The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1906-12-04


10000 establishments. throwing over
100000 people out OF employment.
These strikes aud lockouts involved an
estimated loss 10 employees OF S307.
100000 and TO employers OF $4,000
600, n totai OF Si50OO0,O0O. The public
suffered directly sud indirectly prob.
ably as great additional loss.
Many Of these strikes and lockouts
would not have occurred had the par.
ties 20 the dispute been required 10
appear before an unprecedented body
representing the nation and, face 20
face. state the reasons for their con
tentlon. The exercise OF judicial
spirit by n dlslntcrcstcd body repre-
sentlng the federal government. such
as would be provided by commission
ON Cancellation and arbitration, would
tend 10 create an atmosphere OF friend.
illness aud Cancellation between con.
tending parties.
CONTROL OF CORPORATIONS.
II cannot too often Ice repeated than
experience has conclusiyely shown the
lmposslbIllty Of securing by the actions
OF nearly half a hundred. different state
legislatures anything but>lneirectIye
chaos In the way OF dealing with the
great corporations which do not opcr.
ate exclusively within the limits OF
any one state. In some method. wheth.
or by national license law or In other
fashion. we must exercise. AID that nj
an early date. far more complete
control than at present over these great
corporations control that will, among
other things prereut the evils Of ex'
cesslve overcapltallzation and that will
compel the disclosure 10y each big cor.
porailon OF ats stockholders and OF Its
properties and business. whether own
ed directly or through subsidiary or
affiliated corporations. This will tend
TO put stop 10 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 10 prevent consolidation as such.
but so TO supervise and control II ms
TO see that II results In no harm 10 the
people.
Combination OF capital. like comblna.
ton Of labor. Is n necessary element OF
our present Industrial system. II Is
not possible completely TO prevent 1T,
and II II were possible such complete
prevention would do damage to the
body polite. What we need is not
vainly 10 try TO prevent all comblna-
ton, but 10 secure such rigorous and
adequate control and supervision OF
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 under
any circumstances show that such
combination was TO be presumed to be
adverse to the public interest. 1t Is
unfortunate that our present laws
should forbid all combinations instead
of sharply discriminating between
those combinations which do good and
those combinations which do evil. Re
bates. for instance, are as often due TO
the pressure of big shippers las was
shown In the investigation Of the
Standard OIL company and as has been
shown since by the investigation Of
the tobacco and sugar trusts as to the
initiative of big railroads. Often rail
roads would like to combine for the
purpose of preventing big shipper
from maintaining improper advantages
at the expense of small shippers and
of the general public Such combina
ton, instead of being forbidden by law,
should be favored. In other words, 1t
should he permitted to railroads to
make agreements, provided these agree
ments were sanctioned by the inter
state commerce commission and were
published With these two conditions
complied with II is impossible to see
what harm such a combination could
do to the public at large.
INHERITANCE AND INCOME TAX.
The national government has long
derived its chief revenue from a tariff
ON imports and from an internal or ex-
else tax. In addition to these. there is
every reason why, when next our sys-
TEN of taxation is revised, the national
government should impose a graduated
inheritance tax and, If possible, grad
uated income tax.
am well aware that such subject
as this needs long and careful study in
order that the people may become IA
miliar with what Is proposed to be
done, may clearly see the necessity of
proceeding with wisdom and self re-
straint and may make up their minds
just how far they are willing to go In
the matter. while only trained leglsla-
tors can work out the project In neces-
sary detail. But feel that In the near
future our national legislators should
enact a law providing for graduated
inheritance tax by which a steadily in
creasing rate of duty should be put
upon all moneys or other valuables
coming by gift, bequest or devise to
any individual or corporation. There
can be no question of the ethical pro-
priety of the government thus deter
mining the conditions upon which any
gift or inheritance should be received.
AS the law now stands it is undoubt-
edly difficult to devise a national in
come tax which shall be constitutional.
But whether it is absolutely impossible
is another question, and IL possible 1t
is most certainly desirable. The first
purely income tax law was passed by
the congress in 1861, but the most Inn
portant law dealing with the subject
Mas that of 1894. This the court held