the general
public. the stockholders or the wage
workers. Our effort should be not so
much to prevent consolidation as such,
but so to supervise and control 1t as
to see that it results in no harm to the
people
Combination Of capital, like combina-
ton Of labor. is a necessary element of
our present Industrial system. It Is
not possible completely to prevent it,
and If it were possible such complete
prevention would do damage to the
body polite What we need is not
vainly TO try to prevent all combina-
ton, but to secure such rigorous and
adequate control and supervision OF
the combinations as to prevent their
injuring the public or existing in such
form as inevitably to threaten injury
for the mere fact that combination
has secured practically complete con
troll of a necessary OF life would undel
any circumstances show that sucI
combination was to be presumed to b.
adverse to the public interest. 1t il
unfortunate that our present laws
should forbid all combinations instead
of sharply discriminating between
those combinations which do good anS
those combinations which do evil. Re
bates, for Instance. are as often due t
/ the pressure OF big shippers las wa
shown In the Investigation OF th'
Standard OIL company and as has beef
shown since by the investigation o
4 the tobacco and sugar trustsl as TO th
initiative OF big railroads. Often rail
roads would like to, combine Tor til
purpose Of preventing big shlppe
from maintaining improper advantage
at the expense OF small shippers an
OF the general public. such combine
ton. instead or being forbidden by Law
rhouid be favored. In other words.
should be permitted to railroads :
make agreements, provided these agree
ments were sanctioned by the intel
state commerce commission and wer
published With these two condition
sar, orr trrrtfrrtr tA AMI